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Finding a Mentor: One Librarian's Experiences
by Anne Pemberton
Many librarians find their first mentor while attending library school or while working in a library prior to library school, and my experience was similar. Several connections can serve as a mentor- mentee relationship, such as student-student, faculty-student, and employer-employee. I was an advisee, and later a Peer Advisor, in the "Peer Advisor Program" at the library school I attended.
As advisors, we wrote to incoming students before they began classes, and established a relationship with them early in their first semester of school. This gave new students a chance to ask questions of a fellow student and learn about their new environment. I found it to be a wonderful program that provided a forum for students to learn about one another and become more comfortable in the library school environment.
Faculty Mentors
Establishing a good relationship with a faculty member is another way to foster a relationship with a mentor. My situation was somewhat unique, in that I happened to be a faculty member's daughter. My father never pushed me to go into librarianship, although I do think he was excited when I first started working at the University library as an undergraduate and taking Information Sciences classes at "his" school. He has been instrumental in developing my professional mindset. A week does not go by that I do not consult with him about my job and career and issues in our profession. One of the most important things I talked to him about was the kind of a position I would try to obtain upon graduation. He recommended that I look into a Post-MLS residency program.
Residencies and Mentors
Finding a mentor through residency programs can be an absolutely wonderful experience. When I graduated from library school, I wanted to continue my education while also gaining professional experience. While I had been working for a few years in academic libraries as a student and graduate assistant, I was apprehensive about jumping right into a permanent position. Based on both my father's advice and personal experience, I felt that a residency program would be a perfect fit.
I found a number of programs that seemed like wonderful opportunities. One of these was the North Carolina State University (NCSU) Libraries Fellows Program. As a two-year post-MLS program, NCSU's was longer than the more typical one-year residency programs. It also offered a challenging and dynamic atmosphere. So I applied, interviewed, and was offered a position before I graduated from library school. For the last sixteen months I have been a NCSU Libraries Fellow. It has given me the opportunity to work in more than one department and gain experience and skills that I might not have gotten in a traditional entry-level position.
When I arrived at NCSU, I was entering an environment with over 100 librarians and hundreds of other staff. I was very nervous and intimidated by the size of the staff and their credentials. Finding someone to "show me the ropes" was an major goal when I started work. Luckily, I was immediately introduced to a librarian who had not only attended the same university as I, but was also from the same hometown. We had many things in common and I felt immediately comfortable with her.
I found out later that our department head had purposefully introduced us, and had suggested the possibility of developing a mentor-mentee relationship. My mentor eventually became my supervisor, and has been a wonderful boss as well as mentor. We frequently go to lunch and talk about what I'm doing and the things I'd like to be doing. She listens to me and really works on finding opportunities for me to develop as a librarian. She is always someone who is there to listen and help point me in the right direction. Even if our department head had not introduced us, I believe that she and I would have naturally gravitated toward one another because of our backgrounds.
The Fellows program has also provided a more structured opportunity for finding a mentor. One of the great benefits of being a Fellow at NCSU is that we have a committee in place to provide guidance and advice. This committee has brought in professionals to talk about travel and development, listened to our ideas, and answered our questions about various topics. They are also in regular contact with us, sending e-mail updates of new conferences or workshops that we should try and attend.
The committee plays a role in the Fellows' interview process so that each new Fellow will have a face to remember. This has helped the Fellows to feel more comfortable when beginning their appointment. The committee members seem genuinely interested in helping us get all that we can out of our time as Fellows and to excel beyond. This committee has been a wonderful resource for those of us that are new to the Library as well as to the profession.
I have had the opportunity to experience many different types of mentor relationships. Each has served as a stepping-stone and led to greater achievement within the profession. I have found being a Fellow to be a wonderful opportunity for new professionals to immerse themselves in the profession without feeling overwhelmed. At NCSU, people realize that I'm fairly new to the profession and might need or want more guidance than other new staff. They seem to be genuinely interested in talking to me about my interests and skills. This has been a rewarding experience and I hope that other recent graduates might look to a Post-MLS residency program to get started in their profession and/or find a mentor.
To learn more about the NCSU Fellows Program: http://www.lib.ncsu.edu
To learn more about other Post-MLS Residency Programs in academic libraries, see the ARL Research Library Residency & Internship Programs database.
Anne Pemberton is a graduate of the School of Information Sciences at the University of Tennessee. She currently works in the Office of Personnel Services and the Research and Information Services Department at North Carolina State University.