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The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning.

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The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.

Posted Job Title

Digital Humanities Specialist

Job Profile Title

Librarian B

Job Description Summary

The Digital Humanities Specialist will work closely with members of the Center for Research Data and Digital Scholarship at Penn Libraries and with the Price Lab, which oversees many of the humanities projects at Penn that take advantage of advanced computational methods. The DH Project Specialist will be an important member of the scholarly network in the School of Arts and Sciences and the Penn Libraries, with responsibilities that include: working on collaborative DH projects, developing and teaching workshops, and staying current on relevant technologies, methods, and debates within digital humanities and data science.

Job Description

The Penn Libraries and the Price Lab seek a DH Specialist who will be part of the Center for Research Data & Digital Scholarship at the Penn Libraries, supporting scholars in the use of digital tools and methods. The Specialist will be the Center’s chief liaison to the Price Lab for Digital Humanities in the School of Arts and Sciences.

As a scholar with experience in the use of computational and immersive technologies for humanistic work as well as new forms of digital publication and presentation of humanities research, the DH Specialist will be an important member of the digital humanities network at Penn. Responsibilities will include: working on collaborative DH projects, developing and teaching workshops, and staying current on relevant technologies, methods, and debates within data science.

While all of these responsibilities are an important part of the role, the DH Specialist will also be part of a team at the Libraries and the Price Lab that is helping humanists at Penn think critically about emerging technologies. Technologies such as AI have tremendous power to advance humanities research as they have done in the natural and social sciences, but the technologies bring with them potentially damaging cultural biases and social effects that are notoriously difficult to gauge. A priority for both the Price Lab and the Libraries is to look closely at the ethical implications of any advanced algorithmic technologies that might be used in humanities research and to help humanists become more informed and critical users of these technologies.

Although some uncertainty is unavoidable given the current situation, the Price Lab and the Libraries are committed to providing ongoing support for the professional success of the Digital Humanities Specialist and to the possibility that they could transition to a permanent position pending the successful completion of the initial four-year period.

Qualifications

• Advanced humanities degree is required, PhD preferred
• 1-2 years experience working in a Digital Humanities or Digital Scholarship lab or library position
• Programming experience; familiarity with Python preferred
• Knowledge and critical awareness of current best practices and scholarly debate around immersive technologies
• Familiarity with Digital Humanities tools and their uses, limitations and affordances, as well as facility teaching these tools
• Experience planning and managing collaborative projects
• Experience working in a humanities discipline, and facility bringing technical and theoretical skills together
• Teaching experience

Note- This position is grant funded for a 4 year period ending June 30,2024 *** REQUIRED*** Please submit a resume and cover letter as one attachment when applying.

Job Location - City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Department / School

School of Arts and Sciences

Pay Range

$42,953.00 - $77,315.00

Affirmative Action Statement 

Penn adheres to a policy that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected class.

Special Requirements 

Background check required after a conditional job offer is made. Consideration of the background check will be tailored to the requirements of the job.