George Watson’s College wishes to appoint an Archivist Intern for a period of six months from Autumn 2019.

THE SCHOOL

George Watson's College is one of the country's best co-educational independent day schools. Founded in 1741 by a local merchant concerned for the education of young minds, it fulfils to this day the role intended by its founder. Despite its size, everyone remarks that it has a small-school ‘feel’: the close-knit and friendly relationships amongst all its constituents are a hallmark of the School. Its motto – ex corde caritas (Love from the Heart) – is central to its values as it seeks to sustain what is described as ‘The Watson’s Family’.
This tangible sense of togetherness is significantly enhanced by everyone being on one purpose-built site, which is located in the attractive residential district of Morningside, to the South West of the centre of Edinburgh. Edinburgh itself is the second strongest city economy in the UK, outside of London, with the highest percentage of graduates and professionally qualified adults in the UK and over 25% of school age children attending fee-paying schools. Watson’s is proud of its independent status and, whilst remaining true to its Scottish roots, seeks to sustain and develop an international perspective. The curriculum is adapting to the innovations inherent in Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence and the Scottish National Qualifications. Consideration may also be given to pupils wishing to take the International Baccalaureate Diploma programme.
The School welcomes a wide range of academic ability, and has very high academic standards, with 90% of pupils going on to Higher Education and a large proportion of pupils achieving outstanding success. Watson’s also has excellent facilities, and offers a huge range of courses as well as extra-curricular activities. In addition, it has particular strengths in Sport, Music, Drama, Outdoor Education, Technology and in Support for Learning. The School is very well resourced with a campus-wide IT network.

JOB PURPOSE

The purpose of this role is to assist the School Archivist with the management of George Watson’s College archives, ensuring efficient cataloguing processes to allow the archive to operate as a resource for the School. Drafting of acquisition, retention and loan policies will be a key element of this internship.


JOB SPECIFICATION

Line Management

This role reports directly to the School Archivist.

DUTIES

●	With the School Archivist, draft policies to govern the acquisition, retention and lending of the collection in accordance with accepted standards and practices.
●	Accessioning new items into the Archive – classifying, cataloguing, digitisation, labelling, preservation and storage as appropriate.
●	Monitoring the condition of the collection with a view to ongoing preservation;
●	Identifying and recommending items to be conserved, reframed, mounted or rebound;
●	Researching specific archived materials to enable the answering of queries;
●	Note items of particular interest for publication in School magazines, possible exhibitions or on social media;
●	Maintaining the loans system where appropriate;
●	Updating of the school’s archival databases;
●	Answering queries from both internal and external sources, by telephone, email and in person.
 

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Essential Qualifications and Experience

This role will suit anyone with a proven interest in following an archives, museum or general
heritage career. You will have completed your undergraduate degree and should either have an ARA accredited diploma/degree or be working towards one. If you are planning to apply for a recognised postgraduate archive or heritage MA degree during this internship, then the position could contribute to your pre-course work experience. Applications from those who have already completed a general heritage MA may also be considered.

In particular the candidate should demonstrate:

●	Proven and engaged desire to follow an archive or heritage career;
●	Informed awareness of the work involved in archives administration;
●	Good IT skills for MS Office;
●	Excellent levels of written English;
●	Excellent verbal communication
●	An understanding of the need for confidentiality;
●	Friendly and able to engage with a wide range of users
●	Ability to work unsupervised;
●	Ability to work as part of a team
●	Flexibility and adaptability to changing priorities;

Desirable:
●	Previous experience of a formal archive service, this could be in a voluntary capacity;
●	Evidence of an interest in a heritage, historical or educational field.

They will abide by the Code of Conduct for Staff at George Watson’s College.

DETAILS
Stipend: £2,500 (to cover travel and expenses).
Working Hours: Part time (14.5 hours per week but flexible in working pattern)
Period of Internship: 6 Months/26 weeks.
Start Date: Autumn 2019 (flexible)
Line Management: The Archives Intern is managed on a day to day basis by the School Archivist
and is ultimately responsible to the Director of Admissions, Communications and Development.

DISCLOSURE SCOTLAND - PROTECTION OF VULNERABLE GROUPS SCHEME

All staff must be prepared to undergo screening to confirm their suitability to work with children and young people. 

CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT / PROFESSIONAL REVIEW

All staff are required to participate in appropriate programmes of continuing professional development and undergo professional review as set out in the School’s policy.

APPLICATION PROCESS

To apply, please send a letter of application of not more than 800 words giving us more information on why you think you are the most suitable candidate and what impact you think this internship may have on your career. The letter should be addressed to Mrs Fiona Hooper, School Archivist and emailed along with a copy of your CV and our Diversity Monitoring form to Mrs Jane Robinson, Head of Human Resources ([log in to unmask]) no later than noon on Wednesday 30 October 2019.

Any questions relating to the post itself can be put to Mrs Fiona Hooper, School Archivist by emailing [log in to unmask] .

Closing date: noon on Friday 20 October 2019

Interviews are scheduled to take place on Wednesday 30 October 2019.

Further details are available at https://www.gwc.org.uk/join-us/job-vacancies/

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