Career Q&A: A Librarian’s Real-Life, Practical Guide to Managing a Successful Career

As students approach the end of their academic studies, it is logical (or more likely inevitable) that they focus their thoughts on what they will do after graduation. And yet, the job market is so competitive with many applicants for each vacancy. The alumni of Library and Information Science are not an exception to such a situation. Underscoring that “Librarianship can be an exciting and rewarding career choice because it offers variety, flexibility, and growth” (p. 17), the purpose of this book is two-fold as it aims to take a broad look at librarianship by dissecting it into different stages and answering specific questions about the various stages, events, transitions, struggles and advances that encompass and define a librarian’s career, and to share practical advice, experience and information that can help librarians manage a successful and satisfying career. It consists of 14 chapters distributed under three foundational parts. Part 1, Setting the stage (five chapters) attempts to guide us how to be properly involved in the process of employment. It covers instructive tips on setting goals, searching for a job, starting a new job, starting again after an absence, trying to meet the set goals, making a good first impression through an informative, impressive and catchy cover letter, proving we are the right person for the job through developing a tailored resume, creating a professional online identity through managing our Web presence and preparing for a successful job interview. Part 2, Staging your own set (five chapters) delineates the process of creative sustainable role-playing in the profession. Such topics as professional involvement and networking, managing a change toward new opportunities, the art of speaking and writing well, flexibility in the workplace and finding an alternative job are discussed in the chapters of the second part. And finally, Part 3, Finishing stages (four chapters) examines some real situations intertwined with the stories of librarians who have moved within a library or information center through different sections, units and roles, and continue to grow. It begins with “stepping into management”. Then, the importance of “keeping current via following technology and trends” and “forming productive collaboration” is highlighted. The last chapter of the last part of the book focuses on something we will all face as a natural part of our careers: retirement. This well-structured, easy-to-read, easy-to-understand and easy-to-follow guide instructs the reader how to plan and start employment from scratch and helps us navigate all aspects of the after-employment process much more successfully. This hands-on book, which deals with the nuts and bolts affecting librarians’ working lives from beginning to end, is full of lessons, experience and value for librarians, information professionals, library managers and students and professors of Library and Information Science.