Data Lab Assistant Position - Spring 2026

The MIT Libraries’ department of Data and Specialized Services is seeking a responsible graduate student to help support the GIS & Data Lab’s operations. The GIS & Data Lab supports teaching and research efforts throughout the MIT community and foster collaboration around data science, analysis, and visualization. More information can be found here. This is an in-person position reporting to the GIS & Data Lab in Rotch Library for the spring 2026 academic semester.

Responsibilities:

The Data Lab Assistant position includes the following:

• Providing friendly user service by answering questions about the Lab and our data services, along with helping to triage support to DSS staff members when necessary.
• Helping with “drop-in” support for students around GIS, statistics, data science or analysis questions, assignments, projects, etc.
• Reviewing and updating instructional resources for the Data Lab team.
• Keeping the GIS & Data Lab clean, organized, and operational.
• Ensuring all technology is working in the space (ensuring the computers are turned on, appropriately connected, and technology is available for student use)
• Providing additional assistance for on-going Data Lab projects.

Desired Qualifications:

Basic Requirements:

• Friendly, approachable, and enjoy user service roles where you work with others and help students learn and succeed.
• Organized, on time, and can keep the spaces clean, tidy, and functional.  
• Ability to troubleshoot, answer questions, and solve problems using resources provided along with resources you can find online to answer the questions.
• Interest in learning new software, analysis applications and methodologies, or computer processes.
• Comfort troubleshooting basic computer issues (connecting cables, restarting machines)

Preferred Qualifications:

We are looking for students who are familiar with GIS, statistics, data science, data analysis, visualization, text analysis, or have an interest in building these technical skills.

Note: We do not expect candidates to have all listed skills and knowledge of software!

• Working knowledge of Esri’s ArcGIS Pro and/or QGIS with comfort troubleshooting issues users have with the programs.
• Working knowledge or willingness to learn more about the Esri suite of services including ArcGIS Online, Esri StoryMaps, Survey123, WebApp Builder and/or other Esri applications.
• Working knowledge of other GIS applications not listed above.
• Interest and willingness to learn about data visualization, web-mapping and computer science.
• Familiarity with geospatial data; including acquisition and basic analysis and visualization methods.

Hours:

The GIS & Data Lab is open 10:00am – 6:00pm from Monday – Friday, excluding campus holidays. The successful candidate will be expected to hold weekly drop-in help hours on a set schedule within this operational window. Additional hours will be coordinated based on the candidate’s availability outside of academic commitments, approximately 5-10 hours weekly.

Pay Rate:

The compensation for this position is $20.00/hour.

Start Date:

January 2026—exact date is negotiable.

How to Apply:

To apply for a Data Lab Assistant Position, please complete the following:

Please fill out the following application form and upload your resume: Application Form

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis with a final application deadline of Monday, December 15^th, 2025.

For any questions regarding this position, please contact Paxton LaJoie at plajoie@mit.edu.

About: Scholarly Communications and Collections Strategy (SCCS) (link to Scholarly Communications and Collections Strategy webpage)

NOT CURRENTLY HIRING

Position: Open Access Student Assistant

Location: On-site (Hayden Library)

Available: Now 

Join the Scholarly Communications and Collections Strategy’s Open Access (OA) unit in making MIT community members’ published scholarly work openly available to anyone, anytime, anywhere, and helping sustain our strong commitment to make scholarly communications more open and accessible.

We are seeking an enthusiastic and dependable student to work 6 to 8 hours per week on-site to help to make journal articles published by MIT authors publicly available in the OA Articles collection of the Libraries’ digital repository, DSpace@MIT. Tasks will include evaluating published OA articles (via PDFs and direct object identifier links) for their appropriate OA license, database searching and record editing, data-entry, and data tracking. Discrete data maintenance and clean-up projects may also be assigned.

A high and sustained attention to detail and sound verbal and written communication are required. An interest in scholarly communications is a plus, but certainly not a prerequisite. No prior experience with open access publishing or institutional repositories is necessary. We’ll provide training.

Applicants must be able to maintain a schedule of least 6 hours per week. On-site shifts will be scheduled between 9AM and 4PM, Monday-Friday, in 2 to 4-hour shifts. Starting pay is $18.00 per hour.

Interested? Please fill out our online application form. 

About Distinctive Collections (DDC) (DDC, 14N-118)

Not Currently Hiring

Position: Archives Student Assistant

Location: On-site (Room 14N-118) 

Join the friendly staff of the Department of Distinctive Collections (DDC) and help improve access to archival collections! 

We are looking for a dependable and organized student to work 6 to 10 hours per week on-site with the DDC to help process and describe the Center for Advanced Visual Studies records and Visible Language Workshop records. Tasks will vary, but will include: data entry, data clean up, rehousing materials, and assisting staff with the transfer of materials. On-site workers will be expected to move record carton size boxes (up to 40 lbs.) on occasion.

Good written and verbal communication skills, and attention to detail are required. An interest in art or the history of MIT is a plus, and will make the job more enjoyable, but is not required. No prior archive experience is needed as training will be provided. 

Applicants must be able to maintain a consistent schedule of at least 6 hours a week. On-site work shifts must be scheduled between 9:00am-4:00pm, Monday - Friday in 2-6 hour shifts. $16.00 per hour to start.

If interested, please fill out our online application form. 

Not currently hiring

About Database Maintenance

• We're responsible for improving the integrity of data in the library catalog
• We're located in NE36-6101

What you'll be doing:

• Editing records identified by reports
• Evaluating reports to identify items meriting further attention
• Attention to detail is essential

Not currently hiring

About Interlibrary Borrowing & Lending (ILB & ILL)

• We're MIT Libraries' Resource Sharing unit, which supports ILLiad/ILB and Borrow Direct
• We obtain materials not owned by MIT to assist MIT users in their research and school work (ILB)
• We provide MIT materials to non-MIT institutions: books, articles, MIT publications, and more (ILL)
• We're located in 14-0551 (basement of Building 14)

What you'll be doing:

• Packing and handling outgoing boxes of loan materials (books)
• Processing incoming and outgoing loan materials
• Additional tasks as needed

What we're looking for:

• Good communication skills, punctuality, and attention to details
• Previous library experience is a plus
• Ability to work through the Spring semester preferred

Not currently hiring

Not currently hiring

Positions Available:

Not Currently Hiring:

Check out our Student Jobs FAQ.

Still have questions? Email us at student-jobs-lib@mit.edu.