Wanted: Postdoctoral Research Assistant: Discovery and Metadata for Digital Audio Archives

Postdoctoral Fellowship in Discovery and Metadata for Digital Audio Archives Department of English, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec.

The Department of English at Concordia University is accepting applications for a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Discovery and Metadata for Digital Audio Archives to begin as early as January 15th, 2013 or for the 2013-2014 academic year. The successful applicant would work closely with the multidisciplinary SpokenWeb research team to develop a web-based archive for poetry recordings.

The postdoctoral fellowship is intended for recent PhDs in Library and/or Information Studies who are interested in the development of web-based scholarly resources, in particular digital sound archives on the Web. Specifically, we seek an individual with expertise in the creation or management of web-based digital collections and archives, and who has demonstrated experience or expertise in metadata creation and the development of controlled vocabularies or thesauri for non-textual resources. The fellow will explore the advantages and challenges associated with the creation of a specific controlled vocabulary or thesaurus for documentary audio poetry recordings.

Along with continuing their own research agenda, the postdoctoral fellow will develop a plan to optimize discovery of audio recordings through browsing and searching of our audio corpus, with a view to creating a vocabulary that is flexible enough to be usefully deployed for other literary sound recording archives. In the process of developing such a plan, the fellow will be encouraged to explore the advantages and challenges associated with the creation of a specific controlled vocabulary or thesaurus for documentary audio poetry recordings and to explore and suggest alternative or experimental knowledge organization systems or methods of information retrieval which might be applicable to this project. The fellow will ideally have an academic background in English, Canadian or American literature and/or have some exposure to 20th century North American poetry and conventions for describing literary content. Familiarity with issues surrounding digital delivery of archival materials is necessary. Familiarity with audio recordings or audio formats is desirable.

The postdoctoral fellow with work with a team of scholars from the disciplines of English, Library, Archival and Information Studies, Computer Science, Design and Computation Arts and Oral History. The stipend for the fellowship will be $30,000.00 (plus benefits) for a 12 month appointment. More information on the Spoken Web project is available at .

Application packages are to be sent electronically and should include include:
• A cover letter explaining research agenda and interests • A one-page statement situating individual and ongoing research in relation to the position’s proposed research agenda re discovery and metadata for digital audio archives • A curriculum vitae • A list of references with contact information. Letters of recommendation are not requested at this time.

Send all application materials as a single pdf file by December 28, 2012, via email to Dr. Jason Camlot, Principal Investigator of the SpokenWeb project at jason.camlot@concordia.ca