EMBL is Europe’s flagship research laboratory for the life sciences – an intergovernmental, innovative and interdisciplinary organisation performing scientific research in molecular biology, physics, chemistry and computer science. With more than 1800 employees from more than 80 nations we are operating across six sites; the headquarter is located in Heidelberg (Germany) with sites in Barcelona (Spain), Hinxton near Cambridge (United Kingdom), Hamburg (Germany), Grenoble (France) and Rome (Italy).
The EMBL Szilárd Library is a scientific library with extensive on-line resources and databases, maintains a rich collection in the field of Life Sciences and serves the scientific community and the administrative staff of EMBL. It serves all staff working across all EMBL sites, especially the 900 scientists. The library is involved in open science developments within EMBL and supports researchers with open access publications, particularly by organising APC payments.
The EMBL Records Management is supporting the requirements of EMBL’s administration and collaborates on projects within departments such as HR, legal, and finance to ensure that EMBL administrative records are managed in line with professional best practices and in a manner appropriate to EMBL.
We are looking for a Library and Records Management Assistant to support the EMBL Office for Scientific Information Management in providing excellent services to the scientific community and the administrative staff of EMBL.
Your Role
As a Library and Records Management Assistant you will be responsible for providing library, administrative and organisational support, including:
Organisation, development, cataloguing and classification of library resources.
Publication and metadata curation in the institutional Current Research Information System (CRIS).
Process APC payments for open access publications.
Organise the library area; books, magazines, furniture and equipment.
Promote the library collection and services and deliver library induction sessions and training.
Helping teams in administration create basic inventories of their records.
Basic research and updating of the retention schedule to keep it current and accurate.
Assisting the Records Manager in the promotion of records management best practices across the organisation (e.g. updating website)
Assisting staff and dealing with library and records management enquiries.
Liaise with admin and scientific staff, external bodies and suppliers.
Assist in other library and records management related tasks as appointed.
You have
Bachelor’s Degree (or higher) in any field
Experience and pleasure in providing support for our users.
Good organisational, planning and prioritisation skills, including the ability to work to deadlines and adapt to changing circumstances.
Strong interpersonal and communication skills, the ability to work independently as well as in a service orientated team are essential.
Proven expertise with standard software packages, databases and internet-based applications are required (Google Suite and MS Office)
Fluency in English will be essential
You may also have
Experience in library and information science or background in the life sciences will be considered an advantage.
Experience in an administration or records management role will be considered an advantage.
Experience in cataloguing, especially Koha, will be considered an advantage.
Experience in publication management and metadata curation in institutional CRIS system, especially Converis, will be considered an advantage.
A knowledge of German would be an advantage
Contract length: 3 years (renewable up to 9 years)
Salary: Grade 3 (monthly salary from 3.434 EUR after tax, excl. EMBL pension and health insurance contributions of 13%, plus other paid benefits)
Why join us
EMBL is curiosity-driven, community-oriented and international. As an inclusive, equal opportunity employer, we believe that diversity enables us to collaborate more effectively and be innovative in our approaches. We are, therefore, committed to creating an inclusive and flexible culture - one where everyone can realise their full potential and make a positive contribution to our organisation.
We encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing team – we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and personal experiences reflect the diversity of the populations that our science serves. We actively encourage applications from all genders and cultures, ethnic groups and all demographics to help us avoid perpetuating biases and oversights at this transformational point in our people strategy.
Enjoy lots of benefits:
Financial incentives: Salary free of income tax, monthly family and child allowances, annual salary review, pension scheme, death benefit, long-term care, accident-at-work and unemployment insurances
Flexible working arrangements
Private medical insurance for you and your immediate family (including all prescriptions and generous dental & optical cover)
Generous time off: 30 days annual leave per year, in addition to public holidays
Campus life: Free shuttle bus (some sites only), on-site library, subsidised on-site cafeteria, casual dress code, extensive sports and social club activities (on campus and remotely)
Family benefits: Kindergarten (Heidelberg), 10 days of child sick leave, generous paid maternity/parental leave and monthly family & child allowances
For detailed information please visit our employee benefits page here
What else you need to know
EMBL is a signatory of DORA. Find out how we apply DORA principles to our recruitment and performance assessment processes here.
Diversity and inclusion: At EMBL, we believe that diverse teams drive innovation and scientific excellence. We encourage applications from candidates of all genders, identities, nationalities and/or any other diverse backgrounds.
How to apply: To apply please submit a cover letter and a CV through our online system. Applications will close at 23:59 CET on the date shown below. We aim to provide a response within two weeks after the closing date.
Closing Date
30/08/2026