Director’s Thoughts – 10/25/24

Today I want to talk about different types of librarianship or as I put it in my notes, beyond public libraries. Librarians become librarians through a diverse set of means and backgrounds. I’m someone who had wanted to be a librarian since I was seven years old. But for many other people, librarianship is often a second or third career. And there are a lot of avenues for librarians to wander down in a large variety of fields.

As you’ll see, to be considered an “official” librarian, you are required to earn a Master’s Degree in Library & Information Science (MLIS). But, most positions may require you to have even more education or a certificate in a specific field. Personally, as a director, I have a MLIS and I also have a Master’s Degree in Public Administration (MPA). Think, MBA but for government/non-profit entities.

Academic

Academic librarians, not to be confused with school librarians typically refer to university and college libraries where most librarians are required to have a Master’s Degree in Librarian & Information Science as well as a Master’s Degree in another field of focus. Typically that second degree is in a subject speciality, especially for larger universities that have multiple specialty libraries.

Archivist

Archivists focus is the management and maintenance of historical material. You’ll often find these librarians with education in museum studies and library science. I had seriously considered archival work at one point in my career as I love history and almost minored in art history in college. But, I was concerned about finding a job out of graduate school, so I passed on archival work.

School

School librarians typically refer to K-12 institutions and are sometimes referred to as Media Specialists. These librarians are often required to also have a teaching certificate as part of the job is teaching classes as well as running the school library.

Special

There are a wide variety of special librarians in almost every sector. Let me share just a few with you. You can find librarianship in almost any field – music, maps, theater, art, film, the science, copyright and patents, and many others.

Corporate

Corporate librarians focus on managing the information of an organization. Whether a corporation requires specific access to research and databases or has interest in patents, a librarian can help employees access information.

Government

This was a field that I was very interested in during graduate school. I had even applied to work for the CIA as a librarian. Unfortunately, I didn’t make it, but can you imagine the amount of information that government agencies have to organize? Who better than a librarian to help out!

Law

Law librarians often have background in law or might even have a law degree, but similarly to other special librarians, law librarians are required to research information and case law for cases that their firm is pursuing.

Medical

Medical librarians are pretty self-explanatory, they work in the medical field doing research and providing access to information for both medical professionals and patients. I don’t think it’s necessarily the right position for me, but I can see how providing information to patients in a way they can understand complex terminology would be very rewarding as a career.

So Why Public Libraries?

I grew up in my public library in my hometown. I love connecting with my community and being able to be a positive change agent. I’ve been in my library for 16 years now and have seen kids grow up and graduate, have seen my little toddlers from storytime reach high school, and feel like I’m making positive impact on the community that I also live in.

Librarianship isn’t always easy, it’s a job that requires a lot of education without fair compensation in most cases. And public librarians have to put up with a lot – budget cuts, staffing shortages, and more. Plus, when you work in any field with the public, you never know what kind of day you’re going to have. Thankfully, the positives outweigh the negatives for me and I enjoy the library field! I can’t image what I’d like to do more than what I’m already doing now.