Burnout and self care: a reflection on registering for classes.
Email alerts are disruptive, by design. Today, though, that disruption was exactly the encouragement I needed to reflect on library school, and life.
Search results for ‘self care’
Don’t panic! A hackers guide to self care as a library student
I am really excited to be finally starting my MLIS as it’s something I’ve wanted to do for several years, but at the same time I’m experiencing feelings of stress, […]
One Chapter Ends, Another Begins: On Graduation, Job Applications, and Self-Care
Dear readers, when you may be reading this, I am currently two weeks away from graduating from my Master of Library and Information Science graduate program at San Jose State […]
Practice Self-Care by Joining a Union
When you hear the word “union”, what comes to mind? Do you think about dockworkers and miners, police officers and construction workers? If you like celebrity news you’ve heard about […]
Medication as Self-Care
During my time as an undergraduate I began to realize that my familiar overthinking, irritability with people I logically did not want to be irritated with, and need for perfection […]
Self-Care: Job Search Season Edition
Yet another post regarding the job search process! They say looking for a full-time job is a full-time job itself. Knowing this beforehand helps, but you might not fully understand […]
Check Yourself: A Career in Compassion
As I have entered my second and final year of library school, I have been doing lots of reflecting. With one year of library school down, and with graduation and […]
Self-Care at ALA Annual Conference
I’ll be attending the American Library Association’s Annual Conference for the first time ever this month and I’m both nervous and excited. Pouring over the schedule of events, there are […]
A Librarian’s Approach to Self-Care
Being a graduate student is hard. We’re older and we have lives and families and jobs. Most of us have responsibilities that far exceed those we had when we were […]
Self-Care and Work-Life Balance in Library School
This is my first Hack Library School post, and I’d like to take the day off. For the sake of self-care and to test my ability to let go of something […]
Self-checkout in Libraries: Why We’re Different than Retail
Recently a local for-profit business in my community declared on social media their upcoming addition of self-checkouts, to mixed feedback. The thoughts and concerns raised by community members had me […]
Library School Career Center: San José State University Library
Here is this week’s installment of the Library School Career Center feature, which is presented in partnership with the folks from the blog Hiring Librarians. If you’re interested in library […]
Detaching self worth and productivity in library school
As we race towards the end of the year and our semesters come to a crashing close, I am reflecting on my relationship to rest, hard work, and what it means to be a good student.
Library School Career Center: University of Iowa
Here is this week’s installment of the Library School Career Center feature, which is presented in partnership with the folks from the blog Hiring Librarians. If you’re interested in library […]
Preparing for the Hunt: Tips for Setting Yourself Up for Post-MLIS Success Now
This is a guest post from Elizabeth Szkirpan. My MLIS program was a blur. The various papers and hundreds of discussion posts seemed endless at the time, but I look […]
Teach Yourself to Shelve
I started my library career as a page at a branch of a midsize public library system, and I still maintain that it’s my favorite job I ever had. (If […]
Asking for Help When You Need It and Knowing When to Help Yourself
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on April 2, 2014. Do you remember what it was like to be an undergraduate? I took a few years off between college […]
Time Management and Other Random Thoughts on Standing Up for Yourself
Last month I wrote about surviving group work as it had been a frequent topic on the HLS blog. This month I wanted to briefly cover another important HLS topic […]
Nope, Don’t Like That: On Making Course and Career Decisions
There’s a movie I like, Hell or High Water, and in it there’s a scene where two police officers stop at a diner for dinner. The waitress greets them by […]
Creating The Career You Love: The Important of Finding Fulfillment in Your LIS Career
As I mentioned last month, it is important for you as a library school student to begin researching not only potential job and internship openings, but employers as well, as […]
Special Librarianship doesn’t just mean special libraries – more on non-traditional LIS career paths
My piece on non-traditional and alternative jobs for LIS professionals from May 2020 was really popular. The Introduction to the Library and Information Industry (the course that I shouted out […]
Treat yo’ self…to a student membership in a professional association and reap the rewards
LIS is an industry absolutely rife with professional associations, and as Kate Tkacik pointed out, there’s a very large service component in our industry. We believe in service, so much […]
Choosing Librarianship: The Cure for my Career FOMO?
“The irregularity of our roles and the ever-changing nature of our profession can be a draw for those who crave variety and enjoy learning new things. Librarianship, thankfully, is rarely […]
I Decided to Make a Mid-Career Transition to LIS and You Can Too
Coming from a working class background, career satisfaction was like the unicorn of life goals – nice to think about, but probably out of reach. Work life was something very […]
“What Do I Want Out of My Career?”: Some Musings on Job Hunting
One of our all-time most popular posts on HLS is on how to become an international librarian. As someone who has studied and interned abroad, one of my lifelong goals […]
How to Dress for the LIS Career You Want
As I am sure any graduate student can attest to, planning for your career after graduation can be a little daunting. This especially is true for how to dress […]
Alternative Careers for LIS Grads
Alternative careers for LIS graduates is something that’s not often discussed and, in classrooms, is often ignored. Yet you might be surprised to know that your LIS degree is good […]
How to Hack Your Undergraduate Degree and Prepare for Your LIS Career
Starting graduate school, let alone college in general, can be a stressful experience. From selecting colleges and universities to apply to and being accepted to selecting a major, finding a […]
Get Prepared, Not Scared: A HLS Special Report
In our lifetimes, experiencing natural disasters is an inevitable reality. For example, being a native Southern Californian, earthquakes have been a consistent source of stress in my region; especially within […]
Showing Up for Yourself: Mental Health and Your MLIS
I have been reflecting on my experiences in graduate school and I want to share some of these thoughts, primarily related to survival. Since April, I have had conversations with […]
Presenting at conferences: putting yourself out there in library school.
As most of us reading Hack Library School know, or at least have heard, the MLIS is a “minimum qualification” for actual employment as a big L academic librarian. Some […]
Soldiers, At Ease: Finding Your Career in Libraries
I saw myself through to the end of my seventh year, and with reluctance and eagerness I retired my uniform, my rank, and my identity. I had aspirations to learn […]
So You Wanna Do a Thesis? Part 3: Keeping Yourself Accountable
Welcome to my new series about my decision to do the thesis option for my program, and my advice to those of you considering the same. Are you considering doing […]
Do It Yourself and Do It Anyway
I guess that most people validate themselves professionally by the job opportunities they are offered. But pretty much anyone who’s ever applied for jobs has had to accept a fair […]
Treat Yourself: Reflect On Your LIS Life
Here at HLS we love reflection pieces; we have plenty written after symposiums, conferences, and after our time in library school. To build off the incredible post in honor of […]
Recognizing the Right Time to Challenge Yourself
Some of you may remember my decision to tackle my weaknesses head-on during the Spring 2015 semester. My database and cataloging skills were weak to non-existent, so I signed up […]
Librarianship as a Second Career: One MLIS Candidate’s Story
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Hannah Majewski, a MLIS candidate at the University of South Carolina. My name is Hannah Majewski and I attend the University of […]
Self-Employment and the ‘Professional Experience’ Dilemma
This is the time of year when it’s nearly impossible to avoid a graduation speech. Whether you’ve attended a ceremony, or have just been bombarded with YouTube links via your social media outlet of choice, you’ve likely been recently reminded, along with hundreds of thousands of newly minted graduates, to […]
Hacking Your Career Plans: Independent Information Professionals
This post came about as a result of combining in my mind the following four things: A conversation about possible directions of big legal research sites (Lexis and Westlaw, specifically but hypothetically)*, now that there are so many reliable alternatives for finding primary law (statutes, court opinions) at significantly lower […]
Presenting Your Best Self
Library school is full of presentations. Whether it’s a short, informal talk or a long, detailed speech, I’ve had to give some kind of presentation for almost every library school class I’ve taken. Partly just a given in academia, frequent presentations will also be a reality for many of us in our […]
{Series} Emerging Careers in Librarianship: GIS Librarianship
Earlier this summer I attended the Digital Humanities Summer Institute (DHSI) in Victoria, British Columbia. While I was there I took an intensive course on GIS and the Humanities. I was a complete novice but I enjoyed the chance to begin developing a brand-new skill set. This course was fresh […]
[Series] Emerging Careers in Librarianship: Zines (Yes, zines!)
The Emerging Careers series at HLS will focus mainly, and not surprisingly, on career paths opening up in the digital realm of the library and information science field. It’s true that our field continues to “emerge” most visibly there, while the death of print, and even of libraries themselves, continues […]
[Series] Emerging Careers in Librarianship: Data Curation
Librarianship is a quickly changing field. Thanks to computers and the internet, it has undergone a tremendous metamorphosis over the last two decades. In light of these changes, we’re kicking off a new series in which we talk about the many emerging careers in librarianship. Today’s inaugural issue talks about […]
Spring Into Action: Three Tips on Semester Goalsetting
Although the holidays are behind us, a new semester is looming ahead. As we prepare for the upcoming spring, the concept of goalsetting can be a bit overwhelming. To keep […]
The Final Countdown Continues: On Planning Your Culminating Project
So, all throughout my tenure here at Hack Library School, I have emphasized the importance of preparing for graduation throughout your time in graduate school. In November 2019, I […]
My Professional Goals for 2021
As 2020 finally draws to a close, I find myself just over halfway through my MLIS program. I am projected to graduate in the spring of 2022, which means I […]
Library School, Your Partner, and You!
Library school (heck, graduate school in general) can be an all-consuming time-suck, if you let it become that. Even in my 1.5 semesters of library school (plus all of the […]
Words of Wisdom: Hack Library School Horoscopes
As the 2018-2019 school year draws to a close, use these words of wisdom in the form of horoscopes as advice to inspire you as you continue toward the finish […]
LIS Mental Health Week 2018: a roundup of student support
In 2016, Christina did a round up of all of the resources brought on by the first LIS Mental Health Week. This year marks the third annual #LISMentalHealth week and […]
Need an Excuse to Sleep More? Read This.
I have a friend who, throughout a busy grad school semester, juggled four classes, worked a 20-hour-per-week internship, ran a business, and still somehow managed to feed her dogs and […]
Imposter Syndrome as a Student
Have you ever felt like your colleagues know more about your field than you do? Or like your successes can be attributed to luck rather than hard work and persistence? […]
LIS Mental Health Week 2016: A roundup of student support
We’re a couple weeks out from LIS Mental Health Week (January 18-23) but in honor of the brave and supportive discussions that emerged online (see co-organizer Cecily Walker’s compendium of […]
Countdown to Your Library School Application Deadline
Tis the season to be applying to library school! For those of you applying to library programs, you might be feeling like you won’t be able to fully embrace 2015 until after you’ve conquered the […]
The Finals Push: Dealing with Your Stress
Do you feel that buzz in the air? Or maybe you can actually feel the vibrations under your skin and drumming in your ears. You might even be thinking “I don’t have time to read Hack Library School right now!” It isn’t just the caffeine you’ve been living on. If […]
SLIS Sneak Peek: A Roundtable at the University of Iowa
As an updated follow-up to our Library School Career Center piece featuring the University of Iowa’s School of Library Information and Sciences (SLIS), HLS Contributing Writer and Community Manager Kellee […]
Becoming a new supervisor while in library school
Taking on my first library management role while still in graduate school – a fun, real life lesson in leadership!
Adventures in Cataloging
I have a couple of questions to start this post. Have you ever had that one subject that you just knew from the outset that you really wouldn’t like? That […]
Fun library related school supplies for the new semester
New semester, new supplies. Some fun books and gifts
A Tour of Duty in Tech Services
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on January 31, 2018. Today we welcome a guest post by Autumn Wetli. Autumn is a graduate student pursuing her MLIS at Wayne […]
Fitting it all in: Hacking Library School as a parent
An ongoing series about the juggling the challenges of library school as a parent.
Why You Need Project Management
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on July 23, 2014. I saw a whole bunch of family and friends I don’t get to see very often not long ago, and naturally many of them asked me what I’m taking for classes this summer. I learned pretty early in my […]
Researching Book Challenges
Studying library values and best practices to respond to book challenges was a valuable research project this semester
How to identify and avoid study burnout
It’s something that most of us experience at some point in our lives, but may not have a name for. If you can, find a quiet moment to ask yourself, […]
On Being an MLS Student with No Library Work Experience
My decision to apply for an MLS program was one motivated primarily by the desire for a career change. My previous transitions between jobs have often been linked by more […]
Writing your Best MLIS Application Essay
Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Morgan Adle, MLS. Writing application essays can be intimidating and a complete mystery to most of us. Having spent the last 4 […]
Journaling in Grad School
Journal through library school to document your experience and lessons learned along the way.
The Power of Zines
I’ve discovered a new obsession lately: the zine. In this post, I will get into a brief history and examination of what zines are and how they pertain to libraries. […]
Hacking the Elevator Pitch
Editor’s note: this article was originally published on June 17, 2013. One of the things I most love about librarianship is the diversity of the field. People choosing library science come from any background you can think of, and once they have the degree their choices are manifold. As an […]
Making the Most of your MLIS
Editor’s note: This is a guest article from Morgan Adle, MLS I finished my MLS in 2015 and managed the MLIS Program at UMD for 4 years until the Summer […]
Those end of semester thoughts and feelings
It’s almost that time of year (at least for those of us in the southern hemisphere). Cue 80’s power rock song “The Final Countdown” complete with laser light display, disco […]
Free digital tools that could make library school easier.
For the low cost of free, these apps and websites might just help you out.
Charting a different course
One grad student’s experience dropping a course
Connecting the Dots: Cataloging and Metadata, The Interview Edition
Editor’s note: This article was originally published June 4, 2014. For the next installment in our technical services mini-series, I’m delighted to introduce long-time HLS commenters and all-around great guys, Jason W. Dean and Elliot D. Williams. When I was first starting library school, I basically cold-called both Elliot and […]
Progress Beats Perfection: Trevor Owens on Digital Preservation
This is a guest post from Scott Richard St. Louis. Trevor Owens. The Theory and Craft of Digital Preservation. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2018. Day by day, our digital […]
Advocating for Video Games in Your Library
Whether you’re a library user, board member, or staff member, you may find yourself in the position of pitching or defending video games for your library. There are many ways […]
Standing Out: Becoming a Star Candidate in a Highly Competitive Job Market
This is a guest post from Elizabeth Szkirpan. Elizabeth’s first post can be found here. It’s no secret that the last two years have been exceedingly challenging for new LIS […]
Grad School 2.0
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on February 13, 2015. Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Nancy Albers Shore, a master’s candidate at the University of South […]
Tips for getting organized for the new semester
The first week of the semester is a great time to set up a project management system for yourself before the chaos of actual coursework. In my grad school experience […]
Ethical & accessible design in libraries
Librarians & designers agree: With great power comes great responsibility.
Locally Grown Library Advocate
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on January 6, 2012. A year and a half ago I wouldn’t have described myself as an advocate for much of anything. Ive always kept aware and informed on ‘the issues’ and I always vote—but until recently I didn’t sign petitions, or call […]
Tips for Your First Semester of Library School
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on August 19, 2015. Starting library school this semester? We’ve been there! Here’s our advice on everything from scheduling to technology to maintaining […]
The Question of Concentrations
THAT is the question. Although I feel like I’ve just started my journey as an MLS student, by the end of this week I will officially be one-third of the […]
Prepping for Post-Conference Opportunities
Editor’s note: This post was originally published on June 25, 20164 Conferences, big or small, tend to be overwhelming, especially as a student. There is tons of information to absorb, there […]
Reading Recs – June 2022
Once a month, we bring you an update from a few Hackers on things we’ve been reading, enjoying, and learning that month, whether that’s fiction, non-fiction, an interesting article, or […]
Kissing frogs, not every job will be a prince[ss], and that’s okay: A.K.A Job hunting disappointment and how to deal
I’m officially done with graduate school now, my graduation was June 8, so I am officially a librarian now – even if I am working in a job where that’s […]
Staying Sharp During the Summer
Editor’s note: This post was originally published on July 28, 2016 One of the most important aspects of library school and, in the future as we pursue work in the […]
Looking Back and Forward: A Farewell
The last two years have somehow felt incredibly long while also whizzing by incredibly fast. This seems to be the nature of both pandemic time and grad school, and so […]
Emergency Prep for Small Spaces & Budgets
Emergency preparedness and disaster training: not the most fun or uplifting topic, but an important one. I’ll try not to cover too much of the same ground as Alyssa or […]
Future Plans and Farewells!
Yesterday we said ‘hello’ to our new writers…but today we need to wish our graduating staff a fond farewell! We asked them to share with us some highlights from their […]
Welcome New Writers!
We are delighted to announce that Hack Library School has welcomed new contributing writers. We were all very impressed with the range of interests and experiences that they will bring to the blog. Without further ado, here they are! Katherine Dimmick Katherine Dimmick is a third year student (about to […]
Music Librarianship
Editor’s note: This is a guest post by Sarah Alexander, and was originally published on April 1, 2013. I recently went to the Music Library Association Conference in San Jose, California where I spent five days talking about music and books. And books about music. And organizing the music that […]
Am I Ready for Library School? [Starter Kit]
Thoughts On Being A Younger Library School Student Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Julia Feerrar, and was originally published on September 5, 2012. Just three months ago I walked across a stage in south-central Pennsylvania to receive my undergraduate degree. I thought of the hard work completed, […]
So You Wanna Do A Thesis? Part 1: Preparation
This article was originally published on October 20, 2016. Welcome to my new series about my decision to do the thesis option for my program, and my advice to those […]
Library adjacent: One librarian’s journey in academic publishing (non-traditional/alternative library jobs)
If you’ve been following my writing for any length of time here, or you’re someone with an interest in non-traditional and alternative paths to librarianship then you are probably already […]
The Wonderful World of Non-Traditional Library Collections: Spotlight on Seeds!
Editor’s note: this article was originally published on January 25, 2017. You probably know by now that libraries worldwide are lending out so much more than books and media. To […]
Final Thoughts on my MLIS Journey
Like many previous bloggers, my time has come to say farewell to Hack Library School and reflect on the last three years. I graduate on June 4 and will be […]
Creating a Meteorology Maker Space
Editor’s note II: This article was originally published on January 8, 2015. Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Katherine Hickey, MS and Kyungwon Koh, PhD. Innovative learning spaces called […]
I Spent Years Preparing for a Library Job — It Never Came
Landing a librarian gig seemed simple enough. After all, I already had a year of experience working as a circulation assistant at a law library when I applied to UW-Madison’s […]
Snapshot: The Life of a Supervisor
This month I’d like to take a minute to build on some recent pieces by Melissa and the other Lauren B. where they took you behind the scenes into their […]
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