Before joining Syracuse University in 1986, Burstyn taught at Carnegie-Mellon and Rutgers University. She served as dean of SU's School of Education from 1986-1989. These papers cover the years 1982-1999 and consists of 19 boxes. The finding aid was prepared by Kyle C. Wilson.

Researchers interested in the Joan Burstyn Papers should mention the collection's Record Group [13] and accession numbers [1935,2751,3369,3626,4331] when contacting the Syracuse University Archives. Please note that the collection is housed off-site and advance notice is required to allow time to have the materials brought to the Archives Reading Room in Bird Library.