Position Introduction:

University of Oklahoma Libraries is seeking applications from OU graduate students for a graduate assistantship. The successful applicant will work with the Scholarly Publishing Librarian as part of the Publishing Services team which works to broaden global access to peer reviewed journals published in partnership with University of Oklahoma faculty. The Publishing Services program is an initiative of the Office of Open Initiatives & Scholarly Communication, a unit within the OU Libraries Digital Scholarship & Innovation Division.

The Graduate Research Assistant will contribute to a variety of open access and digital publishing initiatives, with a particular focus on supporting OU’s faculty-led, peer reviewed open access journals, published on the Open Journal Systems (OJS) digital platform. In partnership with the Scholarly Publishing Librarian, work may include:

• Data gathering, input, cleanup, and analysis;
• Reviewing websites and implementing updates based on web accessibility recommendations and best practices in scholarly publishing;
• Testing and troubleshooting publishing platform issues;
• Updating and revising department workflow documentation;
• Corresponding with journal stakeholders;
• Harvesting content from specific OU or publisher content sources;
• Contributing to the outreach and promotion of journals and open initiatives;
• Other related duties as assigned.
• Specific responsibilities will be partially dependent on the skills and abilities the successful candidate brings to the unit.

Required Education and Experience:

• Bachelor's degree and acceptance to a graduate degree program at the University of Oklahoma are required.
  • Must indicate expected date of graduation from master's program.
• Must be currently enrolled in the Fall 2026 Term as an graduate student in good standing at the University of Oklahoma.
• Hiring contingent upon verification of current student status.

Required Attachments:

• Resume
• Cover Letter,
  • including Statement of Purpose
• Class Schedule

This position is designed as a learning and resume-building experience for graduate students in the School of Library and Information Studies (SLIS) or related graduate degree programs. As such, candidates should have a strong interest in libraries; strong computing, interpersonal, writing, and oral communication skills; knowledge of standard library resources; and strong research skills. An ideal candidate will also have experience or interest in publishing, scholarly communication, or open educational resources.

The successful applicant will gain experience with journal publishing technologies and best practices; open access initiatives as a means for expanding the ways knowledge and information is shared and used; knowledge and information management and creation; and providing assistance to and developing partnerships with stakeholders across campus and beyond.

The appointment will begin August 2026.

**THIS POSITION MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR A TUITION WAIVER**

Interested applicants should review the Graduate Assistant Handbook at http://gradweb.ou.edu/Current/GAHandbook.pdf regarding eligibility requirements and policies for tuition waivers and benefits.

Skills:

• Strong computing, interpersonal, writing, and oral communication skills.
• Working knowledge of Mac OS and Windows, Microsoft Office and GSuite products (Word/Docs, Excel/Sheets, Powerpoint/Slides, Google Drive).
• Detail oriented with experience or interest in data gathering, clean up, and analysis.
• Strong service orientation and the ability to work effectively in a culturally diverse environment.
• Possess a strong work ethic; ability to work collaboratively and independently with minimal supervision.

Department Preferences:

• Experience with content management systems.
• Experience in an academic or public library or related space.
• Experience with publishing, scholarly communication, or open access.