The MIT Press welcomes applicants from diverse backgrounds, including those communities underrepresented in scholarly publishing.
Open Positions:
Part-Time Bookseller
MIT Press Booksellers perform varied and sometimes complex customer service, sales, merchandising, and clerical duties in a fast-paced and self-motivated book retail environment situated on the MIT campus.
The MIT Press Bookstore is the bookselling arm of the MIT Press. Since 1980, it has served the MIT community and beyond as a bookstore featuring professional and academic titles from the MIT Press and other publishers, as well as general interest titles and a full children’s section. In 2023, a retail website was launched: mitpressbookstore.mit.edu.
Principal Duties and Responsibilities (Essential Functions*)
Customer Service:
- Greet and assist customers in finding and purchasing books requests in person, on the phone, and through email, maintaining a professional, helpful, and positive attitude in all service situations.
- Assist campus and local visitors in locating resources at MIT and in the surrounding neighborhood.
Monitor and fulfill orders placed through the store website, including shipping orders using USPS, FedEx, and UPS. - Perform cashier duties and demonstrate proficient use of the store’s point-of-sale system.
Follow all store sales policies, including those regarding handling of cash, and credit card data security. - Develop knowledge of MIT Press publications and related subject areas.
- Assist with opening and closing the Bookstore.
- Represent the Bookstore at off-site retail events, including events happening outside regular business hours, and be comfortable doing so independently.
Merchandising and Maintenance:
- Present a neat, attractive sales floor, including accurately
shelving books in their designated sections, maintaining and creating book
displays, organizing overstock, and dusting or cleaning fixtures. - Use daily sales reports and the store inventory system to reorder and receive
books and other merchandise. - Accurately receive books from an invoice into the store inventory system.
Enter bibliographic data for new and forthcoming titles into the inventory
database. - Filing.
- Pull books from sections and pack them for return, then ship them via USPS,
FedEx, and UPS. - Tally and record daily sales and prepare bank deposits.
- Make campus and other local deliveries.
- Learn the layout and landmarks of the MIT/Kendall Square area.
- Other duties as needed or required.
Qualifications and Skills
Education: A high school diploma or equivalent is required.
Experience: A minimum of one year working in a bookstore or other retail environment is preferred.
Skills:
- High organizational and communication skills and attention to detail.
- Working knowledge of Windows, Excel, Outlook or other email program.
- Should be able to work both independently and in a team-oriented environment.
- Must be able to deal with confidential information and situations using discretion.
- Ability to stand for extended periods of time, regularly and repeatedly lift up to 40lbs, climb ladders, bend, crouch, and kneel.
- Must have flexible scheduling and be available to work evenings and weekends.
Preferred Skills:
- Familiarity with the Institute and MIT Press publications is helpful, as is an active interest in scholarly or nonfiction publishing.
- A basic understanding of the Press’s scholarly disciplines (e.g., science, technology, linguistics, computer science, design) would be useful.
*To comply with regulations by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), the principal duties in job descriptions must be essential to the job. To identify essential functions, focus on the purpose and the result of the duties rather than the manner in which they are performed. The following definition applies: a job function is essential if removal of that function would fundamentally change the job.
Employment is contingent upon the completion of a satisfactory background check.
Please apply for these positions with a cover letter, on the MIT Careers Site using the job cart portal.