What are the responsibilities and job description for the Intermittent Administrative Assistant (IS-0341-07) position at National Museum of Asian Art?
Description
OPEN DATE: September 25, 2025
CLOSING DATE: October 3, 2025
POSITION TYPE: Trust Fund
APPOINTMENT TYPE: Temporary NTE 1 year
SCHEDULE: Intermittent
DUTY LOCATION: Washington, DC
Position sensitivity and risk: Non-Sensitive/Low Risk
Open to all qualified applicants
Open to all qualified applicants
What are Trust Fund Positions?
Trust Fund positions are unique to the Smithsonian. They are paid for from a variety of sources, including the Smithsonian endowment, revenue from our business activities, donations, grants and contracts. Trust employees are not part of the civil service, nor does trust fund employment lead to Federal status. The salary ranges for trust positions are generally the same as for federal positions and in many cases trust and federal employees work side by side. Trust employees have their own benefit program, which may include Health, Dental & Vision Insurance, Life Insurance, Transit/Commuter Benefits, Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance, Annual and Sick Leave, Family Friendly Leave, 403b Retirement Plan, Discounts for Smithsonian Memberships, Museum Stores and Restaurants, Credit Union, Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center (Child Care), Flexible Spending Account (Health & Dependent Care).
Conditions of Employment
- Pass Pre-employment Background Check and Subsequent Background Investigation for position designated.
- Complete a Probationary Period.
- Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer.
- The position is open to all candidates eligible to work in the United States. Proof of eligibility to work in U.S. is not required to apply.
- Applicants must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.
OVERVIEW
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art (NMAA) is committed to preserving, exhibiting, researching, and interpreting art in ways that deepen the public and scholarly understandings of Asia and the world. NMAA opened in 1923 as America’s first national art museum and the first Asian art museum in the United States. The museum now stewards one of the world’s most important collections of Asian art, with works dating from antiquity to the present, from China, Japan, Korea, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the pre-Islamic Near East, and the Islamic world (inclusive of Central Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa). The museum also stewards an important collection of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American art.
Today, NMAA is emerging as a leading national and global resource for understanding the arts, cultures, and societies of Asia, especially at their intersection with the United States. Guided by the belief that the future of art museums lies in collaboration, increased access, and transparency, NMAA is fostering new ways to engage with its audiences while maintaining its commitment to excellence.
NMAA celebrated its centennial in 2023 and is determined to make the museum’s second century as accomplished as its first. The museum is building on its core strengths—the quality and depth of our collections, scholarship, and conservation—while embracing experimentation and new approaches to its work. The museum is transforming digitally, physically, and programmatically to draw in new audiences to celebrate, learn, and connect with Asian and American art and cultures, past and present.
Located on the National Mall in Washington, DC, the museum is free and open 364 days a year. The Smithsonian, which is the world’s largest museum complex, welcomes twenty to thirty million visitors yearly. For more information about the National Museum of Asian Art, please visit asia.si.edu.
The Opportunity
The National Museum of Asian Art seeks an Intermittent Research Assistant to conduct part time research on the Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection. The Cowles Collection consists of over 350 works of Japanese painting and calligraphy, ranging from the 14th to the 21st centuries. Working under the supervision of the Curator of Japanese Art, the incumbent will be expected to conduct research to enhance the internal cataloguing and documentation of the collection.
The National Museum of Asian Art seeks an Intermittent Research Assistant to conduct part time research on the Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection. The Cowles Collection consists of over 350 works of Japanese painting and calligraphy, ranging from the 14th to the 21st centuries. Working under the supervision of the Curator of Japanese Art, the incumbent will be expected to conduct research to enhance the internal cataloguing and documentation of the collection.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The incumbent shall conduct research in primary and secondary sources on works included in the Cowles Collection at NMAA (primary sources include, but are not limited to, tomobako; ephemera; inscriptions on the works; etc.)- Conducts research on the roughly 350 works in the Cowles Collection already gifted to NMAA as well as possible new additions. They will contact vendors to trace and record previous ownership of works, research and record ownership and appraisals included in ephemera and boxes kept with the works
- Incumbent shall add existing research to TMS records of the Cowles Collection. Incumbent shall assist the Curator of Japanese Art in ongoing research on the Cowles Collection as needed
- Responds to mail and e-mail by compiling appropriate responses from a variety of sources such as personal knowledge, bibliographies, information sheets, photographic lists, office practices and policies and boilerplate templates
- Assists with preparation of materials such as correspondence, reports and briefing slides using a variety of office software. Drafts and edits material based on past practice, verbal instructions and knowledge of office programs.
- Ensures accurate transcription, proper grammar and spelling and complies with local procedures and established guidelines
- Assists higher-level staff members in providing background and reference materials for more substantial reports
- Provide administrative support for curatorial initiatives, including meetings and presentations
- Organizes, maintains, and updates curatorial files
- Participates in general administrative staff and committee meetings as requested
QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
Education and Experience: To qualify for this position, applicants must possess a bachelor’s degree (B.A.) in a related area of study from an accredited four-year college or university and/or 1-2 years of related experience (described below); or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities required:
- Knowledge of art history or related fields is desirable
- Ability to work well with others and manage and execute with skill, efficiency, and accuracy
- Ability to communicate effectively in oral and written form
- Ability to multi-task
- Ability to project manage
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams)
Education completed outside the United States must be deemed equivalent to higher education programs of U.S. Institutions by an organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials. This documentation is the responsibility of the applicant and should be included as part of your application package.
Any false statement in your application may result in rejection of your application and may also result in termination after employment begins.
Join us in "Inspiring Generations through Knowledge and Discovery."
Resumes should include a description of your paid and non-paid work experience that is related to this job; starting and ending dates of job (month and year); and average number of hours worked per week.
What To Expect Next: Once the vacancy announcement closes, a review of your resume will be compared against the qualification and experience requirements related to this job. After review of applicant resumes is complete, qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager.
Relocation expenses are not paid.
The Smithsonian Institution provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation should contact nmaa-hr@si.edu. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. To learn more, please review the Smithsonian’s Accommodation Procedures (https://www.si.edu/OEO/IndividualswithDisabilities).
The Smithsonian Institution provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation should contact nmaa-hr@si.edu. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. To learn more, please review the Smithsonian’s Accommodation Procedures (https://www.si.edu/OEO/IndividualswithDisabilities).
The Smithsonian Institution is an Equal Opportunity Employer. To review The Smithsonian's EEO program information, please click the following: https://www.si.edu/oeo
About National Museum of Asian Art
Established a century ago, the National Museum of Asian Art was the Smithsonian’s first art museum. Committed to preserving, exhibiting, researching, and interpreting art in ways that deepen our collective understanding of Asia and the world, the museum stewards one of North America’s largest and most comprehensive collections of Asian art.
Its rich holdings bring the arts of Asia into direct dialogue with an important collection of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American works, providing an essential platform for creative collaboration and cultural exchange between the United States, Asia, and the Middle East.
Beginning with a 1906 gift that paved the way for the museum’s opening in 1923, the National Museum of Asian Art is a leading resource for visitors, students, and scholars in the United States and internationally. Its galleries, laboratories, archives, and library are located on the National Mall in Washington, DC, and are part of the world’s largest museum complex, which typically reports more than 27 million visits each year. The museum is free and open to the public 364 days a year, making its exhibitions, programs, learning opportunities, and digital initiatives accessible to global audiences.
When you visit our galleries or delve into the stories of our collections online, we hope you find a portal to different ways of interpreting our world. We invite you to learn and explore in your own way—to look deeply into the past to better understand the present and to break through the artificial barriers that can separate us.
Its rich holdings bring the arts of Asia into direct dialogue with an important collection of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American works, providing an essential platform for creative collaboration and cultural exchange between the United States, Asia, and the Middle East.
Beginning with a 1906 gift that paved the way for the museum’s opening in 1923, the National Museum of Asian Art is a leading resource for visitors, students, and scholars in the United States and internationally. Its galleries, laboratories, archives, and library are located on the National Mall in Washington, DC, and are part of the world’s largest museum complex, which typically reports more than 27 million visits each year. The museum is free and open to the public 364 days a year, making its exhibitions, programs, learning opportunities, and digital initiatives accessible to global audiences.
When you visit our galleries or delve into the stories of our collections online, we hope you find a portal to different ways of interpreting our world. We invite you to learn and explore in your own way—to look deeply into the past to better understand the present and to break through the artificial barriers that can separate us.
