Job Description

Details

Open Date 10/09/2026 Requisition Number PRN46415B Job Title Operations Project / Program Management Working Title Paleontology Project Manager Career Progression Track M00 Track Level M2 - Senior Supervisor, M1 - Supervisor FLSA Code Administrative Patient Sensitive Job Code? No Standard Hours per Week 40 Full Time or Part Time? Full Time Shift Day Work Schedule Summary

M-F with occasional evenings, weekends, and holidays. This position requires regular on‑site presence at the Natural History Museum of Utah on the Research Park campus of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City and occasional travel for professional meetings, offsite meetings and events, fundraising, and/or collaborative projects.

VP Area Academic Affairs Department 00018 - Utah Museum of Natl Hist Oper Location Campus City Salt Lake City, UT Type of Recruitment External Posting Pay Rate Range $55,000-65,0000 Close Date 11/06/2026 Priority Review Date (Note - Posting may close at any time) Job Summary

The Natural History Museum of Utah’s Collections & Research Department seeks a motivated Paleontology Project Manager to coordinate a three-year project preparing, conserving, and curating fossil specimens from the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry, partly funded by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. This position is funded for three years corresponding to the start and end date of the grant. The Project Manager will coordinate with:

1) the Fossil Preparator and Lab Manager and team of volunteers to prepare and conserve specimens;

2) the Paleontology Collections Manager and team of students/volunteers to physically curate and catalog specimens;

3) the Collections Digitization Coordinator and student interns to photograph and 3D scan specimens, and ingest these assets into the digital asset management system;

4) the registrar to digitize associated records and ingest them into our Collections Management Database System, EMu; and

5) the Curator of Paleontology to ensure project goals and reporting requirements are met. This position is essential to ensuring this project keeps to the grant timeline and ensures the Museum achieves all promised deliverables.

Responsibilities

The Paleontology Project Manager will ensure the success of the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry project by:

• Collaborating with Collections & Research staff to develop workflows and coordinate the movement of specimens, digital assets, and associate records between the fossil preparation lab, collections, registrar, and digital spaces (e.g., collections database).
• Collaborating with Collections & Research staff to identify and meet monthly, quarterly, and yearly targets to achieve overall project goals
• Work with the Fossil Preparator and Lab Manager to supervise volunteers in the fossil preparation lab, as well as assign specimens and answer general preparation questions
• Work with the Fossil Preparator and Lab Manager to train and supervise volunteers in making curation jackets for large, prepared fossil specimens
• Work with the Paleontology Collections Manager to train and supervise students and volunteers in housing and curating prepared fossil specimens
• Assist the Fossil Preparator and Lab Manager and Paleontology Collections Manager in training volunteers
• Work with the Collections Digitization Coordinator to develop, implement, manage workflow of prepared specimens for digital photography and 3D scanning.

This job description is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees assigned to the job. Work Environment and Level of Frequency typically required: Nearly Continuously: lab environment Often: Office environment Physical Requirements and Level of Frequency that may be required: Nearly continuously: Sitting, standing, hearing, listening, talking Often: Repetitive hand motion (typing, fossil preparation), walking, bending, reaching overhead, lifting and carrying objects up to and over 20 pounds

Minimum Qualifications

EQUIVALENCY STATEMENT: 1 year of higher education can be substituted for 1 year of directly related work experience (Example: bachelor’s degree = 4 years of directly related work experience).

Department may hire employee at one of the following job levels:

Supervisor, Operations Project / Program Management: Requires a bachelor’s (or equivalency) + 2 years of directly related work experience or a master’s (or equivalency) degree.

Senior Supervisor, Operations Project / Program Management: Requires a bachelor’s (or equivalency) + 4 years or a master’s (or equivalency) + 2 years of directly related work experience.

Preferences

• Experience with collections management systems/databases
• Understanding of paleontological data structures
• Experience supervising staff, students, and/or volunteers
• Experience creating and editing 3D surface models

Type Benefited Staff Special Instructions Summary Additional Information

The University is a participating employer with Utah Retirement Systems (“URS”). Eligible new hires with prior URS service, may elect to enroll in URS if they make the election before they become eligible for retirement (usually the first day of work). Contact Human Resources at (801) 581-7447 for information. Individuals who previously retired and are receiving monthly retirement benefits from URS are subject to URS’ post-retirement rules and restrictions. Please contact Utah Retirement Systems at (801) 366-7770 or (800) 695-4877 or University Human Resource Management at (801) 581-7447 if you have questions regarding the post-retirement rules.

This position may require the successful completion of a criminal background check and/or drug screen.

The University of Utah values candidates who have experience working in settings with students and possess a strong commitment to improving access to higher education.

Veterans’ preference is extended to qualified applicants, upon request and consistent with University policy and Utah state law. Upon request, reasonable accommodations in the application process will be provided to individuals with disabilities.

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As per University of Utah policy 5-108: Transfer of Benefits Eligible Staff Members, a new hire to the University of Utah who is still serving a 12 month probationary period will not be hired into another University of Utah job (a transfer) until the successful completion of the probationary period.