Digital Access & Metadata Librarian

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Deadline to apply: November 21, 2026 before 11:59 pm

Assistant Librarian or Associate Librarian (tenure track)

Duration: three years, with possibility of renewal
Salary minimum: salary commensurate with experience

The Digital Access & Metadata Librarian supports access to McGill Libraries’ digital resources in service of teaching, learning and research. This role focuses on ensuring seamless discovery and access to subscription, open access, and locally managed resources through the effective use of library systems, metadata practices, and emerging technologies.

Reporting to the Head, Description & Access, the incumbent supports the ongoing stewardship of digital resources across a wide range of vendor and library platforms, including activation, maintenance, troubleshooting, and communications.

THE McGILL LIBRARIES

Located in Montréal, one of the world’s great multicultural and multilingual cities, McGill University is internationally recognized for its excellence as a leading institution of higher education and research. For nearly 200 years, through the work of dedicated people, McGill has been breaking ground in diverse fields and contributing solutions to some of the world’s most significant issues. McGill is also the most internationally diverse research-intensive university in Canada, with over 32% of its students coming to McGill from more than 150 countries. The University systematically appears on the annual list of the best employers in Montreal.

The McGill University Libraries contribute to society by advancing teaching, learning, and research in a supportive and welcoming environment. We anticipate and respond to the needs of users by providing outstanding collections, excellent services, and spaces that inspire. We work in collaboration with global scholarly and library communities to enhance and facilitate access to knowledge.

The McGill Libraries has the largest collection in Quebec and is one of Canada’s largest academic libraries with over six million monograph titles and 150,000 e-journals and databases. The Libraries are a member of the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL), the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), the Partenariat des bibliothèques universitaires du Québec (PBUQ), the Center for Research Libraries (CRL), and the HathiTrust Digital Library.

INFORMATION FOR PROSPECTIVE STAFF

Information about the University and the McGill Libraries can be found on the University’s web site. The McGill Libraries have developed Strategic Priorities for 2025-2030 to guide its actions. As a tenure stream appointee, the successful candidate is expected to satisfy the requirements in the Regulations Relating to the Employment of Librarian Staff.

DUTY STATEMENT

Primary Purpose of Position

To ensure discovery and access to subscription, open access, and locally managed resources through the effective use of library systems, metadata practices, and emerging technologies.

Duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Ensure effective, timely and appropriate intellectual and technical access to resources in all formats across the Libraries’ catalogues and repositories.
• Maintain consistent and reliable access through systems such as integrated library systems (LPS), discovery services, link resolvers, proxy servers, and digital resource management tools.
• Support the ongoing activation, maintenance and monitoring of digital resources, including diagnosing and resolving access and linking issues.
• Perform and support metadata creation, transformation, maintenance and stewardship for digital and physical collections, applying established standards and contributing to the consistency, discoverability and interoperability of resource description.
• Act as a point of coordination between users, vendors, consortial partners (e.g. CRKN), Collection Services and the Libraries’ Communications team to support access, resolve issues, and share relevant information.
• Assist with the evaluation and implementation of tools and technologies, including emerging and AI-enabled solutions, to improve access workflows.
• Collaborate with colleagues across the Libraries to support integrated workflows related to resource description and access.
• Engage in scholarly activities and professional service.
• Advance the equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility as well as reconciliation with Indigenous People through the McGill University Libraries’ services and of the Libraries as a workplace.
• The duties listed above are representative and not exhaustive; responsibilities may evolve in response to institutional and library needs.

Reporting relationship

This position reports to the Head, Description & Access.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Required: 

• A degree from an accredited Master’s level program in library and information studies.
• Experience working with library metadata, cataloguing, digital collections and/or electronic resources.
• Ability to create, edit, assess and maintain metadata records using both record-level and batch-processing methods.
• Understanding of interoperability principles and metadata crosswalks.
• Demonstrated knowledge of metadata standards, resource description practices, and discovery systems.
• Knowledge of authentication and access technologies (e.g. EZProxy, OpenAthens, OpenURL/link resolver environments).
• Ability to investigate and troubleshoot complex access and metadata issues, and implement solutions.
• Capacity to balance competing priorities and projects.
• Ability to communicate technical information clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Demonstrated commitment to accessibility, user-centered services, and continuous learning.
• Fluency in oral and written English is required. McGill University is an English-language university where day-to-day duties may require English communication both verbally and in writing.

Desired:

• Familiarity with current and emerging metadata models, linked data, and semantic web applications in libraries.
• Demonstrated ability to apply AI technologies ethically and effectively in appropriate use cases.
• Experience participating in collaborative projects involving multiple library units, consortial partners, or external vendors.
• Familiarity with repository, digital collections, or scholarly communications environments.
• Experience using data manipulation, reporting, or workflow optimization tools.
• French language skills are highly desired; other languages considered an asset.
• Active participation in professional organizations undefined

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

Applications should address the above selection criteria, be accompanied by a letter of interest, curriculum vitae, and the names and addresses of three referees.  

*** Applicants are encouraged to indicate any accommodation needs related to job duties. ***

We anticipate conducting in-person interviews between January 17, 2027 and February 5, 2027.

Before applying, please note that to work at McGill University, you must be both authorized to work in Canada and willing to work in the province of Quebec at the campus where the position is based / located.

McGill University is an English-language university where most teaching and research activities are conducted in the English language, thereby requiring English communication both verbally and in writing.

McGill University is committed to equity and diversity within its community and values academic rigour and excellence. We welcome and encourage applications from racialized persons/visible minorities, women, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, ethnic minorities, and persons of minority sexual orientations and gender identities, as well as from all qualified candidates with the skills and knowledge to engage productively with diverse communities.

At McGill, research that reflects diverse intellectual traditions, methodologies, and modes of dissemination and translation is valued and encouraged. Candidates are invited to demonstrate their research impact both within and across academic disciplines and in other sectors, such as government, communities, or industry.

McGill further recognizes and fairly considers the impact of leaves (e.g., family care or health-related) that may contribute to career interruptions or slowdowns. Candidates are encouraged to signal any leave that affected productivity, or that may have had an effect on their career path. This information will be considered to ensure the equitable assessment of the candidate’s record.

McGill implements an employment equity program and encourages members of designated equity groups to self-identify. It further seeks to ensure the equitable treatment and full inclusion of persons with disabilities by striving for the implementation of universal design principles transversally, across all facets of the University community, and through accommodation policies and procedures. Persons with disabilities who anticipate needing accommodations for any part of the application process may contact, in confidence, [email protected].

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply; however, in accordance with Canadian immigration requirements, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.