What degree does someone have to have in order to be called a librarian if they don't have the job title librarian? What is a typical day like for library employees of any position?
Good questions! Grab a snack, this got a little long.
What degree do you need to be calleda librarian:
Here at LCPL we require everyone withthe librarian job title to have their MLS (Master of LibraryScience). However, that’s not true of all libraries. Some librariesmay only require an MLS for the higher positions, like directors or admin, so someone with a bachelor’s could certainly be called alibrarian in some cases.
We also have Assistant Librarians.Assistant Librarians may not have an MLS. They might be working towardit, or not, but a bachelor’s degree is sufficient for this position.
We do require Assistant Librarians (andmany other positions) to be working toward their librarycertification, but that’s a state requirement - it may vary state tostate. (Here in Indiana, qualifying for your certification requiresearning a certain number of Library Education Units, which you getby going to classes, watching webinars, or attending training relatedto your job. The number of units you need depends on your position,but the state provides a LOT of opportunities to earn them and it’sgenerally pretty easy to end up with way more than you need.)
TL;DR: it depends on the library! But honestly, to most people, if you work in a library you’re a librarian ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
What is a typical day like forlibrary employees in different positions:
I asked the whole Tumblr team to tossin their two cents since we’ve got people from lots of differentpositions contributing to this blog. Not everyone has gotten back to me yet since we’re all working different schedules, but I didn’t want to leave you hanging. If I hear back from more people, I’ll add on to this post.
As you might expect, librarystaff like words so it got a little long. We’ll add a Read More to save your dash. Here’s what we’ve got:
Chris (Librarian, Branch Head):My#1 tip - learn how to plunge an overflowing toilet without gettingyour shoes wet.
My actual advice -
A typical day is dealing with whateverthe library users throw at you. So, there’s a lot of variety and youhave to like working with people of all types.
Sarah (Programming & CollectionPerformance Librarian):Hmm…be prepared to take whatever isthrown at you on a daily basis. Whether that’s:
a patron who has nevertouched a computer before being told that they must apply for a jobonline (and they need a library card, e-mail address, resume, and alot of hands-on help for every step)
a patron with a referencequestion about how to burn up human bodies (no joke, thank goodness Iremembered this patron had a class on criminal forensics but didn’tknow how to phrase a question)
a teen program that you put yourheart and soul into where no one showed up (or the reverse, a teenprogram you put your heart and soul into - and far more people thanyou were able to handle showed up).
Patience is key.
You’re also often the first place aperson who has just gotten a diagnosis from a doctor, and needsresources on how to manage it, goes. Empathy and understanding isalso key, and a willingness to go the extra mile so that yourpatrons know that they’re getting the most up-to-date and verifiedinformation.
Your library is a place where peoplecan also find connection - young parents looking for support andunderstanding from other parents at storytime, that lonely teen atyour program finally finding another teen with the same enthusiasmfor manga, members of a book club who have kept attending for years -and not just for the books.
You’ve got to plan long-range and beable to handle spur-of-the-moment situations. You will deal withpeople who are the kindest souls and the most reverent readers ofbooks, and the person driving a new Mercedes-Benz who pitches aliteral tantrum over a ten-cent fine. You’ll evaluate databases,choose new materials for the library, plan programs, and connect withcommunity members who can introduce the rest of the community to newideas, music, art, discussion, etc.
You’ll help people find thecorrect legal documents, students find the resources they need,introduce local businesspersons to databases that can revolutionizetheir business plan. You’ll need to adapt to new forms of technology- because your patrons will have questions about it. You’ll also needto be able to smile and give a tactful response when you get thatfamiliar question, “Hasn’t the internet replaced libraries?”
Beth (Librarian, Branch Head):
The library works as a team–allpeople/positions are important. I started as a clerk with my MLS(librarian positions were few due to the recession and hiringfreezes) and I value that experience every day. To the patrons whovisit the library–everyone is a librarian. I think this helps keepany “egos” in check–they value the clerks, tech,paraprofessionals, pages and professionals the same.
As a Librarian/Branch Head, duties runthe gamut. Some days I work the desk with a clerk checking in/outmaterials, pulling items, answering calls, helping at the copymachine. Some days I’m in full program/event mode–planning programsthat people will enjoy and learn from. There are reports to be runand to write. Maintaining the collection is a regular task.
Of course, as a librarian, it is vitalto be there to get people the assistance they need and providevaluable and reliable resources. Some days I get yelled at. Yourealize the differences and similarities in humanity. Some days Ihave to plunge the toilet and wear protective shoe booties.
The only things I “read” onwork time are work-related (and our social media feed). Being amanager requires times where you have to have tough conversations.The times when you get a honest thank you or a great big smile from akid/patron–those make up for the grind of other tasks.
In my opinion, working in a publiclibrary is awesome. BUT–you must want to work with the public or youwill be helping no one. It can be as frustrating as rewarding somedays. There are some weird stories and some inspiring ones as well. Iwouldn’t trade in this experience for anything!
Robin (Technology MarketingSpecialist and friendly neighborhood Tumblr editor, not a librarian):
Confession:I’m not a “real” librarian at all. My master’s degree is in businessadministration and marketing, but I somehow convinced a library tohire me.
As a “Technology MarketingSpecialist” (basically, I’m the social media manager) most of mycontact with our patrons is through a computer screen - like whatwe’re doing right now! I spend most of my time creating posts for ourvarious social accounts, answering questions that come in throughthose accounts, making sure everyone is playing nice online, andgenerally making sure people know we exist.
I’m in the nifty position of getting towork with every single department in our library, because everysingle aspect of what we do needs promotion! There are a lot ofcommittees and I sit in on a lot of meetings because, well, marketingneeds to know what’s happening. There’s a ton of opportunity forcreativity and outside-the-box thinking, too, which I couldn’t livewithout.
My undergraduate degree was in creativeand professional writing, and I never thought I’d have a job whereI’d have to learn some graphic design, or video editing, or coding(oh yeah, I manage the website, too) but here I am - if you work in alibrary in any position you’ll learn a ridiculous amount of newthings without even trying.
Thanks for reading this far - that’s it for now. We hope it helped and feel free to ask us anything else!
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