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 […]
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 […]
Working in a library, either on your campus or off of it, is a great way to get some practical experience while also making some (although, let’s be real, probably […]
“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 […]
We all know the quintessential librarian stereotype: meek, bookish, bespectacled folks who sit surrounded by stacks of books all day long, shushing children and wielding large inky stamps with which […]
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 […]
One of the best parts of being in library school while working in a library has been using my job to complete assignments. These real applications helped me be better […]
Coming into my first semester of library school last fall, I had almost no work experience in a library. Outside of my time interning in a government archive during undergrad, […]
Let me ask you a question — when you walk into an interview for a job or an internship, which question do you dread the most? For me, it’s often […]
Many of us have probably heard a similar line before: “You NEED a LinkedIn page if you’re job hunting.” While LinkedIn is not a one-size-fits-all platform for job hunters, it […]
I have been back on campus and back in my office in my library since July 20th. That was my first day back on campus since I left work on […]
As I approach the end of my MLS program, I find myself already starting to miss the library science academic environment and (as hard as it is to believe) the […]
I write this from my home in San Jose, California, where I am currently not able to open my windows. The wildfires raging to the east and west of me […]
Chances are there is at least one other person in the world that shares your exact same name. You might have used multiple names during your lifetime, and you may […]
Depending on your library school, you may already be mentally preparing to start classes or still have plenty of time to relax if your program is on the quarter system. […]
My plan for this summer was set to go: I was to continue working as a graduate assistant on campus, take two classes, and complete the field study requirement as […]
It’s official: my Spring 2020 semester has come to an end – and I am halfway through my MLIS! Along with navigating the murky middle that comes with the mid-point […]
Last month, I posted about how working from home and being in school made for a terrible experience as worlds collide. I wish I could say there’s been some improvement, […]
“None of us knows what might happen even the next minute, yet still we go forward. Because we trust. Because we have Faith.” ― Paulo Coelho, Brida Before you read this any further, […]
Fourandsixty. (2015). [International Labour Day Edit-a-Thon, University of Maryland Hornbake Library] [Photograph]. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Meetup/DC/UMDLabor Next week will be the first time I will not be working, in school, or both […]
There have been a couple of articles on the subject of alternative and non-traditional jobs for MLIS holders here on Hack Library School; most recently back in December of 2019 […]
Before my area went under shelter in place orders back on March 17th, I had a library paraprofessional position and went to school full time, with plans for a summer […]
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, many libraries have either closed physically and moved to online service provisionally or have closed completely and laid off their employees. My local public […]
Right now, information science professionals, along with most of the rest of the world are rightly concerned about and focused on COVID-19. Homemade masks have entered our daily wardrobes (when […]
This week, I have been spending a lot of time thinking about all of the many things I do as a library supervisor that are not written into my job […]
This month, the Vanderbilt University Library began an advertising campaign which features a sign that reads, “Libraries don’t take sides.” It’s bright yellow with black block text floating on the […]
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 […]
During the second to last semester of my MLIS program, I can say with some amount of certainty that, however many courses one takes, there is no guarantee that any […]
In a supportive group of professionals that brainstorm together, a potential student recently asked what subject is best to major in prior to pursuing an MLIS. I’m not an expert […]
Whether you’re at the very beginning, middle, or nearing the end of your career as a graduate student, library school can be overwhelming. In this often liminal space, the lines […]
Around this time of year, I always find myself reflecting on the events of the past year and preparing for the new year ahead. This has especially been the […]
A few weeks ago, Katelyn Sabelko’s post about Burnout and Library School caught my attention. Does working during your LIS studies contribute to higher rates of burnout? Like Katelyn, I’m […]
Confession: While I’ve been working in libraries since around 2011, I did not think I wanted to be a librarian until about 8 months ago when I started to look […]
As I near the end of my MLIS education, with my experience with my internship winding up, my candidacy approved, and my e-Portfolio class approaching, I have had some incentive […]
Recently, LIS scholars have started exploring the potential connection between working in graduate school and burnout in librarianship. In the recently published article, “When Does Burnout Begin? The Relationship Between […]
I am a researcher and an over-preparer, and I am generally pretty quick on my intellectual feet. But a question at an interview this week (for my dream job, eek!) […]
Society asks a lot of public library workers. Alongside our tasks of finding and providing books and other materials, leading programming for all ages, and answering all manner of questions, […]
Allison Jennings-Roche recently wrote about attending conferences outside of library land and I couldn’t agree more. In fact, just a few months ago, I was at a cross-disciplinary workshop facilitated […]
Photo courtesy of Stones15woon Over the past few weeks, I have had several opportunities to consider the confluence of library institutions and neuroatypicality.
At 16, I landed my first library “job” — a semester-long gig spending 90 minutes a day helping out at my high school media center for course credit. I loved […]
This summer, we participated in the Atkins Fellows program at the J. Murrey Atkins Library at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. We were the fifth cohort of the […]
What is a librarian without their library? This isn’t some ancient riddle that you only learn the answer to once you’ve earned that hallowed MLS (or MLIS, or MIS, or […]
Over recent months, a pattern has emerged in much of the networking that has shaped my professional life and the professional lives of those around me. In life and in […]
It’s time for my final post, and is of course obligatory here at Hack Library School, I’ll be writing about finishing school and that dreaded job hunt. As Melissa so […]
When you’re caught up in the minutiae of graduate school, remember the big picture. That’s the most critical lesson I learned during my first year of library school. For me, […]
When I was in high school, I knew exactly what I was going to do when I got older. I was wrong.
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 […]
It is hard to believe that, in a little less than two months’ time, I will be graduating. Each day is filled with the expansive feeling, not unlike that of […]
Many thanks to Karen Estlund for sharing her story!
“Do you have any good books?” If you’ve worked at a reference desk in a public library, you are all too familiar with this frustrating question.
I don’t know how many times I have heard the peer-reviewed journal article referred to as the “currency” of academia but, just as with other forms of currency, it seems […]
Library hand may sound like something a doctor treats you for after you’ve written too many catalogue cards, but it was actually a handwriting style designed to make the cards […]
Many HLS readers and several of our regular writers, myself included, are preparing to graduate from library school and to head into the real world. As Megan wrote last week, […]
Or, how singing with two year olds prepares you for librarianship. It’s here— your first story time. You’ve taken the Children’s Services courses, you’ve watched your colleagues run a few […]
Networking. It’s a word that’s thrown around a lot and is an inevitable part of professional life. Some previous HLS writers have given their thoughts on the topic. One wrote […]
Recently, I had the great privilege of helping coordinate Network Detroit 2018, a digital humanities conference at Wayne State University. The theme of this year’s conference was “Digital Humanities and […]
During my recent library blog catch-up, I read this article from ACRLog about teaching philosophies. In it, the author speaks about how she was unable to answer a question in […]
A typical day for me might include going to class, meeting with a professor or two, scouring LinkedIn, staffing the reference desk, grocery shopping, and talking to my mom. I […]
Take a look at your library. What works in the collection are from LGBTQ+ authors? Are the public restrooms gender-inclusive? Is gender a category on your library card application, and if so, are there options beyond M/F?
These are just a handful of the gender diversity issues for libraries that we explored in a recent gender diversity training for public library staff.
Earlier this summer, I shared that one of my tips for surviving and thriving during Summer Reading in a public library was “sing with toddlers.” While this tip was a general encouragement to find joy and delight where you can in a busy season, as a children’s librarian I was […]
If you belong to the library world and are in any way involved with social media (aka. if you’re reading this sentence), then you definitely heard about the disastrous Forbes […]
If you work in a public library in the United States, you are probably currently in the throes of that glorious time known as Summer Reading. If you are in youth services, you are at the forefront of the work by helping young people find and choose books, leading creative […]
Photo by user woodleywonderworks via Flickr Commons Presenting at a poster session is a great way to gain professional experience. Many positions, particularly those in academia, are looking for young professionals who are interested in ‘giving back’ to the LIS field. Presenting a poster doesn’t always have to be at an […]
For my first post with HLS, I want to talk about everyone’s favorite topic: failure. A few HLS writers have written about this topic, but for me failure in library […]
One aspect of becoming a librarian that I find particularly fascinating is learning more about specialized areas of the profession that I don’t know much about. I was fortunate enough […]
As the job search process continues, I’m finding myself relying heavily on others for support and advice. Navigating things like how to find an internship, how to handle a phone […]
Does your program have an ALA Student Chapter? At University of Iowa, our student chapter is called the Library and Information Science Student Organization (LISSO, for short) and I had […]
Over our morning coffee and naughty-feeling, sugar-laden muffins, my colleague recently described a problem she had been having in her department.
The third annual Diversity, Equity, Race, Accessibility, and Identity in LIS (DERAIL) Forum took place at Simmons College this past weekend. This student-led, student-centered conference was a joy to be […]
Part of what initially attracted me to pursuing a Masters in Library & Information Science was the public, or community focused, aspect of the work. As an undergraduate student in […]
I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that, on the whole, libraries, archives, and museums (LAMs) tend to occupy a precarious position. Those of us who work for these […]
Today we welcome a guest post by Autumn Wetli. Autumn is a graduate student pursuing her MLIS at Wayne State University with a focus on academic librarianship. She currently works […]
Today we welcome a guest post by Symphony Bruce. Symphony Bruce is a recent graduate of the iSchool of the University of Missouri and completed her MLIS in December of 2017. […]
Last semester, I took a course on Archives & Media which required one semester-long group project, focusing on creating a digital map of the route taken by the Brinton Entertainment […]
This is an interview series that will highlight the ways in which libraries and organizations serve incarcerated populations. You can read the first installment in the series, an interview with […]
There are countless of library conferences in and outside of the United States. Interested in attending? Don’t wait until after you graduate. Take advantage of your time as a student […]
I’ve been working shifts at the central reference desk at the University of Illinois Main Library for nearly a year and half now, and it’s occurred to me recently that […]
I would not be exactly where I am today if it were not for the people who make up my support system. In particular, I have greatly benefitted from the […]
This is an interview series that will highlight the ways in which libraries and organizations serve incarcerated populations. You can read the first installment in the series, an interview with […]
Last week a good friend of mine and I were discussing our experiences in our respective MLIS programs. What struck me from this conversation was how little either of our […]
This is the second installment in a series which aims to explore unusual or non-traditional collections in libraries. You can read Chezlani’s first installment, highlighting the non-traditional seed collection at Honoka’a […]
This is an interview series that will highlight the ways in which libraries and organizations serve incarcerated populations. You can read the first installment in the series, an interview with […]
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 […]
Interested in alternative MLIS careers? HLS interviews home services librarian, Christy Shannon Smirl.
Like many LIS students, I went into the program with the goal of someday working at a library as a professional librarian. I set off on my MLIS journey through […]
Today we welcome a post by Veronica Arellano Douglas as part of our collaboration with ACRLog (the blog of the Association of College and Research Libraries). Veronica Arellano Douglas is a Reference […]
Today we welcome a post by Dylan Burns as part of our collaboration with ACRLog (the blog of the Association of College and Research Libraries). Dylan Burns is the Digital Scholarship Librarian […]
Today we welcome a post by Maura Smale as part of our collaboration with ACRLog (the blog of the Association of College and Research Libraries). Maura Smale is Chief Librarian and […]
As the academic year ramps up, we at Hack Library School are teaming up with ACRLog (the blog of the Association of College and Research Libraries) to bring you a […]
I’ve been writing for Hack Library School for about 6 months now, and in some ways, I’ve felt like a fraud the entire time. You see, I’m only taking one […]
Following up on yesterday’s great post about handling anxiety in our current social climate, I wanted to talk a bit more on situating ourselves as information professionals in light of […]
This summer I had the opportunity to slightly switch gears and work at the International Area Studies Library at my university.
This series will explore the lessons that I learned about storytime through my own self-education process–through many hours of research, attending conferences, and my favorite method of learning, hands-on experience.
I found Hack Library School when I was in the throes of deciding where I wanted to go to graduate school for library studies. I had applied and been accepted […]
Two years ago, in the summer of 2015, my husband and I quit our jobs, packed our bags, and left our hometown for Iowa City, where I would be attending […]
The other day, I was looking through some old articles I had saved when I came across an article from last July 2016 in The Atlantic, “A Snapshot of a […]
Earlier this month I presented a poster titled “Going It Alone: EAD Implementation for Small Repositories” at the Midwest Archives Conference annual meeting in Omaha, Nebraska. Here are 8 quick […]
On April 13, Ivanka Trump sent out a tweet in honor of National Library Week. “…we honor our libraries and librarians for opening our eyes to the world of knowledge.” […]
Earlier this year, I attended a meetup of local librarians, and kept hearing the acronym “DAM” come up in conversation. It took some questioning to figure out that folks was not referring […]
