In my recent visit to the Toledo Public Library, I was given advice by not one, but two librarians, to “focus on the Information part of the program; all the jobs are turning to computers; public librarians are becoming obsolete and media specialist outlook isn’t pretty either.”
Taking an interest in the profession, I’ve become used to think kind of “advice” and other brash comments from peers when I tell them what I’m pursing: “you have to go to college for that? A masters?!” I felt especially defeated when doing a job search for librarians in my area, only to find out I’d have to move to bigger cities hours away from me.
The article “So You Want to be a Librarian?” offsets these widespread ideas. According to the article, “almost 60% of librarians are 45 years of age and older” while “only 7% of the ‘library work force’ is between the ages of 20 to 29.” Studies show that librarians tend to be older than workers in the rest of the economy. Thus, more retiring librarians and budget related layoffs should mean more job openings for future library professionals entering the field. To get ahead of your competition, experts in the library field suggest a library internship while in the MLIS program, as it will meet the “years of experience” requirement of most applications.
LibraryCareers.org is a great website to give hope to the outlook of librarianship as a career option, including job opportunities and salary librarians expect to make in the field.
Reference
McDermott, I. E. (2010). So You Want to Be a Librarian?. Searcher, 18(8), 7. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Thanks for illustrating the positives of the profession as it is today. I've also heard the comments about needing a masters for that, and it can be frustrating. It's nice to hear that the profession is not so bleak as it may seem.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your post. I'd be curious for you to explain the demographics of the two librarians who feel that public librarians are being obsolete. For instance, are they older or tech savvy? Do they love their jobs?
ReplyDeleteFrom listening to the recent lectures as well as 6080 topic discussions, we have learned that the library profession has changed considerably in the past decades. This is also reflected in the change from MLS to MLIS in graduate degrees. I work with several MLS librarians who graduated in the 60's through 80's and they often speak of this duality between the old ways of librarianship and the LIS professional. In 20 years, roughly 60% of the profession will retire as will the "old school" of librarianship. Hopefully, many of the stereotypes will also be cast away and people will understand the validity of a masters.
We also need to learn from history; continuing education is essential to staying current in a tech-heavy field such as this.
Thanks again for your post
-Josh Meyer
It's funny that two librarians in the Toledo Public Library would say their traditional "librarian" role is becoming obsolete. I read a very interesting article, "Eroding Library Role?" where the author, Steve Kolowich, argues this with research. He claims,
ReplyDelete"Humanists still see the library as indispensable; 75 percent said librarians still play an important role in supporting teaching, and 82 percent said the library provides crucial archiving services."
Perhaps a few disgruntled librarians and some unsympathetic community members who don't use the library view librarians as obsolete. I think though, that if we dig deeper, we would see more research like that of Steve Kolowich, who shows us that librarians are still needed, as well as libraries. His article is a very interesting one. The URL is below:
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/04/07/survey
Dan Neeves
My husband had no idea that you had to have a masters degree to become a librarian until he met me. I think the key to success in this profession is to remember that it is one that requires life-long learning and change is a major part of the profession. There will always be new technology or innovative techniques that require us to adapt how we work and serve our users.
ReplyDelete"According to the article, “almost 60% of librarians are 45 years of age and older” while “only 7% of the ‘library work force’ is between the ages of 20 to 29.” Studies show that librarians tend to be older than workers in the rest of the economy."
ReplyDeleteI've read this a lot on various sites promoting libraries as well as the occupational handbook. Walk into any library and this image will be quickly confirmed.
I guess what I fear however is whether or not this is overstated. There are blogs with a lot of disgruntled librarians, young and old, employed and unemployed, who call the idea of old, retiring librarians to be a myth. Basically, they say that there are a lot of older librarians but they're not retiring nor are they likely to anytime soon. I think with the economy being the way it is, a lot of older people, librarians included, are working past retirement age because they have to.
Personally, I want to remain optimistic. This is a career that I want to do and see myself doing for the rest of my life. Yet, I want to remain realistic as well. I wonder if, when I get my degree, I will actually be able to work in a public library or if I will have to work in another segment of the library and information science field.