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Blendy posted:The program isn't bad, I actually like the work I do but all the comments about morons and soccer moms in your classes are 100% true. And man do they LOVE to talk. Though my main issue with them isn't that they say stupid stuff it's that they are SUPER idealistic about the work they will be doing. These people are hilarious in outreach/community classes. I was in a course on non-traditional information networks, and one girl kept talking about how she planned on going to "The Middle East" after her MLIS degree. When we asked where, exactly, she was going (and keep in mind this was a course about folk knowledge models and tribal communities) she said "Dubai!" So yeah. The people in your classes will, by and large, be utterly and irredeemably stupid.
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Mar 15, 2010 14:52
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That always concerns me in the sense that "are new MLIS graduates not able to get jobs because they are stupid or because there really are no jobs even for your intelligent grads?"
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Mar 15, 2010 15:22
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Insane Totoro posted:That always concerns me in the sense that "are new MLIS graduates not able to get jobs because they are stupid or because there really are no jobs even for your intelligent grads?" The stupid ones can't get jobs because they're dumb, and they're applying for relatively low-level public positions that can be easily filled by anyone with half a brain. And the smart ones can't get jobs because apparently library school is the next option for arts majors who can't find work, after "go to teacher's college," so there winds up being a glut of overqualified people applying for entry-level positions at good libraries.
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Mar 15, 2010 16:24
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Oh the talking, how could I forget the talking. This may be a grad program, but speaking from Pitt's classes, don't expect there to be small classes with lots of discussion. It's mostly straight up lecture in my classes and when the professors do give us a chance to say something, no one will shut up again, even when what they're talking about has absolutely nothing to do with the topic it started on. So the professor wanted to get a few opinions and then end class, but instead we're going ten minutes over our allotted time because some 40 year old woman has "real world" experience about cataloging from her job at the grocery store or something. I don't know. Some days I feel optimistic about getting a job and some days I feel like there's no hope.
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Mar 15, 2010 17:02
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What sort of online-based anything could you do during the grad program that is a surrogate for internships? On the off chance I apply I'd like to do it wholly online, as undergrad social science classes have always and forevermore cured me of my tolerance for paying to be in a room with grown man-children. I'm also working abroad, and the nature of my Visa and the job precludes volunteering/interning at a local library. Everyone knows the degree by itself is worthless, but is there anything I can do overseas to make me attractive for domestic employers that has a tangible paper trail?
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Mar 15, 2010 17:12
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tirinal posted:What sort of online-based anything could you do during the grad program that is a surrogate for internships? So are you asking about basically a virtual internship, where you work for the library from home or something? Because honestly, I don't think there's any real substitution for actual internships, simply because of the diversity of experience you get from an on-site intern position. But, from what I've seen, some good projects to look for involve: - Website re-designs. These are always happening to some extent, but you might want to look for a major overhaul somewhere (moving from one CMS to another, say, or adding a massive new function) and see if you can help out with that. - Collection analysis. These are more infrequent, but work-intensive. And the work is a lot of grunt work: combing through syllabi, making spreadsheets, plugging numbers into databases, etc. - Online modules. A lot of libraries are moving towards a virtual model of instruction, where there's a webpage with a bunch of video/text tutorials on basic library services (how to do a catalogue search, how to use the interlibrary loan service, etc.) and they need people to create all that content, which is very basic but time-consuming. The only obstacle to working virtually on this one would be if the library is using a specific software (in the case of screencasting or podcasting) and they want you to use that as well for consistency. - Marketing and publicity. This one might be tricky to do virtually, but a lot of libraries (and library journals) are in desperate need of people to create written content for things like newsletters, op/ed columns, professional developments, submissions to bulletins and trade journals, and even submissions for local papers/radio. Basically, anything concrete that you can show employers will count in your favour. The only thing is that if you're on-site in an internship, you have the opportunity to help people work on conference presentations, papers, and posters, which carry a lot more weight because they've been vetted (to a certain degree) by the library community at large. The projects I've mentioned will work just as well, though.
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Mar 15, 2010 17:20
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It's interesting that so many of you mention Chicago; I live here now, and ideally I'd stay. I'm not dead-set on staying, though; if the job is elsewhere, I'll move. And with the high number of dumbasses in your MLS classes, does that mean that these programs are hard to get into? Looking though UIC Urbana-Champaign, they don't even require GRE scores if you have at least a 3.0, and their technical requirements are basically "you must have used a computer and the internet in the past 5 years." Obviously these are bare-minimum requirements, but still, no GRE? Blendy: I used the ALA website to do some research back when I was first considering this, but I assumed you can only be a member if you had an MLIS degree. Can you become a member if you only work in a library/are an MLIS student? And what you said about the next few years being rough but exciting is something I've heard from a few people, but it's one of the reasons why I want to do this. And if I really wanted money, I'd go in for consulting and work 80 hours a week for the next 10 years. Also, anyone know much about military and/or law librarianship? So far I've met with people in access services, reference, subject specialization, archiving, and public libraries, but those other two have been tough to come by.
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Mar 15, 2010 17:28
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Pompoon posted:And with the high number of dumbasses in your MLS classes, does that mean that these programs are hard to get into? Looking though UIC Urbana-Champaign, they don't even require GRE scores if you have at least a 3.0, and their technical requirements are basically "you must have used a computer and the internet in the past 5 years." Obviously these are bare-minimum requirements, but still, no GRE? I find that the MLIS entrance qualifications are super easy to meet, so as long as you're not brain-dead you shouldn't have a problem getting in. My program alone admits about 100 students every semester, for roughly 300 students per year, and a lot of those people get in with nothing more than a BA or a college diploma and no relevant work experience. Also, I'm in Canada so your GRE makes me laugh. A test for graduates! How cute. We just assume (incorrectly) that everyone has a certain level of intelligence.
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Mar 15, 2010 18:06
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Pompoon posted:
Here is the admissions data for UW Milwaukee. http://graduateschool.uwm.edu/forms...-all-degree.pdf If you don't feel like clicking the link, for Fall 2010, 279 applied to get into the MLIS program and 188 were admitted. This does not count the dual degree programs. Fall of 2009 it was 262 to 163. If you wanted to see the stats for the dual degree programs scroll down to the coordinated degree section. Goes to show you why people with 2 degrees are so much more valued. Hardly anyone shoots for two at once.
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Mar 15, 2010 18:26
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Pompoon posted:It's interesting that so many of you mention Chicago; I live here now, and ideally I'd stay. I'm not dead-set on staying, though; if the job is elsewhere, I'll move. Chicago is kind of the hub of American Libraries. It's where the ALA, PLA, and a ton of other *LA's are. I'm with you on the ideally staying in Chicago. But for me that's really up to the CPL and the suburbs come 2 years from now. Also if you want to do public be warned about the CPL. It's soul crushingly bureaucratic and they will place you where they want no matter where you live. Also because it's a union it's hard to fire people and morons keep their jobs if they are willing to be pushed into lovely branches. You may get stuck with some of these morons. If you want to stay in Chicago then Dominican is not a bad choice but it's not the best school. It's pretty cheap for a masters program and you're going to walk away with about the same knowledge as pretty much any other student that went somewhere else. And yes it's easy to get into these programs. I applied for Emporia and got in before I even knew about Dominican. I then turned around and got accepted to Dominican in a week. Pompoon posted:Blendy: I used the ALA website to do some research back when I was first considering this, but I assumed you can only be a member if you had an MLIS degree. Can you become a member if you only work in a library/are an MLIS student? I'm fairly sure you can join no matter what but it effects pricing. Students get discounted prices which is why my teacher urged us to join every *LA that fit our goals now. I currently haven't done much as a member, or really anything at all, but coming up in summer I plan to throw myself in and try to get to know some folks.
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Mar 15, 2010 22:10
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tirinal posted:What sort of online-based anything could you do during the grad program that is a surrogate for internships? This DataONE opportunity just came in via my school's listserv. It looks like an online-based internship, so if you get it it would be great experience. http://d1-lab.appspot.com/document/show/gsoc_program/d1_owner/d1_internship_2010/d1_s2010_description_v1
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Mar 15, 2010 23:03
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Astfgl posted:
I'm not even sure why we have the GRE. Pretty much any program you try to get into makes you take subject tests in addition, and looks mostly at those. I hear the subject tests are a bitch though.
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Mar 15, 2010 23:29
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Yeah, grad school in the States is apparently way more rigorous than Canada in terms of admittance. We really only require samples of writing, a decent CV, and three academic references for most arts and humanities programs, and even science programs only care about research experience and lab work, not test scores. Marks still count, obviously, but not as much as reference letters. And plenty of people can explain away bad grades in the "Please explain your bad grades" sections on most application forms. I suppose that, coupled with our paid co-ops, makes library school in Canada something of a viable prospect for Americans.
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Mar 15, 2010 23:46
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Pompoon posted:I'm not even sure why we have the GRE. Pretty much any program you try to get into makes you take subject tests in addition, and looks mostly at those. I hear the subject tests are a bitch though. It's a money racket. I mean look at how much the GRE costs. Meanwhile the GRE, SAT, and ACT are horrible indicators of scholastic aptitude.
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Mar 16, 2010 02:33
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Another librariagoon checking in. Here's my thoughts and experiences with getting the degree, the job market, etc.: My application process was actually a little funky, and a perfect example of what you shouldn't do. There's a list from the ALA of all the accredited schools (located here: http://www.ala.org/ala/educationcareers/education/accreditedprograms/directory/index.cfm ), and which is pretty much a who's who of the different Master's programs in the US. I applied to Syracuse University, which basically consisted of getting the application PDF off their website, and mailing that in, along with getting my undergrad transcripts sent there, which was all super easy. I then took a trip out to the school, met with some teachers, took a short tour, all that good stuff, and was basically all geared up and ready to go the semester after I finished my undergrad degree. What I screwed up was the financial aid. I never applied for any scholarships or TA positions or anything, and basically waited for them to contact me, so when the time came around, I was looking at a big bill for something like $80,000 a year in student loans. Yeah, no thanks, boss, I'm in enough debt from undergrad. So I panic for a little bit, then remember that I never finished up any of the stuff for the University at Buffalo, my back up school. It's about March by now, and I'm well past the application deadline, but the folks in the office were really nice about it, and other than getting hit with a late charge, I slide right in, and because of the in state tuition from a public university, I'm in a much better position financially. So, yeah, apply early, apply often, don't put off calling the offices and getting them knowing your name. It doesn't seem like getting into the school is all that difficult if you're not a screw off in undergrad (I was a B - student), but the financial aid stuff can be really tricky to get and highly competitive if you aren't looking to do all loans. The program at UB was 36 credit hours, and very flexible. There were 5 set courses (Intro to LIS, Intro to Computers, Intro to Reference, Intro to Cataloging, and Management techniques), but beyond that, you were free to do whatever classes looked interesting or appealing to what you wanted to do, unless you were looking to be a school library media specialist, which is a fancy term from a grade or high school librarian. They have a ton of certification and observation that they need to do, and it ends up leaving you with maybe 2 elective courses. I'm not sure if this is just because New York state has such stringent public school requirements (I know they're similarly complicated for teachers), so it might be different if you're in a different state. Because the program is so short, it's a pretty good idea to have an idea of what you want to do, and what kind of library you want to work in, because they can be doing vastly different things. A cataloging librarian, for example, will tend to do a ton of databasing and really anal stuff like making sure that the AARC2 formatting on the system is in the right order with the right amount of semi-colons in between the different sections and such, while a reference librarian will be learning all sorts of tricky techniques to get people to tell them what it is they are actually looking for but are too embarrassed to say out loud in case they look dumb, which might be totally different depending on if they reference librarian is working in a public library vs. a medical library vs. a law library, and those are also totally different from archivists, who do... As you can see, it get kinda complicated quick, and in the real world, you'll probably end up doing a little bit of everything depending on where you end up. The Intro course you'd take should do a good job overviewing all the different types of libraries and career paths you can follow. LibraryCareers.org is also a pretty good source for overview if you're curious and don't want to wait til you're in school and already committed  Figuring out if you want to work in a public, university, corporate, or specialty library is a huge step that you should figure out pretty early on into the program, and will help determine what courses you should take. Your adviser should be able to give you even more detailed information about this, or set you up with someone in the department who can help.The classes tended to be a weird blend of all this old stuff that librarians have been teaching since the late 1880s when they started coming together as a group, and the most bizarre technophillia you'll find in careers outside of programming and mechanics. Expect to hear all about how cool it is that we can now have a virtual class room on the Second Life, how you should be updating a current and interesting blog about a topic on which you are passionate, should join a ton of maiiling listservs to get your name out there and keep up with the opinions of all sorts of different librarians throughout the world, debates about whether or not physical books are still necessary (though this debate only seems to come from newbies or outsiders, as the vast consensus is that paper copies are still terribly necessary and no library has managed to go totally digital for more than a year or so without failing horribly) , and how great Web 2.0 is. Think about what it'd be like if your parents really got into the internet, and you've got a good idea about how some of them can be. At the same time, though, it is kind of refreshing to see people try to use all these things for more than furry yiffing or their opinions about fan fiction, so it isn't really all that bad when looked at through that lens. At the same time, though, the core values of librarianship ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_laws_of_library_science ) are really simple and grounded, and involve learning a lot of customer service techniques, theories of information management and organization, and how to make sure your 16 year old pages are actually shelving the books in the right order, rather than just screwing off while you're not looking, and most librarians are smart enough to realize that the technologies just make our job easier, and aren't the focus of it. For example, we have an electronic catalog because the card catalog sucked, was hard to use, hard to update, and everyone hated it. So it got replaced with something that eventually became pretty easy to use, much easier to update and maintain, and because people like computers. It stuck around because it worked, not just because it was new. My classes themselves ranged from awesome to sucky, usually depending on the teacher and how into the subject I was, which is kind of how ever class is, eh? There was a big range of ages and ethnicities, mainly slanted towards Asians, females, and either kids coming right out of undergrad, or people in their late 30s going into a 2nd career. They all tended to be talkative and eager to make friends, because librarians be nature seem to network and want to know as many people as possible. I'm not 100% sure why this is, but they do it. They are also, beyond a shadow of a doubt, trivia junkies. Expect to learn a bunch of absolutely useless information very quickly, but that will somehow keep coming up in conversation despite your beliefs that it is useless. The number of times I've won arguments simply because I knew something about locksmithing, or the Turkish language, or MySQL, or the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary, or fibromialgia, or bicycles, or the British conflicts in India... I was in the program full time, so I'd finish up in 3 semesters, and though I was only taking 4 classes a semester, they were quite intensive and detailed, so I'm not sure I'd recommend trying to do two full time Master's programs at once, but that's your call to make. Expect a 15-30 page paper for each class as the final project, and at least a couple presentations per semester. Also expect to learn html, MySQL, all the Microsoft Office applications, a little java script, AACR2 (Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules, Second Edition, the bane of my existence, though some people take to cataloging like fish to water and love it) and the ins and outs of the databases your school subscribes to. Having a 2nd master's will look awesome on resumes, and will certainly help you get a library job easier. Because a lot of people go into librarianship as a 2nd career, they already have a ton of training and therefore are better at their jobs (for example, a nurse will have a huge advantage going into medical libraries, or a paralegal into a law library), but don't be totally discouraged if you go in fresh, as there are jobs for new folks too. Unfortunately, most of them all ask for "1-3 years of experience" or some such, so any practicums or internships you can do to get hands-on experience is totally a good idea. I just got hired to my first real position after about nine months of searching (though I wasn't searching too hard, already had a job helping out a family friend with his business that wasn't doing as well as he wanted, and as I was doing a lot of databasing and inventory management stuff for him, it wasn't totally unrelated to my training), though it is involving a move from Buffalo, NY down to Texas. Expect that you might have to move down south or west, because the job market for new librarians isn't great at all in New England, outside of the major cities like New York City, Boston, and Washington. Once you have a little experience ("paying your dues" at the public library in Queens or East Bromptonville, PA or some such, right?), then the job market becomes awesome, and you can easily make quite a bit of money, depending on where you go, especially if you move into administration (a library director typically makes $100,000 - $120,000, if not more). Your mileage may vary, of course, and if you can make best friends with a teacher (like I failed to), they'll often have leads or know people that are looking (again with the "Librarians make way too many friends" thing), and can point you in the right direction with a big personal recommendation. Similarly, when you do an internship or practicum (this should never, ever, ever be an "if"), suck up to your supervisor to get a reference as well. Letters of recommendation can go a huge way towards getting hired, and again they can point you in the direction of people they know. Bear in mind that you are looking for a pretty cushy position that, once gotten, usually has a pretty good benefits package, even if the salary isn't going to make you a millionaire. The people who really get into librarianship tend to find a job they like and stay there until they die. My present supervisor has had her job for the past 20 years, is only in her early 50s, and shows no signs of wanting to retire. As with every government style job, you start at the bottom, and the opening years stink. But the payoff is worth it, and the job itself is very low stress depending on your tolerance for human stupidity and your co-workers. We do okay, but unless you really work at, you aren't going to be rich at this job. Remember that the reason you have a job is because people type "Show me information about the book?" into  and expect it to know what they mean. People don't know how to find things. They really don't. Most people aren't goons, they don't spend a ton of time on the internet, they are afraid of computers. Your first job will probably stink, and won't exactly be what you are looking for. You will not get call backs because people with stupidly good resumes will apply for terribly entry level jobs, usually because their husbands were recently hired by the college. Similarly, whenever a library position opens, there will be a slew of unqualified people who apply. Our library recently hired a new children's librarian. We got 200+ applications, and about 5 of them had MLSs. A ton were casino workers, some were English majors who had no idea the MLS existed, and some were businessmen looking for a change. It made the weeding process pretty simple. We went with a pleasant young woman who'd just finished her MLS and was willing to move. You will send out a lot of resumes to get this first job. You may have to move, unless you live in Chicago, New York City, Washington DC, or another huge city with a decent economy. As I mentioned above, New England is currently a wasteland with nothing but Director positions. But getting that initial experience will open up a ton of options. Check out: http://joblist.ala.org/modules/jobseeker/controller.cfm?search=showall http://www.lisjobs.com/jobseekers/job-ads.asp http://www.higheredjobs.com/search/advanced_action.cfm?keyword=Library&Go.x=0&Go.y=0 There's a couple hundred postings to get you started. Sack up and get to mailing. The US Military, for the most part, is not hiring. They are lying to you about all those jobs in the benefit records division. That said, a friend of mine just landed a job on an Air Force base in Okinawa, and she's happy as hell at it. You will be eligible for some excellent debt assistance from the US government if you work in a public library. Librarians are covered under the Loan Forgiveness Program, so after 10 years of paying at a terribly low level, a lot of that extra debt simply disappears. It goes without saying that this is worth doing. A lot of people in the profession are bitter. A lot of them are control freaks. A lot of them are gadget hounds. A lot of them aren't in the position they thought they would be when they graduated from school. A lot of them are at their current job only until something better opens up. A lot of them are afraid of change. Your MLS is only worthless if you consider it to be so. Lots of students and librarians despise the jumping through hoops and the disconnect between the classroom and the real job. These feeling are not entirely unfounded. But you have a much better chance getting a library job with an MLS than without one. Do the dumb things you gotta do - touch the puppet head.
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Mar 16, 2010 06:18
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Spoilers Below posted:
On the second masters, if its something you are interested in pursuing look at places with coordinated programs. I did mine with MLIS and history, which UWM had a program for that was 48 credits total. It was crafted in a way that it shaved 6 credits off of the MLIS and 6 off of the history degree. The only disadvantage to this was less electives, because you had to take certain MLIS courses that the history department accepted as essentially overlap, which happened to all be archives related. Its a big money and time saver, especially if you consider many people only go to grad school for 6 credits semester, thats a whole year shaved off of getting both degrees separately. You can finish quickly if you are willing and able to put the work in. I finished both degrees in 3 full time semesters and a full time summer. As to the whole second career comment, its definitely true that a lot of people do this as a second career. However, it seemed most people's first careers didn't really add much to help them get a library job. Unless your first career was in some form of IT, possibly management, or you want to be in a specialty specific information job (primarily law, medicine, or education) its not a huge boon.
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Mar 16, 2010 12:29
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Did doing a dual master's significantly increase your tuition/time to completion? Even if it's a liberal arts degree? (Eg: M Phil, Masters in Poly Sci, etc)? Also, did anyone do UIUC's MLIS? I checked out the site it was a little vaugue. It looks like you can do it online, which seemed sketchy since they're (allegedly) the #1 school for LIS?
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Mar 16, 2010 14:00
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GregNorc posted:Did doing a dual master's significantly increase your tuition/time to completion? Even if it's a liberal arts degree? (Eg: M Phil, Masters in Poly Sci, etc)? It didn't cost more in the sense of per credit or semester, but it did in the fact that I had to pay for 48 credits for the two degrees (total) vs 36 for just the MLIS or 24 for just the History MA. As for cost, it depends how you utilize your semester. There are some loopholes. For example, at UWM, onsite courses were about $400 less expensive for 3 credits compared to online courses due to BS technology fees. Also, if you had all onsite courses than anything over 8 credits in a semester was free. I had to take 2 online courses due to timing, but essentially I took 48 credits, paid for ~38 of them, and walked away with 2 degrees.
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Mar 16, 2010 14:15
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GregNorc posted:
My boss is doing UIUC online, and thinks it's terrific. All you get is a diploma from UIUC; an employer won't know whether it's from their online program or not.
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Mar 16, 2010 21:51
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Confirm or deny this statement: "All ALA-accredited schools with an online program give you the same degree even though you did online/distance ed." So far I have found this to be true.
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Mar 17, 2010 20:02
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Random note: I have found that girls at bars are more fascinated when they find out I'm going to be a librarian than when they find out my friend is going to be a biochemist. My biochemist friend also told me this little story about his brother who was at a party: Girl: What do you do? Friend's Brother: I work at the library. Girl: NO WAY! My sister LOVES books. Friend's Brother: ...  Girls like male librarians?
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Mar 17, 2010 21:58
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There is a stereotype that male librarians are gay. I don't know if that plays into it at all. I know a few homosexual archivists, but not so many that I would call it the norm.
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Mar 17, 2010 22:06
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I would call it far from the norm. Most of the male LIS students I know are very goony.
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Mar 17, 2010 22:08
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I don't think I've ever encountered a gay male librarian. Insane Totoro: Libraries don't care if your program was online or not. They just care if you have an ALA-accredited degree. Content! If any of you want to be an archivist, here are some questions you might be asked: Processing Archivist Interview Questions 1. Appraisal & Processing Plans * Can you describe your experience with establishing priorities for processing? What were the policies, procedures or strategies you used to avoid being sidetracked? * Given the backlog of unprocessed faculty papers, can you discuss how you would use archival appraisal strategies for reducing it? * Do you think all collections should be described in the same depth and level of content? * Describe your experience with Records Management, especially File Management and establishing records retention and disposition schedules. 2. Arrangement, Description & Cataloging * Describe your experience with arrangement and description of both personal papers and institutional records. * Please discuss your experience with large (over 35 containers) and how you set up strategies to deal with various types of collections. * Have you developed a processing manual? What would be the main components to such a manual? * What is your knowledge, skill, and experience cataloging with the MARC format for both collection-level records and item-level records? What is your experience with DACS? 3. Preservation, Reformatting & Digital Projects * Describe your experience with conservation assessment of archival collections. When is it appropriate to send materials to the Conservation Lab? What is your experience with conservators? * Describe your experience with EAD and/or METS. * What is your experience with digital imaging and text conversion projects? * In your opinion, is a digital image a permanent copy of the original? * What experience have you had with an EDMS? 4. Reference Services & Access * If we diminish description of archival collections in order to lessen our backlog, what effect do you think that will have on users and on Reading Room staff? * Do you think users should be allowed access to unprocessed collections? * Do you think users understand the traditional finding aid format? * Describe your experience, if any, with providing reference services for institutional history. 5. Management, Budgets & Supervision * Describe your experience with managing projects. * Describe your experience in budget preparation, review, and planning. * What has been your experience with supervising, training and evaluating staff?
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Mar 17, 2010 22:49
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I too have never met a gay male librarian and never had heard that stereotype before. I have heard the jokes about librarians never having sex though. I've met some pretty goony male librarians and I've met some pretty goony female librarians. I've actually only met 6 people in my program that I actually think are cool.
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Mar 17, 2010 23:26
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In my program there are some gay/goony men(in fact we have two confirmed cases of Aspergers) but most of them are actually pretty cool and down to earth and funny. And the whole librarian as spinster stereotype is almost so true it makes me scared. At the library where I work I shudder and hope that I don't end up like the majority of the ladies.
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Mar 18, 2010 00:06
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Hey, you Reference Librarians get on that, haha, how common is that "spinster" Librarian? Where I am it's 2 Married (both no kids, though one of them is recently married and pretty young, still), 1 divorced (1 kid) and 2 single (fit "spinster" stereotype). All Female.
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Mar 18, 2010 02:55
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Insane Totoro posted:"All ALA-accredited schools with an online program give you the same degree even though you did online/distance ed." Absolutely true. I've never even heard an inkling that it might be otherwise. Barometer posted:Hey, you Reference Librarians get on that, haha, how common is that "spinster" Librarian? For us, it's 3 married (all female), 3 divorced (2 ladies, 1 fella), 2 "spinster" (over thirty, never married, no current relationship) (1 man, 1 woman), and 2 folks in relationships (not with one another) (1 male, 1 female). Pretty even spread. Cat ownership is common among the divorced and spinster, dog ownership is common with the married. Blendy posted:I have found that girls at bars are more fascinated when they find out I'm going to be a librarian than when they find out my friend is going to be a biochemist. Our old children's librarian had all the home school moms lined up around the block, always bringing him cookies and wanting him to start a home schooling group so they could oogle him longer. He was always a gentleman, though, and was married too. In profession, the ratio of women to men is something like 85|15. First question I'm always asked is "Wow! So you must read a lot, huh?" followed by "Well, so what do you actually do?" with genuine curiosity. Toph Bei Fong fucked around with this message at 14:03 on Mar 18, 2010 |
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Mar 18, 2010 13:59
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That 85-15 ratio has never gotten me laid, let me tell you that much.
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Mar 18, 2010 14:19
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Insane Totoro posted:That 85-15 ratio has never gotten me laid, let me tell you that much. Well of the female side of the ratio doesn't it work out so the averaged age is late 40s if not older at the moment?
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Mar 18, 2010 16:12
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Of the 4 librarians I've met recently, 3 are married (all women). Spoilers Below: I almost forgot, thanks for that wealth of information. I've already found another job to apply for 
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Mar 18, 2010 16:56
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Chriswizard posted:I don't think I've ever encountered a gay male librarian. That's because they all work at my library. Over half the male librarians who work here are gay. Now it seems weird to me that more male librarians aren't. v  v
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Mar 18, 2010 17:21
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Pompoon posted:Of the 4 librarians I've met recently, 3 are married (all women). Hey, it's what I'm here for Blendy posted:Well of the female side of the ratio doesn't it work out so the averaged age is late 40s if not older at the moment? If you want to talk about the ratio of available female librarians to male librarians, the ratio is closer to "Thanks, but I have my cats and my Marion Zimmer Bradley/Janet Evanovitch/Laural K. Hamilton/Natsuki Takaya (pick your poison)"|1 If you really want a sexy librarian, you're better off hunting at a bar on Halloween...
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Mar 18, 2010 21:31
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I wrote a long post and deleted it. Just don't do it unless you really, truly, love libraries with all your heart and are willing to be poo poo on forever in order to pursue that love.
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Mar 19, 2010 03:48
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dvision posted:I wrote a long post and deleted it. Come on, it isn't as if all Librarians everywhere get poo poo on constantly. None of the Librarians I've worked with have complained about getting treated badly (aside from my friend who was let go, of course). Around here, you couldn't ask for a more cushy, well paid job. The only downside I know of is the having to show you have "improved" yourself by going to workshops and *gasp* other cities for conferences...oh, the pain! 
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Mar 19, 2010 03:55
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dvision posted:I wrote a long post and deleted it. Well, I dunno if I'd put it that way. You should be prepared to answer the same question 30 times a day, everyday, from different people. You should be prepared to argue with insane homeless people. You should be prepared to get yelled at by irate and irrational patrons who are angry about something else. You should be prepared to call the cops on a filthy hustler in a wheelchair hassling patrons in the parking lot. You should be prepared to feel like poo poo for the rest of the day because the only trace you could find of an old dude's son (who he hadn't seen in 10 years) was on the national sex offender's registry  But you should also be prepared to watch a little kid's face light up when you show him where the comic books are  And feel awesome when you help a dude apply for job after job and finally find one. Or help an old retired guy remember the title of "1984," which he'd always been meaning to read, but had never had the time before. Or change a high schooler's life by handing him a copy of "Godel, Escher, Bach" and completely blowing his mind about the stuff math can do. Or hook an up and coming rapper up with everything he needs to know about the music industry. Or teach high school classes how awesome Batman is. Or teach them to play chess. Or get an old lady her first email address.Or, some days, just sit on your rear end and surf the web for a couple hours, answer a some questions, order a some books, eat your lunch, and head home, because sometimes it's just a job you do to pay the bills.
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Mar 19, 2010 04:41
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I meant more in the generic sense of what you will put up with to pursue this. In my city we are shutting 50% of the libraries flat out right now. In order to get a good university job you need a second masters, which will put you out another 20-40k to earn. The need for traditional brick libraries full of books is plummeting and I don't believe a new model has been introduced yet that provides a lot of hope. There is a tremendous need for smart people who can organize, transform and present large digital collections but library school is not preparing most people for that. My perspective is as a Info Sci graduate married to a MLIS woman. Your milage may vary.
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Mar 19, 2010 23:34
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dvision posted:The need for traditional brick libraries full of books is plummeting and I don't believe a new model has been introduced yet that provides a lot of hope. There is a tremendous need for smart people who can organize, transform and present large digital collections but library school is not preparing most people for that. I disagree with this. The library has always been about more than books. Its a place of community, somewhere for kids to go, for the poor and otherwise information sparse to get entertainment and access to information, knowledge, share ideas, education, etc. People traditionally think of libraries and books going hand in hand, and thats whats changing. Not the need for places like libraries. Digital is a part of the future, but its not the only part.
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Mar 19, 2010 23:39
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dvision posted:The need for traditional brick libraries full of books is plummeting and I don't believe a new model has been introduced yet that provides a lot of hope. There is a tremendous need for smart people who can organize, transform and present large digital collections but library school is not preparing most people for that. Are you working in a library or have seen circulation statistics? Circulation of materials have been shooting through the roof since the recession. Also the demand for programming has been increasing as well. The likely model for public libraries in the future is the role of a community education and recreation center. Lots of libraries are now providing small business centers to help individuals and local business. And those centers are full of books. Digital collections are important but a lot of people have raced to it and it's already becoming a saturated market. It will not likely be in our life time that digital collections replace physical collections. In part because of the digital divide where so much of the population does not have access to computers or the know how to use them effectively.
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Mar 20, 2010 00:31
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Blendy posted:Digital collections are important but a lot of people have raced to it and it's already becoming a saturated market. It will not likely be in our life time that digital collections replace physical collections. In part because of the digital divide where so much of the population does not have access to computers or the know how to use them effectively. This, a million times. Information literacy is an area in which modern libraries have a real opportunity to demonstrate their value to a community. It doesn't matter how much raw information is available to the user if they have no idea how to effectively locate and evaluate that information. For every tech-savvy pundit claiming the internet has rendered libraries obsolete, there are a couple dozen senior citizens who don't know how to create an email account, middle-aged chumps who can't tell the difference between legitimate journalism and viral marketing, and teenagers whose idea of serious research involves cutting and pasting from Wikipedia.
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Mar 20, 2010 01:42
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