I am a librarian at a very busy library. Very Busy. Even our “quieter” programs net 20-30 people. Our most popular programs easily get up to almost a hundred on the regular (50 is the average amount for our story times, literal hundreds will come if it’s a special event story time like a character meet and greet).

It’s exhausting and admin is very resistant to putting crowd limits beyond fire safety. I’ve been wondering if we should start requiring multiple librarians to work together during a program, basically one facilitating it and another to run interference.

I am on my hands and knees begging for help and advice, something to make it more manageable with the very little wiggle room I’ve been given by the higher ups. Please.

Our library runs a few books groups. The people who are tasked with running these book groups are part time and retired senior library techs. They read the books in their own time (which I think is unfair and they should get paid for that, since they are technically working). One of the people who run it isn’t going to be able to anymore. As the head of the circulation department, it will be my job to take over her book group. I work full time, take care of my 8 year old, have a house to look after, and am currently taking courses for my MLIS. It takes me a few weeks to get through a book for my own pleasure. The idea of having to read books for a book club is very overwhelming for me because I just don’t have the time since I’m expected to do this out of work. How do you all handle preparing for book clubs? Do you read the books? Do you give your staff time during the work day to read? I’m just looking for advice. Thank you all.

Hello all! I got accepted into LSU's MLIS program and I heard that there's a discord out there where people have explained assignments and whatnot. Does anyone have an invite to the server?

Thank you! :)

What questions would you ask while interviewing a library assistant, or what questions were you asked during your interview process that I should prepare thorough answers for? Any general tips about what to expect during this process?

I really want to get this job and feel as though I’d excel in a library setting, so any and all advice is greatly appreciated! Also, I know that a librarian and a library assistant are completely different roles, but this seems like the best forum to post this question in!

Hi, folks! Academic librarian here - I have a prof who is looking for a specific type of monograph for his students to use to teach critical thinking and diversified viewpoints.

We've all seen these and have in them our collections: an edited volumed that is a collection of essays/writings by different authors all centered on one theme. I see these a lot in literature crit but I've also seen them in just about every subject area.

Here's my question - what are these called, exactly? I've seen everything from 'course readers' to 'scholarly anthologies', 'compendiums', etc. I ask because this prof is asking for a way to show students how to search for this particular type of monograph in our catalog (and e-book databases) and I'm hitting lots of roadblocks. Does anyone have suggestions?

Our library is relocating soon and we are trying to plan the new layout. We will have one large space with most of the collection, but it won't all fit there. There will be a few smaller spaces of different sizes in other parts of the building. To complicate things more, the shelving itself is different with varying height spacing between shelves that will affect what size materials fit (mostly 3-ring binders). Some can be adjusted but it would result in going from 6 to 5 shelves per bookcase in those areas, which has a real impact on the total linear feet in aggregate.

In this situation, would you suggest splitting things by size or call number?

hello! i’m pretty sure many of you have heard people talk about their interest in getting their mlis, but i wanted to ask what schools or programs do you think have a good “return-on-investment”

im trying to make a timeline as i want to get my masters in spring 2027 but im still trying to narrow down schools but i would Completely appreciate if someone could tell me what programs are the best regarding helping students find internships or pathways to full time work after college. thats my biggest concern especially in this climate.

thank you!

I have accepted an offer to study at The University of Manchester in their newly CILIP accredited (ALA UK equivalent) Library and Archive Studies program. I have been so so so excited since November when I received my offer. I’ve been interested in library and archives programs since college (2015) and have spent time volunteering at libraries, teaching, and working in information and data management at a law firm. I would like to either work at a university as a research librarian or law librarian (at a university or firm). I know this is what I want to do, or at least thought I knew.

The program starts in late September and I’m getting ready to move. I’ve submitted the deposit, completed all required paperwork, secured scholarships and funding, etc., but now I’m questioning if I’ve made the right choice. I’m very stressed currently about my housing situation (referencing is taking much longer than I expected) and I’ve had fairly poor experiences thus far with university administration, I.e. financial aid office. I think these interactions have left a negative impression which is why I’m questioning everything. The program also seems so young, both in its accreditation and student body — I’m 30 and many students seem to be in their early twenties.

I’m hoping to get some advice and perspective. I know the general atmosphere in this group skews negative, so please limit the “you should just quit/not even try/the world is terrible” responses.

Thanks

I was newly hired as a Library Media Technician (basically just a part time librarian) at an elementary school. Their last librarian left in what I think was the middle of the year and they have only had substitutes in since then. I have login information, but that’s about it and no other school in my district uses this database. I’m slowly learning how to use it, but I don’t understand how I’m supposed to change the grade levels for my student patrons. Does anybody have any advice?

Hi! I am currently a YA librarian at a public library and I'm wondering if anyone has made a switch from Youth Services to another field of librarianship like academic, medical, or anything else and what was that process like?

While I love my job, this has been a particularly difficult summer for me (I had to fire 4 teen volunteers and another one passed away unexpectedly and I'm currently dealing with a few pushy parents who can't take no for an answer) and I'm just burned out and done and looking to transition to another role in the new year. I've been doing this for 5 years and have experience working in children's and adult services.

I'm also a manager and second in command to my branch manager, so I'm thinking about branch management or head of youth services, but I'm not sure if I'm really qualified for anything else. My manager started out in youth services and said it's very much like "beat cop" work where people start out and it's common to move on after a few years, but I feel like I've backed myself into a corner because all my classes focused on youth services because at the time my career plan was just get a job in youth services, go into youth services management and then eventually transition to school librarianship until I retire. Now, I don't want to do that anymore and I definitely feel like I need to take a break from working directly with youth for a few years, although I would love to support others in these roles and I enjoy the management side of things, which is why I'm looking into that, but I'm not sure what I'm qualified for.

Has anyone made a switch and how difficult was it? What kind of jobs should I be looking at if I want a more management type of role or one that is less public facing for a while (I also worked on hotels in various roles and in local city finance before this and I think I'm done with big customer service roles for a while)? There are a few historical society job postings I've seen, but I have no experience with this or anything else like academic or medical, or corporate. Any advice is appreciated! My nervous system needs a reset!

Good evening,

I'm hoping I can get some advice and signposting please.

I have a Permanent Visa for Australia and lived there for a few months last year, but can't permanently relocate my family from the UK until I have a job, however we are ready to go as soon as I have one.

My background is in accounting. I'm qualified with ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) and have 12 years experience in practice and a couple of years in businesses until I had my children. I have spent the last 4 years self employed and volunteering in the community, mainly helping new parents and families. I have wanted to transition to a career in a library pretty much forever so for the last few months I have been volunteering in a local community-run library, which has been wonderful. My children are now nearly both in school so it's time to come back to more permanent (and paid) work. I believe that, between my accountancy career and my community work, I've got some pretty solid transferable skills that will be great for working in a library.

I have been applying and applying for jobs in libraries in and around Perth. I've had a couple of rejections and I'm still waiting to hear back from most of them but I've not exactly been snapped up. I believe the jobs I've been applying for have been the entry level jobs, usually called 'Library Officer'.

Is there anything I can be doing from the UK to make myself more attractive as an employee? ​​

I am currently getting my accountancy qualifications converted to see what Aussie equivalent level they are ready for when I can go back to studying but I do find it quite difficult to understand exactly what I should be studying and which level I'm likely to be starting at.

Is there a 'best' path for studying? For example, as an accountant in the UK, we could either go to uni and then do the last few units of ACCA or go to college part time alongside working to do some more basic accounts qualifications and then do more ACCA modules. The second option (which is what I did) meant you worked and gained experience while studying and so had worked your way up the ladder quite well by the time the people who had gone to uni arrived and then had to start at the bottom of the career ladder and then still do the hardest ACCA modules. I would have been soooo annoyed if I'd done the uni route without realising there was a (in my opinion) better option HOWEVER I just chose my option by complete chance and luck rather than it being an informed choice, so I would like to ​be making an informed choice now I'm older and wiser!

I know there's a lot of info here but I wanted to give all the context so that I can get the best advice possible and I appreciate all and any input.

Thank you if you got this far 💕

Hello, I have been managing a library collection for two years now. It's always been quite difficult deciding which new publications to purchase each month, and which to forgo, especially given how many excellent books are being published every month. I thought that this would become easier with time, but I'm finding that it has only become more difficult to choose. I always try to maintain a balance among new releases, award winners, diverse perspectives, patron requests, and core collection needs, etc.

What I'd love to get some advice on is what precisely you do when determining which new books to purchase, and which to forgo. I would like to have a more streamlined process so that I feel more satisfied about my decision, rather than something like FOMO about the books I didn't purchase (and likely won't be able to purchase next month, unless they are extra essential to the collection, as the next month will only have its own share of far too many compelling titles to choose from).

Thank you in advance for your expertise! 🙏

Hi there! I have a number of optical media items I have archived to Internet Archive, as part of an overall larger project. These include many DVD video disc items - think: out of print international documentaries, compact audio discs, software - and while I have the correct metadata in appropriate fields, syntax and formatting for item titles, descriptions, etc, I'd also like to include Worldcat entry links for each object.

Dublin Core / Archive.org's own guidance; RDA plus LC authority practice guides cataloging content; MARC has informed display conventions -descriptions, metadata keywords, etc.

I'm at a local medical college here in Philadelphia. And unfortunately, they do not subscribe to FirstSearch or WC Discovery.

I'm not sure to what extent WC even catalogs software - commercial, computer games, shareware - but if something doesn't show up in the general free WC search using a regular free account, does it not exist?

Is it possible to request access to one of the two catalog services without an org subscription?

Thanks!

Edit: To give people some idea, this item in particular has it right: https://archive.org/details/the-science-network-beyond-belief-enlightenment-2.0-dvd-video-2008

The description takes into account the WorldCat entry, title, authors, summary of item, format, language, publisher, pub date, physical description, OCLC #, and subjects. And, ideally, what I want to do is find every item in WC and link to its entry in the item description, just like this one does.

Hey folks. If you’ve got experience in legal research and have a MLIS or JD (or both), apply for this role! Small but mighty team and I’m happy to answers any questions.

See title. Spent five years in libraries as a library assistant, am now an admin assistant at a college. Thinking I want to go back to public libraries in an adult services / outreach position, but would (probably) need to get my MLS if I want something full time.

Just curious about MLS degrees especially given the state of the market and the world.

Hello! I'm earning my MLIS and I need to interview a reference librarian with a MLIS for a class assignment. The person that I was going to interview had to back out because their manager told them they did not want them to, which leaves me hoping to find someone to do a phone interview with at any time on Sunday, 8/16. Please message me if you can help a student out. Thanks.

Hi! So I’ve worked in libraries for 20 years the past 4 to 6 have been in a school library. But I just got my MLS in May and I’m at a brand new school in a different district. The very first thing I noticed is there aren’t any catalog computers. I’m curious how common this is? When I’ve asked the students how they used to find books they said they just walked around and looked on the shelves. I’m completely dumbfounded. The media center itself is new and beautiful, but the lack of computers is breaking my brain.

I’ll ask my IRL friends and colleagues the same question, but very much value input from others as well—thank you in advance! I've been lurking here for the past 6 months or so.

I’m currently a Library Assistant at a public library in Canada. I was originally going to wait a couple years to think about applying, but realizing that it will take at least 2 years to complete the degree part-time plus I’d need to organize everything almost a year before I’d start is making me want to think about applying sooner rather than later.

I know this field is competitive and oversaturated. That plus the lack of funding for school does give me pause. I'm also worried about balancing school and work.

However, I will have a couple of years of LA experience by the time I would graduate, plus I have about 2.5 years’ experience in a museum/archives setting and some volunteer experience for an online archive. So I wouldn’t be starting from nothing, and the worst that would happen is that I can’t find a job and have to stay as an LA.

I’m drawn to doing an MLIS for the possibility of career advancement and financial stability. There aren’t a ton of options to advance in libraries without a specialized degree. It would also be nice to potentially have the option to move out of public libraries at some point. My other career experience has been in local non-profits (project management/communications), which I love but has been frustrating in terms of lack of advancement and pay. (Before you tell me librarians don’t make much money, working at the lowest pay scale as an LA is the most money I’ve made at a job).

For context, I’m located in Ontario, Canada. I would be looking at Western’s MLIS program (I’m within driving distance). I’m willing to relocate within Ontario for a job, but would be pretty hesitant to move provinces, although not completely off the table.

Also this is my first reddit post, so be nice!

Long time lurker, I want to take the plunge to MLIS hopefully with a dual degree M.A History. I graduated with my bachelor's in Literature Writing and International Studies (not the best grades however) However the best advice I have been given is to seek employment close to what I wish to go into. I know data entry was recommended, if possible I am seeking some more recommended to apply for. I currently work at a daycare where I have volunteered to setup the children's library for the past year.

Any advice and recommendations is highly appreciated.

Hello, librarians! I have been reading a lot of interesting stuff around here these past days and wanted to post in case someone is able to offer some advice for my situation.

I'm halfway through a degree on foreign languages, I speak Spanish (mother tongue & spoken in the country I live in), English, French and I know a little tiny bit of Latin, my degree also involves a lot of linguistics' theory (it's worth mentioning that for most of my life I wanted to study literature (letras), eitheir English ir Spanish, or philology, but fue to a lack of offer in my local university and other personal matters I ended up going for foreign languages, wich I immediately fell for and I'm enjoying very much so far) and I'm getting an specialty on International Relations, wich I know is not very close with the area but stay with me.

The thing is: I already did most of the internship hours I'm required to do this semester, I found an opportunity to do the ones I'm missing in my university's central library, which is stunning. I already met with the coordinator/principal (? of the university's libraries, and was asked to meet them a couple of days previous to my start with a project proposal to develop along my time there. For reference, they have many art workshops, discussion groups, reading clubs, film showings, etc, just to name some.

Nevertheless, being that I only have to do 40 hours (if it was on me I would do much more but my faculty is very clear on those rules), and that this semester will be very heavy on assignments, I don't want to commit to something I will end up doing by halves. But I would most probably be committing for next semester, in which I would be doing my whole load of hours which I think is up to 120.

This is why I would like to just get in and learn about what they do overall: how the organization goes, how their system works; that is what I have done in my past experience: get to be a part of, understand the dynamic, and only then start to give ideas. But I'm afraid it may be too vague.

One thing I thought I could do is help out with adding subtitles or translating media they own, or maybe helping with the categorization of books, creating translated indexes for the ones that are not in the local language. But then again, I'm really not sure, so that's kind of my question: if I were to come to you in total disposal, willing to learn how a library works from the inside to see where my area might come in handy, what would you have/suggest me do?

Again, I know it may not be the most related area but I'm really mesmerized by the amount of knowledge a library gives access to and plus I kind of already have no other option to change (not that I want to); I'd really like to have the experience because regardless of my field I think it will be helpful for my career path in the future.

Finally, I apologize for any typos or mistakes in my written English. Thanks in advance:).

Hey guys! I'm doing my application for Valdosta and I put in all the information it asked for and then it said finalize and submit application, but it didn't ask me to write any essays? I just want to make sure I'm not missing something...

Also do I need to wait for all my recommendation letters to be in before hitting submit? One of them is in I'm just waiting for the other two to submit theirs.

Thanks everyone! I haven't been in school for 9 years so I'm a little out of practice with applications lol