Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT)
The Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT) is a program within UCLA Library Special Collections. It was launched in 2004 with a generous lead gift from the Ahmanson Foundation. The center seeks graduate students from a variety of academic disciplines and pairs them with archives and special collections projects that match their expertise and interests. The CFPRT’s central purpose is to equip emerging scholars with skills that will enable them to effectively utilize primary sources in their future careers.
Since its inception, the CFPRT has employed over 200 students to carry out a diverse range of projects. Scholars have processed archival collections, conducted oral histories, created original research projects, digitized and created metadata for archival resources, collaborated on digital humanities projects, and contributed to departmental outreach initiatives through student-led events, exhibits, blog posts, and public presentations. This important work has made some of UCLA Library’s most valuable resources widely discoverable and ready for use by the research community.
The CFPRT is committed to cultivating a welcoming space for students to work collaboratively and creatively, to actively and critically participate in the archival process, and to engage with primary sources in innovative ways.
We are Hiring Graduate Student and Undergraduate Students for Paid Positions
The Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT) seeks applications from graduate and undergraduate students for positions that will allow them to gain first-hand experience in working with archives and special collections. CFPRT scholars are able to work full time during the summer quarter, Monday-Friday between the hours of 9am-5pm; during the academic year scholars may work up 19 hours per week, Monday-Friday between 9am-5pm. There is one graduate position available and one undergraduate position available. Please see descriptions for each position below.
Wiki Scholar (Graduate student)
The Wiki scholar will undertake a project to survey and integrate information about Library Special Collections (LSC) holdings into existing Wikipedia articles. This may entail editing a biographical or historical article and linking from the article to a finding aid and/or digitized content for the person or organization; uploading selected digitized images to Wikimedia Commons to enhance articles; or creating new articles based on LSC holdings. A focus will be placed on collections from members of underrepresented Los Angeles communities. The project will allow a student to engage in research using LSC collections and provide hands-on experience working with primary sources and archives.
Desired skills: Experience with Wikipedia editing; knowledge of, and interest in, Los Angeles communities.
Application deadline for the Summer Quarter for the graduate student position is Tuesday, May 28, 2019.
Download Position Description (pdf)):
Download Position Application (doc):
To be considered for this position, please email an application, letter of interest, and a CV or résumé to:
Courtney Dean
Head, Center for Primary Research & Training
cdean@library.ucla.edu
CFPRT Assistant (Undergraduate student)
Processing or archival experience not required.
Duties include assisting with routine archival work such as data entry, data clean-up, labeling folders and boxes, helping to prepare collections for off-site storage, and tracking CFPRT supplies. Most tasks will be conducted to assist graduate student scholars in their respective processing projects. There may also be opportunities to curate flash exhibits; design promotional materials, such as flyers and buttons; create social media and blog posts for the department; and to work with the Head of the CFPRT to process and create finding aids for small archival collections.
A commitment of 3 quarters is preferable.
Application deadline for the Summer Quarter is Tuesday, May 28, 2019.
Download Position Description (pdf)):
To be considered for this position, please email a letter of interest and a CV or résumé to:
Courtney Dean
Head, Center for Primary Research & Training
cdean@library.ucla.edu
Five Short Films about the Center
The UCLA Library has released five short films documenting the history of the center and highlighting four student projects:
Treasures of the UCLA Library: Colonial Mexican Manuscripts (part two of five)
Treasures of the UCLA Library: Cuneiform Tablets (part three of five)
Treasures of the UCLA Library: African American Collections (part four of five)
Treasures of the UCLA Library: Near Eastern Manuscripts (part five of five)
Written, directed, and produced by Erin Flannery, the films have been made possible with support from the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, Irving and Jean Stone Endowment, and University Librarian Discretionary Fund.