Location: London W1T 5BT.
Contract: Part time, Permanent subject to six months probation.
Hours: 3 days per week, working pattern may be negotiated
Start date: Dependent on availability of successful candidate.
Salary: £37,000 per annum (pro rata £22,200)
About the Royal Anthropological Institute
The Royal Anthropological Institute is a learned society, founded in its present form in 1871.Today, it has around 1850 members and Fellows, and a busy and varied programme of events, publications, conferences, and related initiatives.
The RAI cares for large and diverse collections. These comprise institutional archives recording the history of the institute and anthropology in the UK and a manuscript collection which includes fieldnotes, maps, transcripts, and other research materials from anthropologists working across the globe over the past 150 years. The photographic collections number over 120,000 images ranging from 19th century colonial documentary images to recent field photographs across formats including glass-plate negatives, prints, film, and born-digital material. The collections also include historic films, and a smaller number of original artworks and objects.
The RAI regularly welcomes researchers and visitors to its collections as well as licensing images for publication. We also receive new collections each year.
About the role
The Journal of Royal Anthropological Institute is perhaps longest-running periodical in the anthropological world, and often regarded as the anthropological journal of record for the UK. The RAI now has a vacancy for a publications officer, who will assist in various aspects of its operations. It is anticipated that the successful candidate will be efficient, meticulous, patient and devoted to anthropology and publication of anthropological material in broad, here interpreted to include Social Anthropology, Biological Anthropology and Archaeology.
Whilst the tasks that the publications officer will fulfil may vary slightly in accordance with the demands of a busy office, it is a core part of the role that they will help put together the book review section for the quarterly issues of the JRAI. To this end, they will work with the Honorary Reviews Editor to track which books the institute is sent, source reviewers for these books, and be responsible for keeping track of book reviews as they are commissioned for review, and as reviews are received by the journal. They will also be responsible for the administration of the JRAI annual Special Issue competition, in which they work with members of the RAI’s publication committee to oversee the competition process from proposals to publication. It is also expected that they act as secretary to the Publications Committee, take minutes of its meetings, and in general ensure that its operations run smoothly. They will also assist in the management of the JRAI editor assistants as the JRAI editor may require, and otherwise interact creatively and cordially with the wider team at the RAI.
As the role entails sending and receiving books to and from the RAI offices in London, it is not suitable for remote working, though it is anticipated that one day out of three each week could be worked from home if desired and if this can be managed within the requirements of the role. Applicants must have the right to live and work in the United Kingdom.
Key responsibilities
- Ordering books to be reviewed in the JRAI, liaising with publishers and authors
- Sourcing reviewers for books received by the Institute, collaborating with the Honorary Reviews Editor to keep a track of who has been invited to review
- Mailing out physical review copies to reviewers
- Maintaining the internal databases and extensive excel data; keeping these systems continuously up-to-date.
- Copywriting and putting out annual public calls for the JRAI’s Special Issue competition
- Storing and keeping track of Special Issue proposals and papers
- Leading on the peer review process for Special Issue manuscripts
- Being the main liaison between journal editors, guest editors, publisher, reviewers, and the RAI’s Publications Committee.
- Being secretary to the RAI’s Publications Committee: scheduling meetings, taking minutes, being point-of-contact to committee members.
How to Apply
Please submit a cover letter (maximum two pages) and your CV to the Assistant Director of Administration at [email protected], using the subject line: Publicastions Officer – [Your Name].
Applications should be submitted by Friday 27 November 2026.
Interviews will be held in early December 2026.