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Hi Christina,
Thank you for your reply. Do you mind if I ask what is the pre-med handbook?
Dandi
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Dandi Wang
Student
University of Alberta
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Original Message:
Sent: May 27, 2022 10:45 AM
From: Christina Chan-Park
Subject: Questions about potential volunteer opportunities
Dandi, If you're wanting to find out what happens in an academic library, you might want to take a page from the pre-med handbook and see if you can "shadow" librarians from different institutions and in different parts of the library. Most libraries know that there will be on-the-job training with any new hire; but spending some time behind the scenes at a library can give you a sense of what you skills you will need to work on after you get a job. Plus, it will help you in answering questions during an interview because you'll have a better understanding of what the job entails. Good luck, --Christina -- Christina Chan-Park, PhD, MaPA, MSIS (she/her)
STEM Librarian Coordinator and Research Librarian for Science and Data Liaison to Aviation Science, Biology, Chemistry/Biochemistry, Environmental Science,
Geology, Mathematics, Physics, Psychology/Neuroscience, Statistical Science
Baylor University, One Bear Place #97146, Waco, TX 76798
254-710-4538, 254-710-3116 (fax), CY_Chan@baylor.edu http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6047-9805 Go to https://libcal.baylor.edu/appointments/cy_chan to make an appointment
Original Message:
Sent: 5/25/2022 5:17:00 PM
From: Dandi Wang
Subject: RE: Questions about potential volunteer opportunities
Hello Wendy and Bryan,
To be honest, I feel the same way about my MLIS degree that real-world experience is the key and there is a huge gap between the course provided by my institution and the requirements listed in the library job posts. So far the most useful courses I have taken are the organization of information which touches the foundation of metadata and the library instructional practices. That is why I am hoping to gain some real-world experiences in the academic libraries to at least understand the nature of librarian jobs because most of the knowledge that librarian jobs required is not taught at school.
Thank you all for the tips on gaining working experience. I will keep searching around the local academic libraries and other related institutions, and see whether there is any chance I could learn from their librarians.
Dandi
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Dandi Wang
Student
University of Alberta
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Original Message:
Sent: May 25, 2022 03:04 PM
From: Bryan Carson
Subject: Questions about potential volunteer opportunities
Wendy has an excellent point! She's a top research/instruction librarian who is always "in the know." I've had some excellent conversations with her at conferences.
Try public libraries. Try academic libraries. And don't forget about special libraries either. A museum may be interested in having a volunteer, since they often are unable to hire enough personnel. I did a library school internship in the library of a major accounting firm. Even a municipal archives or records department would give you substantial experience that will help you later in your career.
As Wendy said, don't be afraid to try something outside of the area that you intend to work in. I have also worked my whole career in reference, instruction, or electronic resources (until I became a director 4 years ago). Yet one of the most important classes that I took in library school was cataloging. Like her, " I understand a lot more about the mechanics of retrieval than someone who never learned much about records because it wasn't in the scope of the job they wanted."
Good luck with your studies.
Bryan M. Carson
Author, "The Law of Libraries and Archives" and "Finding the Law: Legal Research for Librarians & Paralegals" (Scarecrow Press)
All original content copyright Bryan M. Carson
Original Message:
Sent: 5/25/2022 3:09:00 PM
From: Wendy Doucette
Subject: RE: Questions about potential volunteer opportunities
Hi, Everyone.
The very first day of online library school, I contacted my closest academic library and told them I was now in library school online but had never worked in a library and asked if I could work for free. They took pity on me and said yes, and though I completed library school with stellar grades, everything I really learned, I learned sitting at the knee of the cataloguer who kindly explained every single thing to me over and over and over until I got it. (Surely no one ever took longer than I to understand some of the trickier points, but eventually I got it). I have never had anything to do with cataloguing, by the way, but because I understand the pieces and how they work, I understand a lot more about the mechanics of retrieval than someone who never learned much about records because it wasn't in the scope of the job they wanted. I also asked a million questions about every other part of the job (ILL, reference, etc.) and everyone who I asked told me something I didn't know. In my personal opinion, my online degree would have been completely worthless without the accompanying real-life experience. If you can't find any academic libraries nearby who'll take you as a volunteer, try the publics. Any real-life experience beats none.
Good luck!
Wendy
Wendy Doucette, PhD, MSLIS Graduate Research and Instruction Librarian Associate Professor, East Tennessee State University Organizer and Program Chair, TLGS (Transforming Libraries for Graduate Students) National Conference
Original Message:
Sent: 5/24/2022 11:02:00 AM
From: Tammy Ivins
Subject: RE: Questions about potential volunteer opportunities
Hi Dandi, I no longer work in an academic library (have moved to the vendor side : ), but I imagine that it is a mix of several different things. Like managing & scheduling the volunteer to work, particularly if you are talking about tasks that student workers can usually do - volunteers have a bad reputation for some people of sometimes being unreliable, since obviously their paid work and studies come first.
There is also the question of whether you would actually be an "intern" (versus a true volunteer); legally, an internship has to benefit you more than them and provide you with substantive learning opportunities more than just grunt work. So, you might consider being really specific and targeted with your volunteer/internship ask to minimize the amount of planning they have to (or feel like they have to) do for you. And, of course keeping applying for their paid positions!
Anyone else have advice?
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Tammy Ivins
Library Services Team Lead
Library & Information Resources Network
Original Message:
Sent: May 24, 2022 01:04 AM
From: Dandi Wang
Subject: Questions about potential volunteer opportunities
Hello fellows,
I am looking for some volunteer opportunities in the academic libraries; however, it seems like most academic libraries only want student workers instead of volunteers. Any suggestions to gain some working experience in the academic libraries? How do you gain your library working experiences?
Dandi
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Dandi Wang
Student
University of Alberta
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