The collection has been organized into four series: Publications, Teaching, Research notes, and Correspondence. Publications is further organized into three sub-series: Books, Articles, and Reviews. The Correspondence series has been further divided into two sub-series: Publications and presentations, and Student correspondence. The bulk of the collection reflects the work of Barbara Jelavich but a very small portion - particularly the publications - reflect the work of her husband Charles.

The first series, Publications, contains a variety of published materials from the careers of both Barbara and Charles Jelavich dating from graduate school through their time at Indiana University. While most publications were individual projects, a few were co-authored by the couple. Included among these materials are Barbara's master's thesis from UC Berkeley, articles and studies for journals in her field, monographs, book reviews, and published books. The materials touch on her work concerning topics in Eastern European history in general, and Balkan history in particular. Also included are works on Russian, Turkish, and Romanian history. Some of these works were published in European journals, a few of them being printed in a non-English language. Many of the materials contained in the collection are reprints of journal-published works. Each sub-series is arranged alphabetically by title.

The second series, Teaching, comprises materials created in the course of Barbara Jelavich's work as an instructor within the Department of History at I.U. Included in the series are various syllabi for individual courses taught by Jelavich, typed and handwritten notes created for these courses, exams, news clippings, copies of journal articles, maps, submitted work by students, course bibliographies, scholarly monographs, and lecture notes. Some of the courses included in the series include "Modern Austria," "Balkan History," and "Eastern Europe Since 1914." Teaching files arranged alphabetically by class or subject.

The third series, Research, contains materials covering a range of topics relating to Barbara Jelavich's work both for publications and in her classroom teaching at Indiana University. The series also contains drafts of works, published and perhaps unpublished. Most of the research notes are typed and have occasional handwritten annotations. Some of the files contain correspondence between Jelavich and publishers, as well as other academic colleagues in her field. Also included in the series are occasional reprints of journal articles, handwritten notes, news clippings, and copies of magazine articles. The Research series is arranged alphabetically by folder title, usually a subject designation.

The fourth series, Correspondence, is also the largest one in the Jelavich collection. Within the Correspondence series, the subseries of correspondence with graduate students is currently closed for research due to the presence of letters of recommendation. Access may be granted if the Archives is informed well in advance to allow time to review the files.

The series contains materials such as letters, memos, conference programs, notes, drafts of writings, and news/magazine clippings relating to Jelavich's various publications and presentations at conferences and in committees within her field. The final subseries, Student Correspondence, is comprised mainly of letters between Jelavich and former graduate students, many of whom were pursuing a career in academia. The subject of much of the correspondence concerns requests for letters of recommendation from Jelavich, and copies of those letters of recommendation are to be found in the subseries. Some of the remaining correspondence centers on personal updates on life and career between Jelavich and her former graduate students. Both sub-series are arranged alphabetically by folder title.