Date:    Fri, 9 Jan 2004 17:48:00 +0000
From:    Serena Kelly <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Job vacancies at the British Library, India Office Records

Please see the advertisement below for two vacancies in the India Office
Records.  The closing date is 15 January.  I'd be grateful if you would
pass this on to anyone who might be interested.

If you require further information/an application form, please contact
Human Resources (address at the end of the advert) and not me as I will not
be directly involved in the recruitment process. Many thanks.

Penny Brook
Head of India Office Records

VACANCIES FOR ARCHIVISTS (GRADE C), ASIA, PACIFIC AND AFRICA COLLECTIONS,
SCHOLARSHIP AND COLLECTIONS, ST PANCRAS (2 POSTS)

Archivist, India Office Records (pre-1858)  Ref: P01-269-2003
Archivist, India Office Records (post-1858) and Private Papers  Ref: P01-
270-2003
London, St Pancras.  Salary c=A317-21k

The India Office Records are the archives of the administration in London
of the pre-1947 government of India.  They comprise the archives of the
East India Company (1600-1858), of the Board of Control (1784-1858), of the
India Office (1858-1947), of the Burma Office (1937-1948), and of a number
of related British agencies overseas.  The India Office Records are
administered as part of the Public Records of the United Kingdom.

The India Office Private Papers comprise about three hundred large
collections and over three thousand smaller deposits of papers relating
primarily to the British experience in India.  The Private Papers are
distinguished from the Records by their provenance from private sources.
Gifts of papers are still received and the Library occasionally purchases
papers.  The Indian sub-continent is the main geographical focus of the
India Office Records and Private Papers, but they also relate to countries
ranging from St Helena to Japan.

Working as part of a team of archivists and support staff you will
document, interpret, and exploit the records for the benefit of academic
researchers and a wider audience including family historians.  You will be
responsible for processing and cataloguing the India Office Records and
India Office Private Papers according to international archives standards
ISAD(G), ISAAR(CPF), NCA rules and UNESCO Thesaurus subject index terms.
You will assist in all aspects of the life cycle collection management of
the India Office Records and Private Papers, for example, preparing them
for automation, digitisation, storage, conservation, and microfilm
preservation.  You will also contribute to the production of improved
finding aids, reader guides and web pages in order to encourage greater
access to the collections.  You will also undertake Reading Room duties and
answer enquiries.

You should have a degree or equivalent qualification/experience in history,
preferably focussing on British history of the trading/imperial period or
on modern south Asian history.  You should have a post-graduate archives
qualification and/or previous experience of working in an archive or
library, or be prepared to obtain this qualification following your
appointment.  You should be enthusiastic, highly self-motivated, work as
part of a team, communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.  You
should have excellent IT skills.  You must be able to deal diplomatically
and courteously with readers and other enquirers, understanding and
interpreting their needs.  The successful candidates should have an
aptitude for collections-based research leading to the publication of
finding aids and reader guides relating to the India Office Records.

For further details and an application form please contact Human Resources,
British Library, Boston Spa, LS23 7BQ, tel. +44 (0)1937 546330 (24 hrs), e-
mail [log in to unmask] or visit www.bl.uk/about/vacancies.html quoting
the relevant reference number.  (See heading above.)  Closing date for
receipt of applications is Wednesday 15 January.