About Careertakes

👉 Important disclosure: Careertakes is a third-party recruiting platform supporting this hiring process. If selected, you will be employed directly by our client, Creative & Design.

Applicants for this role may also receive access to additional matched opportunities through the Careertakes platform.

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What You’ll Do

This 12-month, full-time temporary fellowship places you in the acquisitions department of a leading scholarly press to learn editorial acquisitions and manuscript workflow from evaluation through acceptance and handoff to production.

• Coordinate and support the end-to-end acquisitions process alongside senior acquisitions editors and the Editorial Director.
• Evaluate final manuscripts for permissions, illustration quality, and any reprinted material; work with authors to resolve issues. (≈30%)
• Draft advance book information and descriptive copy; prepare and transmit materials to copyediting; request contracts and production estimates. (≈30%)
• Assist editors with manuscript evaluation, peer review coordination, and author communications; research and recommend peer reviewers and gather sales data. (≈15%)
• Prepare materials for departmental and editorial review meetings; manage a database of active and archived manuscript projects and related files. (≈15%)
• Process readers’ honoraria, manage complementary book copies, and maintain organized paper and electronic records. (≈10%)
• Support other press teams (marketing, design, manuscript editorial, production) on project-specific tasks to broaden publishing knowledge.
• Handle confidential information with a high degree of tact and discretion and perform other duties as assigned.

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Who You Are — Qualifications

Minimum qualifications (required)

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent. This is an entry-level role; no prior work experience required.
• Applicants who do not meet these minimum qualifications WILL NOT be forwarded to the hiring manager.

Additional qualifications (required)

• Excellent written and verbal communication and strong organizational skills.
• Proven ability to manage multiple long-term projects simultaneously.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a team environment.
• Commitment to applying an understanding of diverse human experiences in developing, recruiting, and marketing manuscripts.
• Sensitivity to language relating to race, gender, sexuality, and ability/disability.

Preferred qualifications

• Graduate work or advanced degree in the humanities, social sciences, or a field aligned with the press’s acquisitions areas.
• Commitment to a career in academic publishing.
• Sustained engagement with low-income or underrepresented U.S. communities and ability to apply those perspectives to publishing work.
• Demonstrated interest in equity, inclusion, and justice.
• Familiarity with Adobe InDesign or Photoshop.
• Experience with FileMaker Pro or comparable database management tools.

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Logistics & Compensation

• Employment type: Temporary, Full-Time (100% FTE). Contract classification applies for the 12-month fellowship.
• Compensation: USD 59,412 per year (pay range: $59,412 — $59,412).
• Shift: First Shift.
• Position status: Temporary (12-month fellowship).
• Union/Bargaining Unit: SEIU Local 925 Libraries PLE Nonsupervisory (as applicable).
• Benefits: Refer to the hiring organization for specific benefits information.

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Working Conditions & Additional Info

• Work is performed in an open office environment; occasional attendance at publication events outside normal working hours may be required.
• This role requires discretion handling confidential materials and sensitive communications.
• The fellow will have opportunities to engage with multiple press departments to gain broad publishing experience.

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About the Hiring Organization

This opportunity is posted on behalf of a confidential client in the Creative & Design industry. The fellowship offers hands-on training in academic publishing acquisitions and a chance to develop editorial, project-management, and communication skills in a scholarly press environment.

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Equal Opportunity & Hiring Transparency

Careertakes and our client are Equal Opportunity Employers committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. We prohibit discrimination or harassment of any kind. To support a fair and efficient hiring process, AI tools may be used to assist with application review or resume screening. These tools do not replace human decision-making. Final hiring decisions are made by people.

If you have questions about how your data is used, please contact us directly.