USF Libraries Internships

Project Name: Florida History Metadata Enhancement Project Description:

Focusing on our Florida Studies digital collections, our intern will perform metadata clean up and enhancement. This involves adding subject and geographic keywords to digitized archival materials and researching dates and locations of materials. Materials range from local organizations like the Centro Asturiano de Tampa to local photography studio Robertson & Fresh, and more.

Anticipated Outcomes/Benefits:

• Learn metadata and digital collections basics
• Increase confidence in Excel
• Learn more about Florida history
• Hone research skills and ability to synthesize knowledge into keywords
• Communicate transferable and functional skills to prospective employers
• Receive and solicit feedback from supervisor and effectively apply feedback on the job

Special Skill Sets:

• Ability to work independently with strong attention to detail
• Excel – Able to perform basic functions including filters and complex sorting
• (Preferred) Spanish language proficiency in reading Spanish

Other Requirements:

On-site work in USF Tampa Library. USF Libraries will provide a double monitor, computer, and desk. Adobe Bridge will be loaded onto the computer.

Project Name: Improving findability, accessibility, and usage of NPML’s juvenile collection for faculty and students Project Description:

In alignment with USF Libraries’ Strategic Direction directed towards Developing Distinctive Collections, this project will focus on updating the juvenile collection section to meet the current needs of our faculty and students. The Nelson Poynter Memorial Library (NPML) Research & Instruction (R&I) department’s work includes

Specifically, the Instructional Materials Collection which is largely comprised of older educational games – many with missing or broken pieces – will be weeded to make way for a ‘new and noteworthy’ section. Education faculty are very interested in the collection, but struggle to locate material for their classes and research, and pre-service teachers who need to locate material for their internships are unable to identify the books that best meet their needs. In addition to the section, the intern will assist in creating a number of curated juvenile book lists that align with our campus’ material requests. Candidates for this position should be interested in learning about collections, willing to participate in faculty collaborations, and diligent in their independent work when provided with appropriate support and management.

Anticipated Outcomes/Benefits:

At the conclusion of this project, the intern will have had the opportunity to collaborate with faculty and librarians and learn the various processes to improve collection accessibility. Specifically, they will learn how to navigate the LCC and Dewey Decimal system, identify information gaps, and work with multiple stakeholders to help develop a juvenile collection outreach strategy.

This project will provide the intern with a greater understanding of academic library partnerships, particularly with the College of Education. As such, students who are in the College of Education or who are interested in library science work would best fit this project. The project will teach valuable skills to either upper-class undergraduate or early graduate students as they will learn about collaboration, outreach, and strategic planning and gain knowledge and expertise in the fields of information science and educational children’s literature.

Special Skill Sets:
N/A

Other Requirements:
N/A

Project Name: Sustainability Data Archiving Project Description:

Faculty and students on the St. Petersburg campus have been pursuing a range of sustainability efforts and conducting sustainability-focused research that involves the collection of data at hyper-local sites. However, this data is not readily available despite an urgent need to make it openly accessible and integrated into the USF curricular and research endeavors. A common access point for local sustainability data and publications will allow us to communicate with partners and raise awareness about the breadth and depth of ongoing engagement with sustainability practices and research.

Undergraduate students expressing a combined interest in data and sustainability will engage in an experiential learning project to create baseline datasets that can be archived using best practices and re-used by student and faculty researchers. This project will facilitate development of skills and understanding necessary to successfully create, compile, organize, and describe datasets relevant to the USF St. Petersburg campus.

Anticipated Outcomes/Benefits:

Upon completion of the fieldwork, the student will be able to:

• Collect and curate multiple types of environmental and scientific data, learning best practices for data management
• Apply best practices for the organization and description of datasets related to sustainability
• Create finding aids, exhibits, or other descriptive metadata for access and discoverability of datasets for the use of the university community

Special Skill Sets:

• Basic knowledge and understanding of the scientific method
• Familiarity with Microsoft Excel is preferred; the internship can include self-guided Excel training as needed.

  Other Requirements: N/A