Tag: Advice

Keeping Up Professionally: For Library School Students

By this point one or more professors will have impressed upon you the need to keep up with professional news reports and articles. For those without a prior background in libraries, like myself, this can be overwhelming. You don’t know much about librarianship, and this lack of knowledge if further complicated by the fact that librarianship has entered a time of competing evolutionary models of what librarianship is and should be, and pedagogical differences.

How do you start keeping up with all this?

  • Breath. No one expects you to know all of this information overnight. Start keeping up with the profession now and you won’t have to cram right before you graduate and are looking for a job. The longer you keep up with current events the easier it becomes as you pick up on the terminology and identify points of major concern within the profession.
  • Acquire an RSS feed reader, if you do not already use one. It does not matter which one you use so long as you check it on a regular basis. I try and check mine a couple times a day but the world won’t end if you can only check it a couple times a week. RSS feed readers allow you to check multiple sites at once, instead of? having to check them individually.

Some Popular Online RSS Feed Readers:

http://www.bloglines.com/

http://friendfeed.com/

http://reader.google.com

Desktop Mac Application:

http://www.NewsGator.com/NetNewsWire

What to read?

I’m sure you’ve seen at least one list titled something like 100 Best Blogs for Librarians. Websites and Twitter feeds found on lists like this tend to be high quality but who has time to keep up with 100 of anything?

Below is a list of RSS feeds that I use to keep up with major topics the library profession; it does not include the feeds I subscribe to about specialized library topics (academic, cataloging, education, history, research, science, technology, etc.).

Blogs:

The Embedded Librarian

http://embeddedlibrarian.wordpress.com/

http://embeddedlibrarian.wordpress.com/feed/

A unique take on librarianship, complete with practical examples and recommendations, from a faculty member of the School of Library and Information Science at the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C.

In the Library with the Lead Pipe http://inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/
RSS Feed Link http://inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/feed/
RSS Comments Feed Link http://inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/comments/feed/

One of the most thought provoking library blogs around, this group blog provides thoughtful advice, comments, and discussion on issues and topics important to librarians. I have included a link to their comments feed as well as their post feed because you can learn almost as much from reading people’s thoughtful responses as from the original posts.

Library Man (Michael Porter) http://www.libraryman.com/
RSS Feed Link http://www.libraryman.com/blog/feed/

Always interesting, presenter, video maker, technology and PEZ fan, he is actively engaged in activities to promote and enrich libraries; Michael should be one everyone?s watch list.

Library Scenester (Erin Dorney) http://libraryscenester.wordpress.com/
RSS Feed Link http://libraryscenester.wordpress.com/feed/

Erin is in her second year as the Outreach Librarian at Millersville University of Pennsylvania. Witty, connected, and active in both professional organizations and independent projects Erin is an example of what you can accomplish. Erin’s blog covers a variety of topics and often includes tips and insights for new or aspiring librarians.

LISNEWS http://lisnews.org/
RSS Feed Link http://lisnews.org/rss.xml

This very popular blog posts summaries and links to news articles impacting librarians. It is not uncommon to see items posted here reposted elsewhere with commentary and will give you a general overview of what issues and innovations librarians are talking about.

From Twitter:

Library Associates Companies (LAC)

    http://twitter.com/libassociates

      http://twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/20789580.rss

      This company hires and recruits librarians for their company, and library industry jobs across the country. Following them will make your more aware of what types of jobs are out there and what skills are in demand. In addition, they regularly post news items of interest to the profession, and job seekers.

      LIBGIG_Jobs http://libgig.com/
      RSS Feed Link http://twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/16810581.rss

      This company posts jobs across the information industry, not just in a traditional library setting. Although most of the jobs listed are in the US they do occasionally post international jobs and, like LAC, they regularly post news items of interest to the profession, and job seekers.

      Things to keep in mind:

      • There are blogs by librarians for librarians on every topic and issue, I follow 30+ relevant librarians, associations, and companies using Google Reader. This sounds like a lot, but, as you get more specialized posts are published less frequently, and there are more duplicate postings.
      • Life happens and the world will not end if you miss a couple of news items. Do your best and with repetition it’ll become second nature to check your news feeds.
      • RSS feeds provide you with additional material for your class discussions and papers.

      Good luck, and happy reading!

      11 Things New Library School Students Should Know

      I’m finishing my second quarter at Drexel and here are some things that you should know before you start your first quarter in library school. Not all of these will apply to all people.

      1. Talk with financial aid and ask if there are any corporate or association discounts (Drexel offers 20% off for ALA membership). These discounts are not always advertised so if you don’t ask you will not receive. Remember that all discounts must be applied to your account before your tuition is paid. There are no retroactive tuition breaks.
      2. For those who have lost their job or received a pay cut, after approximately 12 weeks out of work most financial aid offices can review your status. It might not get you more aid but you may get a better mix of subsidized v. unsubsidized loans.
      3. Make sure and check your program website weekly as you lead up to the term, they don’t always remember to announce everything in an e-mail.
      4. Organization is the key to doing well in library school. Buy an organizer, get out your chalk board; use whatever helps you to stay focused and on track. The classes go by fast and if you get behind it’s almost impossible to catch up.
      5. Participate in school message boards and talk with fellow classmates at school mixer events, grill them about the professors who are teaching the classes you will be taking. Not all professors teach equally well in all environments. Some professors excel online and not in the classroom and vice versa.
      6. Classes will take more time than you originally thought if you haven’t been in school for a while. I remember reading a couple different time estimates 8-10 hours, 10-12 hours, reality was 10-18 hours depending on the course.
      7. If you are unsure about anything ask your professor or counselor. They are there to help you. If you aren’t sure who to ask about something start with your counselor they can always direct you to the right person.
      8. Think about whether you want to work in a corporate or academic/public library. The classes you need to take are slightly different. With all the flexibility of the programs being offered comes a greater responsibility to do your research, ask for advice, and plan your own custom curriculum. Even if you don’t want to take them I recommend taking Cataloging & Classification, Collection Development, and a Management course. A lot of librarians work alone, or work with a part time assistant. If you have no web development experience, or minimal web skills, take a class!
      9. Start looking at job listings now. This will give you ideas about what skills are in demand and what types of jobs are out there. I follow Libgig on Twitter.
      10. Arrange an internship. Your school may be able to help you with this depending on the area you are in. If you have to arrange one on your own don’t be discouraged if some places don’t take interns. This lack of interns seems to be some sort of policy matter (I suspect it’s a union matter but I could be wrong). Look for a non-profit special library. They are almost always understaffed and grateful for any help they can get.
      11. Now that you are focused and working hard at your studies remember to take some time off at least once a week! Read a book for fun, go for a run, whatever floats your boat. Remember all study and no play leads to burnout and you are spending too much money on your degree to burnout!

      This list is by no means exhaustive so feel free to post anything you’d like to add!

      Updated 9/19/09

      Due to excessive spam in the comments, 200 in one hour, I have had to close the comments to this post.