Career Spotlight: Librarian
Monday, January 26th, 2009If you love books then a career as a librarian could be for you. Librarians are professionals with information systems as well as the organization of information materials. Most librarians work in public or school libraries but other opportunities exist such as in media centers, business libraries and government libraries. Professional librarians have a degree from a school of library or a university or college.
Some roles that a librarian may undertake include:
- Working at the reference desk of a library
- Assist people in research to find the information they require
- Ordering library materials
- Organization database subscriptions
- Supervise the cataloguing of new information material (books, magazines etc)
- Monitor book selection, monitor electronic resources
- Provide library services and information to community groups such as seniors, homeless, rural communities and people with disabilities. These librarians are generally known as Outreach Librarians
- If working in a school, assist children in choosing reading material and teaching them about literacy
- Manage the library catalog
- Library archivists deal with manuscripts and records
Librarians can also fill other roles outside of the general librarian one. Some examples include:
- Manager
- Administrator
- Director
- Library Technician
- Library Associate
These days, librarians must deal with information in many different formats; not just books. They must be able to organize and deal with magazines, audio recordings, DVD, video, computer files, maps, photographs, databases, newspapers and more. They sometimes also need to provide other services including public programs, literacy education and computer training.
Some librarians, after many years in the job, choose to go on to administrative positions. This can include doing tasks like researching topics of interest, supervising and organizing reading clubs and groups, managing electronic information access, suggesting books and resources for the appropriate read group and much more.
Librarian Education
Most librarians have a master’s degree in library and information science. If you wish to work in a school library then you will normally need a teaching credential along with your library science degree. Most school librarians have a subject based master’s degree as well as their librarian’s degree.
Being a librarian is a rewarding career as you are able to see people enjoying information and the joy of reading and discovering new things. You will feel a sense of accomplishment as you help children learning to read, or simply assist adults in finding the information they are seeking.
So what are the qualities that define a librarian anyway? Learn more about this exciting career field from http://www.careertoolkits.com – get the scoop on librarian degree programs and much more.