Milner Library Metadata Graduate Student Assistant

Title: Milner Library Metadata Graduate Student Assistant
Employee Classification: Student Help Regular
Division Name: Academic Affairs
Department: Milner Library

Job Summary

The Milner Library metadata unit is looking for one graduate students to assist with a University Research Grant studying the strengths and weaknesses of AI-generated abstracts. This position will evaluate abstracts generated by several large language models (LLMs) for scholarly materials in a variety of disciplines.

This is a temporary, part-time position (approximately 6 - 10 hours a week, for a total of 60 hours), starting in early September and ending by November 3.

Job Description:
• Review abstracts and evaluate their quality in terms of completeness, relevance, accuracy, and clarity.
• Monitor abstracts for potential issues such as bias, hallucination, and appropriate use of technical terminology.
• Use a standardized rubric to score abstracts according to defined criteria.
• Provide qualitative feedback on the quality and characteristics of abstracts.

Additional Information

Student employees are eligible to participate in the University’s 403(b) Plan.  More information can be found here.

Pay Rate

$20/hour

Required Qualifications

• Familiarity with the style, norms, and common organizational structures of scholarly writing.
• Ability to skim documents and draw conclusions about the suitability of abstracts summarizing them.
• Strong critical thinking and analytical skills.
• Ability to follow written, technical, and oral instructions and procedures.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Work independently under general supervision.
• Willingness to ask questions for clarification and communicate with supervisor and co-workers.
• Maintain a stable work schedule (no weekends or evenings).

Preferred Qualifications

Research interests coursework, or advanced knowledge in one of the subject areas being studied (biology, chemistry, mathematics, psychology, sociology, political science, history, or literature) is a plus.

Work Hours

Between the hours of 8am and 5pm, Monday-Friday.

Functional Expectations

Must be able to complete the following with or without reasonable accommodations:
- Effectively communicate on a daily basis.

Proposed Starting Date

Mid-August 2025

Required Applicant Documents

Resume, Cover Letter & Work Availability

Please Note: These documents are required to be submitted online in order to complete the application process. Please have these documents ready prior to clicking on "Apply"

Contact Information for Applicants

Tracy Berner
taberne@ilstu.edu

Important Information for Applicants

This position is subject to a criminal background investigation and if applicable, an employment history review, based on University Policy 3.1.30 and any offer of employment is contingent upon you passing a satisfactory criminal background investigation and/or an employment history review. You may not begin work until the criminal background investigation results have been received and cleared by Human Resources.

In addition, all appointments are contingent upon proof of eligibility for employment at Illinois State University to perform the required duties described above on your scheduled start date. The Immigration and Control Act of 1986, Public Law 99-603, requires all new employees to file an I-9 in person and no later than three days from the beginning of employment. This may be accomplished within the department or through Human Resources. A list of the types of documentation you will be expected to provide is available at https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents. Failure to comply with this law will result in cancellation of your appointment.

Illinois State University, as your employer, is required by federal law to ensure proper tax withholding from wages and to ensure that the required reporting of employee wages, withholding, and employment taxes is accurate. For this reason, every employee must have a valid Social Security Number registered with the University at the time of employment and/or as soon after as possible, but no later than 45 days from the start date. Failure to comply with this law may result in cancellation of your appointment.

Illinois State University student employees are restricted to no more than 28 hours per week of on-campus employment for all positions held.

International students are restricted by their visa status to no more than 20 ho