Info Career Trends March 1, 2005 vol. 6, no. 2 ISSN 1532-0839 Published by Lisjobs.com - http://www.lisjobs.com E-mail: editor@lisjobs.com In This Issue (Alternative Careers): 1) Editor's Note 2) Career Q&A From the Library Career People (choosing a school, interview tips) 3) My Path To an Alternative Career 4) A Really Alternative Career in Librarianship 5) My Life As a Librarian Without Walls 6) Alternative Careers 7) What's Online? Recommended Resources 8) But I Want To Hold It In My Hand! Review: The Librarian's Career Guidebook 9) Administrivia, Copyright, Subscription and Removal Instructions ======== Editor's Note We talk often about our skills as information professionals being transferable, and this issue's articles illustrate ways to use our library background in various environments. Knowing more about our options allows us to plan out the career path that's best for us; as libraries and librarianship continue to evolve, many more of us may end up in careers formerly viewed as "alternative." One of the ways we can use our skills as librarians, particularly researching, networking, and sharing, is by contributing our thoughts to our ongoing professional conversation through writing for publication. ICT is seeking authors for two upcoming issues - July 2005 ("getting what you're worth) and Nov. 2005 ("what I wish I'd learned in library school"), and I'd love to see your queries at editor@lisjobs.com. Please see contributor guidelines at http://www.lisjobs.com/newsletter/theme.htm#contrib . I'm also seeking a reviewer for Blanche Woolls' and David V. Loertscher's The Whole School Library Handbook (ALA, 2005); e-mail a brief note with your qualifications. For more on why you might want to contribute your work to an online publication such as this one, see my February Library Link column, "Online Is Fine," at http://iris.emeraldinsight.com/vl=10247074/cl=29/nw=1/rpsv/librarylink /published/perish/feb2005.htm OR http://makeashorterlink.com/?A24A1277A . While I'm on the subject, I'd like to share with you some of my own contributions to the literature. Look into one of my books for yourself or your library; check out a list, with links to sample content and reviews, at http://www.lisjobs.com/resume.htm#write . - Rachel (editor@lisjobs.com) ======== *** Find yourself with management responsibilities? Check out The Accidental Library Manager! http://www.lisjobs.com/talm/ ======== Career Q&A From the Library Career People (librarycareerpeople@lisjobs.com) Q: I recently became interested in the library profession, but can't seem to find any schools that offer the library sciences degree. What schools would you suggest? TA: This opens the door, not only to answer your initial question (how do I find a school?), but also to address the broader question: out of all of the programs, how do I decide which one is right for me? Answering your initial question is pretty simple: Go to the ALA web site for a lengthy list of accredited schools. But, with so many options, how do you evaluate which school is "best?" Let's back up and look at the broader picture. What To Look For A quick Google search on "selecting a graduate program" yields many results. Glancing at some of these articles (many of which are listed below), you will see many common themes. Most advise students to look at the location of the school, the cost of the program, and the types of courses and degrees offered. In addition, when comparing institutions, most recommend looking at both academic qualities (differences in curriculum, academic requirements, faculty interests and research) as well as "quality of life" benefits (the campus, community, housing, distance from family and friends). Other factors to consider when researching and comparing graduate institutions include: * Accreditation * The cost of the program Tuition, housing, books, student fees, travel, cost of living * Financial incentives Fellowships, research assistantships, teaching assistantships * Selectivity of the program Compare the number of applicants to the number accepted * University and department reputation * Diversity Of the faculty, students, university, community * Faculty interests, research and ranking What is the student to faculty ratio? Do full-time faculty teach classes? What percentage of the time? Are faculty members conducting research? Are they published? Are they respected by others in the field? * Does the program emphasize theory or practice? Are there specific courses of interest to you? Availability of internships and field experiences * Flexibility of the program * Quality of facilities and resources Library materials in your subject area, classrooms, technology, endowments that support student research * Are there opportunities to teach? To publish? To attend conferences? * Where do graduates typically find work upon graduation from the program? Do most graduates go into academia or into professional positions in the workplace? How much assistance is offered to job-seeking students (and/or alumni)? ALA-accredited schools At the top of this list is accreditation. On its accreditation web site, ALA states that "ALA accreditation indicates that the program has undergone a self-evaluation process, been reviewed by peers, and meets the Standards for Accreditation of Master's Programs in Library and Information Studies that were established by the Committee on Accreditation and adopted by the ALA Council in 1992." During the accreditation process, a program is evaluated in the areas of mission, goals, objectives, curriculum, faculty, students, administration, financial support, physical resources, and facilities. While accreditation is by no means a guarantee of quality or an indicator of "best fit," graduating from an ALA-accredited program will allow greater career mobility and flexibility in your professional pursuits. Most major institutions call for an ALA-accredited degree when seeking candidates for professional positions. For a complete list of ALA- accredited schools, please visit: http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=lisdirb&Template=/cfapps/lisdi r/index.cfm Resources Never underestimate the power of research when deciding on the graduate program that best meets your needs. The definition of "best" is completely subjective. For some, it may mean attending the top- ranked program according to US News & World Report; for others, it means attending the ALA-accredited program in their area because of limited geographic mobility. Regardless, when making your assessments, do your research. Talk to current students and alumni. Speak with administrators and faculty. Look at department web sites and class offerings. Visit schools and look at the fit of the campus and the surrounding community. Last, but not least, use the following resources to help formulate and answer some of your questions. Good luck! About.com Graduate School: Questions & Answers: http://gradschool.about.com/library/blqa2.htm ALA's 2004-2005 Directory of Institutions Offering ALA-Accredited Master's Programs in Library and Information Studies: http://www.ala.org/ala/accreditation/lisdirb/lisdirectory.htm ALA's Office for Human Resources Development and Recruitment: http://www.ala.org/hrdr (general information about scholarships, placement, salaries and general career information) The Directory of Graduate Programs (published by the Graduate Record Examinations Board) contains information on U.S. graduate programs in over 80 major fields Financial Assistance for Library and Information Studies (an annual compilation available from the ALA Committee on Education) The Guide to American Graduate Schools (describes post-BA study opportunities at more than 685 accredited institutions) Hansen, Randall S., Ph.D. Criteria for Choosing a Graduate Program: http://www.quintcareers.com/graduate_school_criteria.html Hiatt Career Center. Things to Consider When Selecting a Graduate School: http://www.brandeis.edu/hiatt/GradSchoolConsider.html JOBTRAK Selecting a Graduate School: Look Before You Leap! http://www2.jobtrak.com/help_manuals/gradschool/select.html Kuther, Tara, Ph.D. Choosing Among Graduate Programs: http://gradschool.about.com/cs/choosingaprogram/a/select.htm Peterson's Annual Guides to Graduate Studies (profiles over 1400 accredited institutions offering masters and/or doctoral programs) Q: I have an interview with a public library as a clerk. I want this job very much but I have no prior experience working in libraries. Please advise me on how I can convince them to hire me! I really would love to work in a library. What intelligent thing can I say during my interview, to convince them to hire me? Please help. SM: First of all, congratulations on getting an interview! This is the first step to a career in libraries. A clerk position (sometimes called library assistant) is usually considered entry-level, which means no library experience required. Your interviewers will, however, expect you to be computer literate, detailed-oriented, and organized, and to be able to communicate effectively and pleasantly. So, play up the skills and experience that you do have, especially ones that relate to these traits. Since you made it to the interview stage, assuming that you either filled out an application or submitted a resume, your interviewers already know your work history and your skills. Take comfort in knowing that you meet most, if not all, of their requirements. The interview is their chance to get to know you, and your chance to impress them. During the interview, keep in mind that you are also interviewing them. You should have some questions prepared to ask your interviewers (typically at the end of the interview). For general interviewing tips, look at the interviewing section of Lisjobs.com at http://www.lisjobs.com/advice.htm#interview , which has a list of helpful web sites. In response to your more specific plea for help, I have the following advice: Read the description of library assistant in the Occupational Outlook Handbook http://bls.gov/oco/ocos147.htm or of library clerk in the Essential Skills site from Human Resources and Skills Development of Canada http://www15.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/english/profiles/12.asp . This will help you get a better understanding of the position and what it entails. Brush up on your library searching skills by familiarizing yourself with several online catalogs, such as the New York Public Library's catalog ( http://catnyp.nypl.org/ ), the Boston Public Library's catalog ( http://www.bpl.org/catalogs/index.htm ), the Los Angeles Public Library's catalog ( http://www.lapl.org/catalog/ ); the Houston Public Library's catalog ( http://catalog.houstonlibrary.org/search~S1/ ), and (most importantly), the catalog of the library where you are interviewing. During your interview, you may be given a shelf-reading quiz to determine if you know how to organize library materials, either by Library of Congress Classification (LC) http://www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/lcco/lcco.html or Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) http://www.oclc.org/dewey/ , which is used more in public libraries. If you do not know much about these classification systems, I suggest that you look at the following shelf-reading tutorials: An online tour of DDC (from OCLC) http://www.oclc.org/dewey/resources/tour/default.htm Let's Do Dewey (from Middle Tennessee State University) http://www.mtsu.edu/~vvesper/dewey.html SatchLCall - Library of Congress Call Number System Tutorial (from the University of Pittsburgh) http://www.pitt.edu/~ford29/SatchLCall/linking.html Call Number Tutorial (from Hunter College, CUNY) http://library.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/vdent/orsem/voiladevelopment/cal l_number/call01.html Public libraries are very community oriented. Depending on what city you are in, you will most likely be working with a diverse user population. Let your interviewers know that you are interested in working with different age groups and different cultures, and, by all means, let them know how interested you are to begin a career in libraries. Explain that it won't be "just a job" for you, but a passion. For more information about public libraries and working in public libraries, look at the Public Library Association's web site: http://www.pla.org . As for something "intelligent" to mention during your interview, try reading, or scanning, some articles in current library-related journals to give you some ideas. A few examples of journals are: Library Journal http://www.libraryjournal.com , D-Lib Magazine http://www.dlib.org , LIBRES http://libres.curtin.edu.au , and First Monday http://www.firstmonday.org . To get a longer list of open- access ( http://www.soros.org/openaccess/read.shtml ) library-related journals, go to the Directory of Open Access Journals http://www.doaj.org/ljbs?cpid=129 . Never be afraid to show your enthusiasm for working in libraries. Best of luck! *** Have a question for the Library Career People? E-mail it to librarycareerpeople@lisjobs.com, and you could see it answered in an upcoming column. Sorry, we cannot provide personal responses. About the Authors Tiffany Allen is currently serving as the Assistant Personnel Librarian at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Prior to her work in academic librarianship, Tiffany worked in a variety of libraries, including a small non-profit library and a large corporate research library. Susanne Markgren is Reference Coordinator and Web Librarian at the Levy Library, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, in New York City. Her career experience encompasses a variety of positions in different types of libraries, including public, special, and academic. ======== *** Post your resume online! See http://www.lisjobs.com/resumes.htm for details. ======== My Path To an Alternative Career by Paul Duckworth (paulmduckworth@msn.com) How does a librarian move from a traditional job to something outside the box of library walls? If this sounds like a Zen koan to you, perhaps you’re thinking about it too hard - just let the energy flow into your solar plexus. When you’re centered, you can follow the path of the stepping stones that are submerged below the surface of the water. How? Step-by-step, feeling your way, remembering to breathe and center yourself - and not being afraid to get your feet wet. First Steps First My path began with the recognition that it was time to move on from my public library job in Missouri. I’d been there for over twenty-five years, moving upwards in responsibility. The job was great, my salary was excellent, and I had every reason to stay, except three: I was restless, felt stagnated, and found myself experiencing boredom. “What to do?” I thought. “How do I uproot myself? Where do I begin?” For me, a recent marriage had brought a fresh perspective and someone else’s needs to consider. For many reasons, we decided to relocate to within a few hours of Toronto. So, the first decision had been made: the geographic focus was defined. Time to get out the career and resume guides. I raided my library’s shelves, looked at more than a few, studied every style and strategy, then set the books down and never picked them up again. What I did reach for, though, was the ear of anyone who would listen to me as I told my story. Never underestimate the power of these words: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.” I found talking with many people, especially those not in the library field, of immense assistance in clarifying muddy waters. I began bookmarking library job sites and searching them again and again - sometimes to the point where I felt desperate. There were jobs, but few interesting ones in the geographical area where I needed to land. I also reached out to colleagues through the networking approach, including joining an e-mail list from a state adjoining Ontario. It was fascinating to learn about the issues going on there, which affected services, employment, selection, and the financial health of libraries. Alternatives Can Find You Time was getting short. We needed to move before autumn, but nothing seemed to pan out. What to do...? Be persistent, I reminded myself. Success is 10% inspiration, 90% perspiration. So, I did everything I could not to let discouragement slow me down: meditation, yoga, talking to friends, and strategizing through good note taking. And then, there it was - a job posting on an e-mail list for a library vendor in New York State. Good fortune - the vendor was a major supplier for my library. My application led to a response with a questionnaire to fill out; this led to more e-mail, and then... a call out of the blue from the company's sales manager, followed by a second one. Could I come to the ALA conference in Orlando, expenses paid, to meet with the company president and him? Yes, I could, and I did! I flew to Orlando and visited with them. And, while I was there with some free time to visit the exhibits hall, I stopped by the booth of another vendor I worked with on materials acquisition, to meet some of the friendly staff I had visited with on the phone over the years. So, I had a good chat with several staff, and casually mentioned that I was interviewing for a job that would take me to New York State. “We just happen to have an opening for an account rep for that area,” one of their vice presidents mentioned. Would I be interested in talking about this position? Yes, I was, and I did. We talked, and the job sounded as intriguing and challenging as the first one. Always keep as many options open as possible, I reminded myself. Don’t start closing doors until you know for sure which door you’re going to walk through. When One Door Opens... At the end of the weekend I expected a job offer from the first vendor, who had flown me to the conference. It didn’t come. So I waited, weighed my options, and decided that the better choice for me was the new possibility. Then, amazingly, a friend told me about yet a third prospect with the university library in the town to which we were considering moving. While in Toronto on vacation, I faxed my application, and within a few days had a telephone interview with the search committee. Within days, an offer was made by the second vendor and I accepted. A few days later, the initial vendor indicated they wanted to hire me. And, as I withdrew my application for the academic position, they indicated that I had been their top candidate. How is it, you ask, being outside those traditional walls? Well, I travel inside those walls throughout my sales territory, meet great people (we librarians ARE interesting), and sometimes have the exciting opportunity to show up for work in my home office in my pajamas. I still speak “library,” am appreciated by my employer, and network every day with colleagues and customers across the country. My employer is tops, the job brings me the challenge I was looking for, and I’m traveling to lots of places I had never seen before. The path ahead isn’t clear, but, truly, it never is. For right now, I’m enjoying getting my feet wet, taking one step at a time, and remembering to breathe. Paul Duckworth lives in upstate New York and is a Regional Account Manager with BWI, (Lexington, KY), a major vendor of books and audiovisual materials to public libraries. Prior to that, he was Collection Development Coordinator at Springfield-Greene County Library (Springfield, MO). He can be reached at paulmduckworth@msn.com . ======== *** Need some encouragement on writing for publication? http://www.lisjobs.com/pub4lib/ ======== A Really Alternative Career in Librarianship by Officer Tom Rink (trink@ci.tulsa.ok.us) When you think about the title "librarian," the traditional settings that come to mind are public libraries, academic libraries, and school libraries. As a matter of fact, the entire time that I was in library school, I envisioned becoming an academic librarian. I never dreamed that I'd be able to pursue a library career in my chosen first profession, law enforcement. However, when the opportunity arose to create a library for the police department (where none had previously existed) I jumped at the chance. As the information age continues to evolve and grow, this may just be the time to start expanding our thinking in the direction of the "non-traditional" or "alternative" career choices that are available in the field of librarianship. Self-Evaluation To successfully explore the new career opportunities which are emerging all around us, we must realistically assess or evaluate our skill sets and competencies. We must also be able to articulate and translate these to the new, and sometimes difficult to understand, job descriptions that are written in different terms than those for traditional library-related positions. "Out-of-the-box" thinking must become the norm. Use your imagination, set your goals, and go for it! What is really required is an entrepreneurial spirit which includes having a vision for the future, a certain degree of risk-taking, a strong desire to succeed, a creative/innovative outlook, and a customer-focused service orientation. In addition, today's information professional must be an effective communicator, have the ability to prioritize, be committed to lifelong learning (and career development), understand the balance between leading, following, and collaborating, be flexible, and understand the value of networking. Having dogged determination (perseverance) doesn't hurt, either! Finding Alternatives So, what are the jobs, and where are they? The overly-simple answer: as a profession, we are becoming more and more entrepreneurial; we are able to manage information organizations, manage information resources, manage information services, and apply information tools and technologies in any setting that we choose (corporate or otherwise). Every sector of the economy has a growing need for information professionals: the manufacturing industry, the service/business industry, government agencies (yes, even an occasional police department), academic or educational institutions, hospitals or other health institutions, agricultural and food processing businesses, professional and trade associations (and not-for-profits), research and consulting organizations, and arts and entertainment organizations. The new focus for librarians or information professionals is on managing the informational needs or requirements of the decision-makers within the organizations that they serve. To help brainstorm the possibilities (and the following lists are by no means exhaustive), some of the titles used (in addition to librarian and information professional) include archivist, consultant, information broker, knowledge manager, independent information professional, chief information officer, market researcher, taxonomist, indexer/abstracter, records manager, and web developer. And, judging from some of the recent job ads that I have seen, these titles are becoming more and more technological in nature: electronic resources librarian, network administrator, technology systems librarian, electronic products manager. Our settings are also quite varied. We work in libraries, information centers, resource centers, research and development units, planning centers, think tanks in corporations, banks, law firms, prisons, churches, museums, hospitals, police departments, and even from our homes. We can operate in person, by phone, by fax, and via the computer and/or the Internet (providing virtual reference services). Out On Your Own You could even become your own boss and enter the world of consulting. Consulting can include evaluating a library or library services, doing public relations, performing information audits, outsourcing, space planning analysis, document delivery, records management, training other librarians (through workshops and seminars), writing (books, articles, newsletters), designing or producing databases, web design, indexing and/or abstracting. Or, you could become a vendor representative (sales, database searching), or work for a library supplier. In the corporate world, the field of competitive intelligence (gathering information that will assist a company in maintaining or gaining a competitive advantage) continues to thrive. Again, all that is required is a little creativity in your thinking. Hopefully, you are beginning to get an understanding of the variety and types of alternatives that exist in our world today. And, if for some reason you cannot seem to find your niche, then create it! Take the initiative and put your entrepreneurial skills to work. Colleagues that I encounter during the course of my professional development/ professional association activities constantly marvel at the fact that our police department has a library, and that it's staffed by a degreed librarian, to boot. (In the law enforcement world, this is not the norm - but wouldn't it be wonderful if it were to become the norm?) How many other people have had the opportunity to create their own niche? Probably more than you would guess. Next time you are at a conference, workshop, seminar, or program, challenge yourself to examine the job titles and employers/work settings of the other attendees - you'll be amazed at what you discover. In addition to being a wonderful networking opportunity, you may just find your dream job. Editor's Note: See Officer Rink's story at http://www.rose.edu/lrc/careers/rink.htm . Officer Tom Rink, a 23+ year veteran of the Tulsa Police Department, received his MLIS from the University of Oklahoma in 1992 and has spent the last 11 years building (from scratch) and managing the library for the Tulsa Police Department. Tom is active in the Special Libraries Association and is the current President-elect of the Oklahoma Chapter. ======== *** Love the newsletter? Make a PayPal donation to its upkeep: https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=rachel%40lisjobs.com ======== My Life As a Librarian Without Walls by Marylaine Block (marylaine@netexpress.net) From time to time I get e-mails from library and information science students asking me to talk about my career as an Internet librarian, so I'm going to answer some of those questions here. Why Did You Make This Career Move? There were a lot of reasons. * I'd been in the same job for 22 years, and even though new responsibilities and challenges came along every year, it was growing stale and so was I. * As the creator of one of the first librarian-created guides to the internet, Best Information on the Net ( http://library.sau.edu/bestinfo/default.htm ) I had already acquired a reputation as an Internet "guru," and invited to deliver conference presentations and workshops. (It's the Hershey bar principle: if you're there first, you don't have to be the best possible.) * I was developing a career as a writer. At the time I left my job, I was writing a weekly column, "Observing US," for Fox News Online. * I already had a weekly platform in Neat New Stuff I Found This Week, as well as BookBytes ( http://marylaine.com/bookbyte/index.html ). My employer agreed that these were my personal projects rather than the library's property, so I was able to take them, and their audiences, with me. * Probably the biggest one was that I could afford to take the risk. My mortgage payment was only $300 a month, I knew how to live cheap, and I didn't have anybody but me to support, since my son was grown up. Fox was paying about half my basic living expenses, and I was pretty sure I could make up the rest with speaking engagements. What Did You Do To Build the Business? First thing, I bought the marylaine.com domain, got an internet service provider, and placed NeatNew, BookBytes, and my resume there. (Later, I had to break it into two separate resumes: my internet librarian resume and my writing resume.) I started ExLibris, and archived it, as a way to expand my reputation among librarians by sharing what I knew about the internet, searching, and other professional issues. When people told me they preferred to have their information come to them, I made ExLibris and NeatNew available in a combined free e-mail newsletter as well as online, which dramatically expanded its reach. And I increased my usefulness to librarians by making all my conference and workshop presentations freely available on the web ( http://marylaine.com/handouts.html ). I made a decision up front not to accept any advertising. That was partly to avoid any appearance of conflicts of interest, since the greatest asset I have to offer is my integrity. But mostly it was because I wanted to use my web page frames to promote my own work. Which ever route brought readers to me - BookBytes, Neat New Stuff, or ExLibris - would lead them to my other work. All of the archived work on my web site allows editors and conference planners to see the kinds of work I have done, and the kinds of topics I have addressed. The fact that I clearly meet a weekly schedule also assures editors that I know how to meet a deadline. How Much Of a Role Did Dumb Luck Play? A big role - as in any business. I was fortunate in the word of mouth from librarians, who forwarded my newsletters to colleagues, or recommended particular columns in the weblogs. I was also fortunate with search engines. I always tell people I was doing all the right things to get search engine attention before anyone knew there WERE right things to do. Because the engines paid great attention to librarians' web pages, they followed me from Best Information on the Net to marylaine.com. Because search engines also give preference to sites that update regularly, they spider my site often, keeping up with the new material I add. Since I cover such a wide variety of topics in my handouts, columns, and ExLibris backfile, and Google routinely spiders my site every week, librarians and other information seekers are frequently referred to my work, regardless of what they're searching for: "out of print books," "library marketing," "cool quotes," "Images on the Web" - even, would you believe, "Burma-Shave signs." Once searchers find one of my pages, they can and do explore others. Thanks to the fact that one of my subscribers was a technology writer, I got some entirely unexpected free publicity when he wrote an article for Wired about NeatNew and other e-mail lists in February, 2002 ( http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.02/lists.html ). Within a month, I'd added more than 1500 techies to my subscriber list. Do You Make Money? Yes, though not as much as I'd like. Like many self-employed people, I start the year not knowing how much money I'll make and where it will come from, so it's not a job for the faint of heart. My income comes from an ever-shifting mix of writing, speaking fees, and royalties from my book, Net Effects: How Librarians Can Manage the Unintended Consequences of the Internet ( http://marylaine.com/book/index.html ). This year, as library budgets have dried up, my speaking business is down, but my writing business is up. It helps that my costs of doing business are not prohibitive: my server, my DSL connection, and distribution charges. These are offset by the tax deductions for business expenses and my home office. I chose not to charge a fee for NeatNew and ExLibris, but to use them to promote my writing and speaking business. My users can make donations, though, through their Amazon accounts. If all my subscribers donated even $5, I'd be making as much money as I did in my last year at work. That hasn't happened, but it would certainly be nice. I welcome your donations. What Are the Gratifications of the Work? There are many. The greatest is that I have the opportunity, in both my print and online publications, to influence the way librarians respond to our challenging new technological and economic environment. I love the e-mail I get, the very personal responses to my articles, and I enjoy seeing my ideas picked up in weblogs and listservs. But I'm even more pleased when I see my articles turn up as required reading in LIS courses. I love the opportunity my work has given me to meet librarians all over the country, including some of my own personal heroes, who I've gotten to mingle with at conferences or interview for ExLibris. One of the regular writing jobs I've gotten is the Movers and Shakers issue of Library Journal, which has given me a chance to get to know some of the most interesting up-and-coming young people in our profession, and find out about the exciting things they're doing. I can't tell you how much I love setting my own schedule. I can count on my fingers the number of times I have set an alarm clock since July, 1999, when I began this enterprise. When it's 20 below zero, or the snow is up to my waist, I don't have to go out unless I'm stupid enough to want to. I can hang clean laundry up to dry on any day when it's sunny and warm, instead of waiting for a Saturday or Sunday that's sunny and warm. I can read during the day, on my sunporch, instead of in dim fluorescent light. When daylight dwindles down, and you are all going to work in the dark and coming home in the dark, I get to enjoy every little bit of daylight we are allowed. Of course the other side of setting my own schedule is that I work whenever the job needs to be done. That sometimes means working on Thanksgiving and Christmas, or writing and researching at 2 in the morning or 11 at night. I routinely work on Saturdays and Sundays. I can live with that. Would I Recommend This Work to Young Librarians? Not unless you are extraordinarily confident in your own abilities and are willing to take risks and live cheap. Most independent information professionals already had a base before they went private; they knew who their prospective clients were, and already had a good reputation within that group. But is it something you might want to aspire to after you've gotten a few years of experience? Absolutely. Because the bottom line for me is this: it's been a fun ride, and I've had a ball doing it. Thanks to all my readers for keeping me company on the ride. This article originally appeared in ExLibris #233, Nov. 12, 2004 ( http://marylaine.com/exlibris/xlib233.html ) Marylaine Block was an academic reference librarian for 22 years, and is now a full-time writer and speaker. Links to her work are available at http://marylaine.com . ======== *** Have technology responsibilities in your library? Check out The Accidental Systems Librarian! Information and links online at http://www.lisjobs.com/tasl/ . ======== Alternative Careers by Amelia Kassel (amelia@marketingbase.com) On January 26 of this year, I began teaching a new course about alternative careers ( http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/courses/287.kassel/287sp05gs.htm ) to graduate LIS students. Alternative careers, or, should I perhaps say, non- traditional-careers, are not new to me - nor is teaching. I received my MLS in 1971 from UCLA, and then applied for and was awarded one of four pre-doctoral internships at the UCLA Biomedical Library, funded by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) for one year. We rotated through all departments of the Biomedical Library, including acquisitions, cataloging, reference. We also spent time working with the Pacific Southwest Regional Medical Library Service (PSRMLS), which offered training and other services to medical libraries in a four- state region (California, Hawaii, Arizona, and Nevada), and was also funded by NLM. Starting Out Alternative After I completed the internship, the UCLA Biomedical Library hired me. I stayed on for three more years, working half-time in interlibrary loans (where I did all the detective work needed to verify incorrect citations that came into the library), and half-time for PSRMLS. Working as a PSMRLS librarian, my first professional job, I consulted for and trained hospital librarians on how to establish health care collections for physicians and allied health care professionals. I also assisted hospital librarians in writing grant applications to receive monies available from NLM for starting or expanding hospital libraries. My first library job as a consulting and training librarian was an alternative career. Although I was based in a library, I did nontraditional work, traveling to libraries in the region to provide on-site workshops and consulting. In 1974, I moved to Northern California and became an adult reference librarian for the Sonoma County Public Library. I worked there until 1982, when I became the reference coordinator for the North Bay Cooperative Library System (NBCLS), housed at the library. NBCLS is a multi-type library system that includes public and academic libraries, and at that time provided various library services to its 19 member libraries. NBC (as we called it) offered services such as acquisitions, cataloging, book processing, reference, and continuing education for librarians. Again, I found myself working part of the time in an alternative (or non-traditional) job. I provided reference service to libraries in the region when they could not answer questions from their own collections, and also coordinated continuing education programs for librarians in the system. Striking Out Independently In 1981, the forward-looking director of the Sonoma County Public Library decided that it was time to use online services, and we established an account with Dialog. All adult reference librarians were trained by an on-site Dialog trainer. When first introduced to Dialog, I was absolutely wowed. It opened up a whole new world of knowledge, much like what the Internet has done today. In late 1981, I began to consider establishing an information brokerage business based on skills I had learned as a librarian - mainly because I was looking for new challenges. While attending a conference at the California Library Association, I chanced across an exhibitor, Sue Rugge, who was demonstrating how her company (Information on Demand) conducted online searches for clients. I immediately decided that this was what I would like to do. At about this time, both Apple and IBM had introduced microcomputers, later known as PCs, and the desktop revolution was on its way. You could buy a computer for home or office, and this opened up tremendous opportunities for home-based businesses. Online databases, on the scene since the early seventies from companies like Dialog and LexisNexis, were evolving and growing in numbers, with more and more full-text information available. I needed new skills to start a business. I began taking classes at the local community college and attended workshops about business planning, marketing, and sales offered by the chamber of commerce and individual experts. I continued to hone my online research skills and established an information brokerage in 1982 while still working at NBCLS. During the early years, I attended breakfast meetings and evening business mixers to make new contacts. On my birthday in 1984, I gave myself a birthday present by resigning from my job and going into business full time. Staying the Course The focus of my business is online research, and I've worked on hundreds of projects for a wide range of clients during the last 20 years. The majority of my work today is business research - industry, market, or company research, plus a multitude of business topics. One area of interest is business research for law firms. Various applications for the research I conduct include market research, competitive intelligence, marketing, new product introductions, and mergers and acquisitions, but the sky's the limit. I've also conducted medical information searches for consumers based on my medical library background, and accepted contracts in which librarians or other organizations outsource library and information services such as state-of-the art research, library and database organization and management, and intranet resource development. As one strategy for marketing my business - and to project my expertise and credibility - I write, consult, and teach. Teaching is of key interest to me. I began giving presentations, workshops, and seminars in the eighties, and today travel within the U.S. and internationally to conferences to train librarians and business searchers on the skills they need to conduct market and competitive intelligence research. In the nineties, I taught a full-semester course in information brokering for LIS students. Subsequently, I developed a one-year educational program via e-mail for those wanting to start an information brokering business, which I call the Mentor Program. The program focuses on establishing and marketing information brokering businesses, and trains new entrants in how to conduct commercial database and Internet research time efficiently and cost- effectively. Both in my research and training business components, I've worked with hundreds of organizations and taught people from all over the world, almost all virtually, almost all online. Since the start of my career, I've been able to put my graduate library education and a range of experiences to work to create an alternative career. Today, there is nothing I love more than imparting some of my knowledge to others embarking on new careers. Becoming an IIP This year, I began teaching a new distance education course for LIS students that focuses on IIPs (independent information professionals). Through various assignments and online class discussion, students are learning about diverse work environments, responsibilities, and the required education and skill sets for various settings. The final assignment is to select a hypothetical information-related business and prepare a business plan. Required books are: * Bates, Mary Ellen. Building and Running a Successful Research Business: A Guide for the Independent Information Professional, 2003: http://books.infotoday.com/books/BuildingRunning.shtml * Sabroski, Suzanne. Super Searchers Make It On Their Own: Top Independent Information Professionals Share Their Secrets for Starting and Running a Research Business, 2003: http://www.supersearchers.com * One other title of interest from the Super Searcher series ( http://www.supersearchers.com ), or one of the following: The Accidental Library Manager, The Accidental Systems Librarian, or The Accidental Webmaster: http://books.infotoday.com/books/index.shtml A few weeks into this semester, some students expressed trepidation about the idea of starting a business and writing a business plan. After one month of discussion and reading Sabroski's Super Searchers' Make It On Their Own, however, most have moved from fear to enthusiasm. We all know that establishing a business is not for everyone, but learning about the world of the independent information professional has started to electrify students, while nurturing awareness that many IIP skills have direct parallels to other types of jobs. Amelia Kassel, M.L.S., is president of MarketingBase, a firm specializing in market research, competitive intelligence, and worldwide business information since 1984. She combines an in-depth knowledge of information sources and electronic databases with expertise in business and marketing strategies. She is the author of Super Searchers on Wall Street: Top Investment Professionals Share Their Online Research Strategies, and teaches in the United States and abroad. Amelia offers an email-based training program for new information professionals and those wishing to expand their services at http://www.marketingbase.com/bio3.html . ======== *** Advance your library career: http://librarycareers.blogspot.com ======== What's Online? Recommended Resources "A Day in the Life of a Digital Librarian" by Alana Boyajian http://www.younglibrarian.net/articles/boyajian/dayinlifeofdiglib.html An account of duties at a 100% distance education university. "Job of a Lifetime" C&RL News column http://www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlissues/acrlrecruiting/recruitingprofes sion.htm OR http://makeashorterlink.com/?R26B3219A Not necessarily alternative careers, but spotlights librarians with unusual or interesting positions. Scroll down page for links to individual columns. "Librarians in the Information Age: Alternative Uses of MLS Degrees" by Darwin McGuire http://www.liscareer.com/mcguire_alternativecareers.htm A discussion of one librarian's hunt for alternative career possibilities. "Places an MLS Can Take You" by Linda K. Wallace http://www.ala.org/ala/hrdr/careersinlibraries/al_mls.pdf A 2002 American Libraries article highlighting a number of info pros with interesting careers. "Shifting Gears: Librarian to Management Analyst" by Pamela Newsome http://www.lisjobs.com/newsletter/archives/may01pnewsome.htm A librarian's job rotation experience, showing an alternative way to make a career change. "Taking the Independent Research Plunge" by Barbara Fritchman Thompson http://www.lisjobs.com/newsletter/archives/sept03bthompson.htm Chronicles a librarian's move to independent researcher. ======== But I Want To Hold It In My Hand! Print Resources Shontz, Priscilla K., ed. The Librarian’s Career Guidebook. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2004. ISBN 0810850346, $40.00. Purchase from Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0810850346/librarisjobsearc/ A follow up to Shontz’s 2002 book, Jump Start Your Career in Library and Information Science, The Librarian’s Career Guidebook is a wonderful collection of resources and information for librarians in all stages of their work lives, from those just considering librarianship as a career to those well into the profession. This anthology contains sections on everything from types of librarianship, to making yourself shine during interviews, to overcoming stress and burnout, to finding ways to grow professionally. Written by working librarians, each section is informative and accessible, with an excellent list of resources at the end of many chapters. In addition to these resources, Shontz also offers a companion web site, LIScareer ( http://www/liscareer.com ), that addresses all aspects of librarian life. The Librarian’s Career Guidebook is a rich reference for anyone interested in the library field; I picture it becoming well-worn and loved on many bookshelves. Penny Scott (plscott@usfca.edu) is a Reference Librarian and Business Liaison at the Gleeson Library/Geschke Center, University of San Francisco. ======== Info Career Trends is copyright Lisjobs.com and Rachel Singer Gordon. Permission is granted to forward this newsletter in its entirety as long as the contents remain unchanged and this copyright message is included. For permission to reprint articles in this newsletter, contact the individual authors. If no author is listed, contact editor@lisjobs.com. 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