The Vienna Wiesenthal Institute for Holocaust Studies (VWI), which is funded by the City of Vienna and the Republic of Austria and which was jointly conceived with Simon Wiesenthal before his death, is dedicated to the research, documentation and dissemination of all matters related to antisemitism, racism and the Holocaust.
It was a special concern of Simon Wiesenthal in the final years of his life that his personal archive, which emerged from his many years of work, should be made accessible for research. The documents he collected were to serve as the basis for innovative new research, which would preserve the spirit of his work in an era in which both the perpetrators and the victims of National Socialism were no longer alive. Wiesenthal’s personal archive, as well as the materials related to the Holocaust from the Archive of the Jewish Community in Vienna, which are being loaned to the VWI, form the core of the new archive of the institute.
These collections serve as the basis for a number of research projects, publications and events. These documents will be made accessible to researchers as well as to the broader, interested public.
Responsibilities
The archivist is responsible for the two main components of VWI’s archival program - the Holocaust-related materials from the Archive of the Jewish Community (IKG) and the personal archive of Simon Wiesenthal. The archivist is tasked with processing, cataloguing and maintaining the collections and their related databases, as well as ensuring professional preservation of the materials and collection objects. Simultaneously, the archivist will be responsible for the planning and execution of new documentation projects related to the scholarly work of the institute. (S)he will assist external users, the Fellows and employees of the VWI, as well as journalists, with their queries. A further central responsibility will be to present the archive in public events, tours, and research seminars.
Requirements
A central requirement is an active interest and professional experience with the operation of a scholarly documentation centre for the history of the Holocaust, an openness towards new forms of archival enterprise, and the desire to further develop often complex documentation programmes and databases. Experience with independent processing and development of collections and documentation efforts is desired. Of equal importance is that the candidate demonstrates creativity and resourcefulness in highlighting the value of relatively unknown aspects of the collection for the public, as well as designing a collection development strategy to acquire new, relevant materials to expand the archive.
Fundraising for external funds and discovery of new funding opportunities for special projects towards the further expansion of the archive are also a part of the archivist’s duties. The archivist will also be solely responsible for coordinating the work of student workers and archival interns, as well as ensuring their work conforms with the guidelines of VWI’s digitization experts.
The candidate is expected to demonstrate requisite archive-specific IT skills, in particular the competent use of established archival software. The archivist position requires solid training in archival scholarship and/or at least a Master’s degree in archival science (equivalent to the University of Vienna’s “Geschichtsforschung, Historische Hilfswissenschaften und Archivwissenschaft”), or an accredited degree in information science/archival studies from a University outside Austria.
Excellent command of German and English are expected. Basic knowledge of Yiddish and Hebrew are desirable.
The successful candidate has strengths in conceptual thinking and action, talent for organisation, self-initiative, a high degree of service and customer orientation, and the ability to work as part of a team .
To begin with, the employment is anticipated to entail 32 hours per week. Compensation will be set according to the University Service Stufe B1 salary ladder.
Please submit your application electronically and in PDF-format by 1 November 2021 to: bewerbungen@vwi.ac.at.