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Archivist
(Digital Archivist, Reference Archivist, Records Manager, Archives Specialist)
Law & Public Service
Salary
€35,000 - €72,000/yr
Level
Professional
Outlook
Stable
Sector
Law & Public Service
What does an Archivist do?
Archivists assess, organise, preserve and provide access to records and archives held by institutions such as the National Archives of Ireland, universities, government departments, cultural bodies and the Catholic Church. Your daily work involves appraising historical documents, managing both physical and digital collections, and ensuring records are stored safely and catalogued in a way that allows researchers and the public to find what they need. You apply conservation techniques to fragile materials — from handwritten manuscripts and photographs to audio-visual recordings and born-digital files — and advise users on how to access and interpret collections. You work alongside historians, records managers, information technology specialists, legal teams and members of the public, acting as a key link between the past and those who need it in the present.
A Day in the Life
Listen: a day as an Archivist
You arrive at the repository at 8:45 a.m., badge in through the security door and check your email before the reading room opens at nine. There are two enquiries overnight: a genealogist looking for nineteenth-century land valuation records and a PhD student requesting access to a restricted government file series. You log both in the access management system and pull the relevant box lists to see what you can release. By half nine you are down in the strongroom, a temperature- and humidity-controlled storage area running at around 16°C, where you continue an ongoing appraisal of a newly donated collection of business ledgers from the 1930s. Appraisal means deciding which records have long-term historical value and which can be destroyed under your retention schedule. It is slow, methodical work, and you fill in an appraisal form for each series.
Videos about Archivist
Career Advice on becoming an Audio Archivist by Ian S (Full Version)
icould career stories
Some videos were filmed in the UK. The work itself is the same, but the exams, qualifications and pay they mention are British — we include them so you get a feel for the job.
Required Education
Most archivists in Ireland enter the profession with a postgraduate qualification at NFQ Level 9, typically a Masters in Archives and Records Management, such as the programme offered by University College Dublin. Useful Leaving Certificate subjects include History, English, Irish, a modern language, and Business, as these build the research, literacy and contextual understanding the role demands. A relevant NFQ Level 8 Honours Bachelor degree in History, Humanities, Information Studies or a related discipline is normally required before progressing to postgraduate study. Some routes exist through library and information science degrees combined with specialist archival training or continuing professional development through bodies such as the Archives and Records Association (ARA). There is no statutory registration requirement for archivists in Ireland, though professional membership of the ARA or the Irish Society for Archives is strongly valued by employers.
Required Skills
Career Perspective
Most archivists begin their careers in junior or assistant archivist roles within a public institution, university or government department, gaining practical experience in cataloguing, user services and digital preservation. With several years of experience, you can progress to senior or principal archivist positions, taking on greater responsibility for collection management, policy development and staff supervision. Some archivists move into records management roles in the private or legal sector, or into leadership positions such as Head of Archives or County Archivist within local authority services. Continuous professional development, publication of research and active engagement with professional bodies such as the Irish Society for Archives support career advancement.
AI Impact on the job
Artificial intelligence is beginning to assist archivists by automating the transcription of handwritten historical documents, accelerating the cataloguing of large collections and improving search and discovery tools for archive users. Machine learning can help identify, classify and tag documents at scale, reducing the time archivists spend on routine processing tasks. However, the professional judgement required to appraise records, contextualise collections and apply legal and ethical standards to access decisions remains firmly human work. Archivists who develop skills in digital preservation, metadata standards and AI-assisted cataloguing tools will be best placed to work effectively alongside these emerging technologies.
Career Ladder
→ Archivist (Current role)
Related Studies
Employers in Ireland
Organisations in Ireland that employ people in this occupation.
Bishop Street, Dublin 8
Core national repository; archivists appraise, preserve and provide public access.
Kildare Street, Dublin 2
Archivists manage manuscripts, photographs and digital heritage collections.
Dublin 2
University archivists curate institutional records and rare manuscript collections.
Belfield, Dublin 4
Archivists manage institutional and donated private paper collections.
Cathal Brugha Barracks, Dublin 6
Archivists preserve Defence Forces records and provide researcher access.
Pearse Street, Dublin 2
Archivists maintain civic and historical municipal records for Dublin.
Braemor Park, Dublin 14
Archivists catalogue ecclesiastical records, parish registers and historic manuscripts.
Clonliffe Road, Dublin 3
Archivists preserve Catholic Church administrative and historical records.
Donnybrook, Dublin 4
Archivists manage broadcasting scripts, correspondence and institutional records.
Leinster House, Dublin 2
Archivists preserve parliamentary records and support legislative research access.
Blackpool, Cork City
Archivists appraise and catalogue local government and community records.
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