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Paths to Becoming an Army Librarian
by Edward Metz
As my last semester was approaching at UW-Milwaukee in fall 2002, I faced the disquieting prospect of having to prepare, not only for a final comprehensive exam, but for finding a job in the midst of an economic downturn. Most of the obvious paths into an entry-level professional librarian position didn't appear very promising. Fortunately, having served as an Army officer, I was already somewhat aware of job opportunities with the federal government - and in military libraries in particular.
The principal initial difficulty was in determining precisely what job vacancies existed. Deciphering the sometimes cryptic federal job announcements and working step by step through the lengthy application process proved no less challenging. Given the difficulty of this process, I thought it might be helpful to outline for others the basic route I took to land my current position as a Reference Librarian at the US Army's Combined Arms Research Library. I'll first highlight how I found this vacancy, before turning to a description of the Army's application process. I'll then conclude by introducing an alternate path to Army libraries via the Army Library Intern Program.
Application and Opportunities
To the uninitiated, the Army application process might appear somewhat intimidating, which likely often dissuades many highly qualified applicants from pursuing a career as a military librarian. This is unfortunate, since there are few organizations that offer as wide a variety of professional opportunities as the Army Library Program (A.L.P.). The A.L.P. oversees more than 350 librarians in some 260 libraries and information centers worldwide, including academic, research, technical, medical, and community libraries.
Army libraries are very much at the forefront of new initiatives that seek to exploit the latest technologies, offering Army soldiers, civilians and dependents all over the world remote access to online full text databases and OPACs. The A.L.P. is also a leader in the area of virtual reference via the Defense Digital Library Reference Service. This consortium of Army libraries, located throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia, offers 24/7 reference service to the military as well as to the general public on matters relating to military science, history and defense.
Whatever your focus of interest, the Army Library Program has something to offer. Not only that, but the pay and benefits of an Army library job are hard to match outside the federal government. Getting started in your federal job search need not be all that hard. Sarah (Nesbeitt) Johnson's fantastic web site provides some useful links to sites containing federal librarian job vacancies, including the one that helped me, USAJOBS. This one-stop source for federal job vacancies is the official web site of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
Research and Resumes
For best results when searching USAJOBS, enter the number 1410 in the search box on the main page. This is the career field designation for all federal librarians. Newly minted MLS graduates might also try 1412, the designation for Technical Information Specialist. The site is updated daily, so it pays to review the job postings often. (Results will include jobs from all branches of government, not just the Army). In my case, I eventually saw (after many weeks) a vacancy announcement for the position of Reference Librarian at Ft. Leavenworth, KS. This posting led me to the Army's Resume Builder, commonly known as Resumix.
Resumix allows you to create, save and later update your resume, and is the preferred way of competing for an Army job vacancy. Your resume, once complete, can be readily sent electronically to the appropriate Civilian Personnel Office Center (CPOC) for review. Before going to the Army Resume Builder, carefully read the eligibility requirements in the vacancy announcement. Most Army librarian positions are open to the general public, but don't make any assumptions. Once you're satisfied that you meet eligibility, education, and/or experience requirements for the job you're interested in, it is time to take the leap and go to the Army Resume Builder. Do this by clicking on the link found on the Job Summary page from your previous search.
You must complete all five sections before your application is accepted, but you can pause and save your file at any time and come back later where you left off. Hit the Submit button when you're finished. This will direct your resume to a central holding file. Remember, at this point you're not quite done. You'll be prompted to send your resume out to the CPOC responsible for the job vacancy. (The vacancy announcement will list the appropriate CPOC.)
Once you've sent your resume to the CPOC, you can go back to the vacancy announcement at USAJOBS and click on the Self Nominate button (usually located at the bottom of the page). (Note that you may sometimes submit regular application packets via fax or e-mail, rather than go through the Resumix process.)
Information and Interns
Some of you may be asking if there is a way to avoid doing all of this. Well, sort of. Any discussion of entering the Army Library Program would be incomplete without at least a brief description of the Army Library Intern Program. The Army periodically announces openings for individuals interested in their twelve-month developmental program, which is designed to hone technical skills through both formal and on-the-job training. Interns are trained on Army organization, knowledge management, digital reference, web design, and automated systems. They work in a variety of library environments, and, at the conclusion of their internship, choose where they would like to work.
Note, however, that there is some risk involved in final job placement. While an intern's preferences are most often accommodated, they do sign a mobility agreement that allows the program manager to place them if necessary. Interns currently enter the federal pay scale at the GS-9 level ($35,519 plus locality pay), with promotion potential to GS-11 by the end of their first year.
A good starting place for staying current on Army library employment opportunities is the Army Library Program Employment page. Entry level librarian positions are posted on the Army Civilian Personnel web site and at USAJobs. As intern positions become available, the vacancy announcements should be posted on both these sites, and will be posted on the Department of the Army’s Management Intern Program site as well.
I hope this article will be useful to anyone interested in looking further into careers in the Army Library Program. If anyone has any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Edward Metz is a reference librarian at the Combined Arms Research Library of the Command and General Staff College, Ft. Leavenworth, KS. He has an MLIS from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, an MA in German, and a BA in Political Science from UW-Madison.