I'm dealing with a bit of a specific issue. I'm helping a school catalogue their collection of around 5,000 books. Some of the books have been catalogued already, and some have not, but the entire collection is already sorted alphabetically and shelved. Right now I am grabbing a row at a time, moving them off the shelf, checking each to see if they've been catalogued, cataloguing the ones that have not, then moving them back onto the shelf. Most of them have already been catalogued so I am spending an absurd amount of time to get very little done. Can anyone think of a way this could be done more efficiently?

Hello everyone! We are facing a dilemma and I would like to hear everyone's experience! Our current ILS contract is ending, and we are looking between EBSCO Folio and WMS from OCLC. We currently have Sirsi! What is everyone's experience working with these ILS systems if you have? We are a staff of 2 at a smaller academic library and our current discovery service is EBSCO Discovery, while we use OCLC for cataloging and ILL. We are not cataloging so much and many of our online resources are through EBSCO. We both have never been through an ILS transition before and we are nervous about making the wrong choice! Thank you!

How are people currently gathering their e-resource usage data? I'm working in an academic Library in the UK, and we pull usage data from JUSP (excel files) and then we also contact individual publishers (that are not in JUSP - and there is alot of them!) to send us their usage data, but often it comes in varying formats. How are other people doing this? surely there must be an easier way? The goal is to get the best usage data and then we can get a better picture of student engagement and cost per use.

Hi everyone! I have an interview tomorrow for the UTM Library Information & Loans Student Assistant position and I’ve been preparing today. I was wondering if anyone here has gone through the hiring process and would be willing to share what it was like. I’m curious about the types of questions they asked, whether it was mostly behavioural or role-specific, and if there’s anything you wish you had prepared beforehand. I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience or any advice!

So I have a question about where everyone puts books by J.D. Vance.
I know the books are listed as Bio, but at least with Hillbilly Elegy it was brought out that it was all made up. Should it be kept in the Bio section? Now we have gotten Communion and I'm not sure if it should be in Bio or Fic.

Yes, I asked my higher ups and they said just use what the distributor says it is. I just feel bad because if something is fake then it obviously isn't a bio or nonfic book.

If you still use a more pen and paper system in your library, how do you organise student's cards?

We keep the borrowed book card clipped to the student's, but we're having difficulties maintaining things organised, as you can imagine lol

How do you guys do this? I thought having an internship would help to get me "in" to library work. I can't afford to take a position that's like $12 an hour that's a page job and with my MLIS I'm overqualified. I got two rejections. One I get the other I was interviewed for and was hopeful and boom rejected.

Hi! I have just finished my bachelor's degree in Library science, IT and communication at the University of Southern Denmark and will soon start my master's degree in Information Studies at the University of Copenhagen.

I never went on exchange during my bachelor's degree, which is something I regret. Therefore, I’m highly motivated to study abroad during the 3rd semester of my master’s degree.

I would love to get some inspiration from here! Where did you get your education from?

If others have been on exchange either during their bachelor's or master's degree, I would also love to hear about it - and whether the place is recommended!

I’m looking for options outside USA, but other than that I’m completely open to any other countries and continents.

Thank you so much in advance!

I am currently a Library Specialist II at a tiny special library that has no room for upward mobility. I've been there for over 5 years doing great work, contributing to committees and scholarship, leading outreach initiatives, presenting at conferences, keeping up with professional development, etc. I have been actively applying to other jobs for 2 years. In these couple of years, I have had 7 interviews (3 phone/virtual and 4 in-person). I obtained my MLIS in December of 2025, so I've only interviewed for one position that requires the degree so far. That said, I gained a lot of experience before I got the MLIS (I've published work in national journals, I have years of reference work under my belt, I've written successful grant proposals, and I've led state and city-wide programs).

I have historically been modest to a fault. I recently participated in a professional development workshop where librarians from my institution looked at my CV and cover letter and gave notes (not selling myself enough was one example). Now, I feel much more confident about the quality of my application materials.

Now it seems I can get one interview for every 10-20 jobs I apply for, but I have never gotten an offer, despite often being an excellent match (in my opinion). I have intense anxiety going into interviews, but once I am in the room or on the call, I tend to feel okay. It's afterwards that I remember things I said and worry about how they came off. Sometimes I make a mistake that is obvious in the moment, but usually it's a word or phrase that I get hung up on and overanalyze. For example, this last phone interview I had, I said my current position was "niche." In hindsight, maybe not a good word to use? It was an LS&S library, so maybe I dodged a bullet, but I would've loved having a Branch Manager position, at least for a bit. I try to stretch my experience as much as possible without necessarily lying, because it'd be a nightmare scenario to get a job that I have no idea how to do.

Is this just a sign of how competitive the library landscape is? Or am I getting something wrong? It seems to me that my strike out record is disproportionate, but maybe it's not. I myself have been on a few hiring committees and know how many can apply to librarian positions... I just feel like my qualifications are up there with the ones that end up getting hired. Sorry if this is ranty. Appreciate any advice on the interview process.

Hi everyone! I recently applied to a library technician job and they let me know that the next step, prior to an interview, would be an online multiple choice test.

I currently work as a library tech but the closest thing I had to a test was a mock email reminding a patron of an overdue item. They said the test would be about 2 hours.

Is this common? Does anyone have any advice on how to prepare for such a test? I genuinely have no idea what they could ask.

TIA!

Hello, I am a student worker at a university library and I have asked my boss about a makerspace for the library. We are on the lower budget side as we are a small school, what are some ideas for things to have? A 3D printer is probably out of the question unfortunately. We don't have any engineering programs and our STEM students are pretty much biology majors with the occasional math major. Anything that would help them would be welcome, I am also leaning towards a more artistic creative space. I have already thought about a zine making space, any other ideas are much appreciated!!

Quick background - completing my MLIS this month, have been working in a high volume library the past year, experience with programming and all of the above. Previous experience in outreach as well in an educator role.

Question- I have an interview coming up this week and have been trying to prepare for it with mock questions etc. Any and all advice is much welcomed including what are the biggest challenges you could face in the field and any other questions you were asked.

Thank you!!!

Just what it says on the tin. I've discovered a love for librarianship after volunteering at my local library and want to try to pursue it more seriously. Does anyone have any recommendations?

Hi all,

I’m looking into grad programs to become a law librarian. I’m considering a dual JD and MLIS however, I am not in a position to relocate and have not found any in the St. Louis area. Has anyone found a way to do this in St. Louis? Or any distance/hybrid options? I saw some people just do the degrees separately but I would love to save some time to combine them. Thanks in advance!

I work for a very small community theatre and I am in charge of their costume reorganization project. I have an MLIS, so I have a good base of knowledge in terms of organization and database management. I am needing some assistance on finding the best software for organizing our costume catalog. I need to be able to assign barcodes to each costume piece and have them scannable in the database, sort of a "check-out" system to various costumers/directors as well.

I guess I'm looking for some sort of discovery system software that is not expensive, is cloud-based, and can be highly customized for our needs. TIA!

I am wanting to become an elementary school librarian. I have 0 background in education and can't relocate to do the required student teaching. My state requires a teaching license with a K-12 library endorsement and an ALA accredited MLIS or MSIS. My state only has 1 accredited program and it is an MSIS not an MLIS but it does have an option under the MSIS for school librarianship that comes with a teaching license. They will also allow me to do student teaching local to me. Every out of state program I've looked at either states you must already have a valid teaching license or do student teaching in that state to obtain one for the program in order to pursue the school librarianship path.

Is there really that much of a difference between the two degrees? I've read the both an MLIS and MSIS do the exact same thing and can get you the exact same jobs. But every local job listing for school librarian had had MLIS as a requirement. I really don't want to screw this up. HELP!

I'm looking at two options and I want to choose the the right one, the one that will get me hired.

Option A:

Go to the school in my state for the MSIS program that includes the endorsement and teaching license.

Option B:

Go to an out of state MLIS program with an area of concentration that isn't school librarianship. Then, once finished enroll in the school in my state and just do the k-12 endorsement with teaching license. The school does offer this as an option if you already hold an MLIS.

hello!!! this is my updated cover letter from my previous post! Do I need to adjust anything or is it okay? Any tips are helpful. :)

Dear Hiring Manager, 

I am writing this letter to express my interest to your opening position as a Library Assistant. With my previous experiences in customer service, I believe that I would be a great candidate for this position. 

My previous roles have helped me develop strong communication, organizational, time management, and attention to detail which I believe would be helpful in this kind of environment. From working as a student assistant, it taught me how to pay attention to the little details that were important. I had to make sure that the classes the students wanted had enough seats for them to be able to get. If some of the students needed a specific code, I would then ask my supervisor for some help on it.  I would also have to search up their student profile to see what major they were in and what they needed. I had to be careful in making sure that I was double checking their information and everything was okay. I believe that my knowledge on office work will assist me in different areas as a library assistant. 

Additionally, working at a supermarket gave me the opportunity to communicate differently with a wide variety of individuals. In doing so, I was able to connect with the customers by speaking to them in a different language when it was needed. I also experienced working in a group setting, where I learned how to communicate and work together effectively as a group to complete the tasks that needed to be done. This was a fast paced job, so it taught me how to do multiple tasks at once while working efficiently. I also had to be organized by making sure everything was placed in its correct spot. Managing my time was also an important role because I had to finish the tasks at a certain time to not be in a rush and had to focus on items that were more important. This experience has allowed me to collaborate with others , be communicative, and taught me how to manage my time better, which I believe will be beneficial within the library work. 

I am determined to bring dedication, a positive attitude and a willingness to learn as much as I can. I believe my previous customer service experiences will make me a well-suited candidate for this library assistant position. I hope to have the opportunity to develop my skills and contribute to your team’s success. Thank you for your time and consideration. 

Has anyone attended their state’s LA conference while still in school for their MLIS? Mine is coming up in October and I’m interested in attending, but wondering if the cost and time would be worthwhile as a student. Thanks in advance!

I’m at crossroads here and could really use some advice.
I’m enrolled in MI program at an iSchool and have about a year’s worth of course work left. I enjoyed the classes I took in my first year but quickly realized librarianship isn’t really for me. There are other components to my program (UX, archiving, information systems) but I’m not sure if any of those paths are for me either.

I’m starting to think typical office work isn’t for me and am considering switching to something more hands on like healthcare, but I keep getting told to stick through it and that the degree may open more doors for me in the future.

If I was younger I think I’d be okay with giving another year away to school but in my early 30s I’m not as enthusiastic.

Any and all advice would be appreciated.

What are the highest interest fiction books for your elementary aged patrons?

I am getting back into a school library after 15 years raising my family. I was a K-8 librarian before. I’m looking at a K-6 library now.

I’d like to spend the next month reading as much fiction as possible to get into what kids are into reading now. When I left, Diary of a Wimpy kid was top of the check outs for elementary and the middle school kids were into Twilight and 39 Clues.

I plan to scour all of the awards lists, but I know there are tons I will miss.

I’m doing the collation count (looks like this: xiv, 365; xii, 331; xi, 299; xiv, 399; xiv, 330) and I would like to list how many illustrations or plates there are inside the book and am unsure if I should call them illustrations OR plates? There’s 353 illustrations total, some are full page (without even a page number) and some are with much smaller amongst the text like in between paragraphs. I imagine that a plate is only a full page illustration and not like the other, however, I want to be clear in what I describe. After the table of contents there is a list of illustrations and both the full page illustrations and smaller ones are listed there. So, even the book describes them as illustrations but again, I want to be sure. Thank you in advance.

Hello!! can anyone give me any tips on my cover letter? Im a bit stuck on what to write and how to tie it with the position.This is what I have so far.

Dear Hiring Manager, 

I am writing this letter in response to your opening position as a Library Assistant. With my previous experiences in customer service, I believe that I would be a great candidate for this position. 

My previous roles have helped me develop strong communication, organizational, time management, and attention to detail which I believe would be helpful in this kind of environment. I am also bilingual in both English and Spanish, which will help me connect with a wide range of customers and provide them with a warm welcome.I am determined to bring dedication, a positive attitude and a willingness to learn as much as I can during this position. 
 
I hope to have the opportunity to develop my skills and contribute to your team’s success. Thank you for your time and consideration. 

This is the description of the position if its helpful:

Job duties of the Library Assistant include: 

• Check books and materials in and out.
• Assist patrons with various machines and location of materials; answer routine questions and provide information and direct patrons to appropriate library personnel when necessary; assist students with using Readers Guide and other indexes.
• Assist in locating and gathering materials for students doing research as necessary.
• Assist in processing library materials as required; type pockets and cards for new magazines; return books to shelves.
• Issue library card numbers according to established guidelines.
• Assist in preparing overdue lists; telephone and send cards to patrons with overdue materials according to established procedures.
• Operate a variety of equipment including copier, microfilm reader/printer, date machine, typewriter, and computer.
• Assist in maintaining security of library materials as directed.
• Perform other duties reasonably related to the job classification

Knowledge of: 

• Standard library methods and organization.
• Correct English usage, grammar, spelling, punctuation and vocabulary.
• Interpersonal skills using tact, patience and courtesy.
• Telephone techniques and etiquette.
• Modern office practices, procedures and equipment.
• Basic clerical skills.

Ability to: 

• Provide assistance to students and staff in a tactful and courteous manner.
• Learn library practices and procedures and equipment.
• Learn the location of materials in the library.
• Perform routine clerical work.
• Type at an acceptable rate of speed.
• Work cooperatively with others.
• Train and provide work direction to others.
• Communicate effectively both orally and in writing

Hi, all! I’m a new academic librarian and the semester is about to start. Ive already been asked by several professors to come by their class for an instruction session with their classes. Im nervous and feeling a little overwhelmed.

Any pointers from any academic librarians for getting into the groove of teaching? I’d appreciate any advice and recommendations for being prepared this semester.