This post originally appeared on February 10, 2013. I will post a year two follow-up with Ryan in just a few moments.
Ryan Dreier is currently the Volunteer Director at The Salvation Army of Brown County, where over 3,000 volunteers have logged at least one hour of service in 2012! He also works at FedEx Office as a “Generalist.” A librarian in the making, Mr. Dreier will finish his MLIS at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee this year. He has been job hunting for a year to 18 months in academic and public libraries, at the entry level. Of his internship/volunteering experience, he says:
Graduating by the end of summer, have done some volunteer work, no formal internship as I work two jobs to put myself through school without debt
He is in a city/town, in the Midwestern US, and is willing to move within an eight hour drive from home. You can follow him on Twitter @ryonlibraryon. Ryan also says:
Green Bay, WI–GO PACKERS!!!!
What are the top three things you’re looking for in a job?
An opportunity to learn and grow
A position to use my experiences to grow programs
The opportunity to serve the community and share and disseminate information
Where do you look for open positions?
Do you expect to see salary range listed in a job ad?
√ Yes, and it’s a red flag when it’s not
What’s your routine for preparing an application packet? How much time do you spend on it?
I usually include my resume, transcript, references, cover letter, and that’s on top of the job application requested by the potential employer
Have you ever stretched the truth, exaggerated, or lied on your resume, or at some other point during the hiring process?
√ Other: Sometimes I feel like its a matter of interpretation on skill assessment surveys
When would you like employers to contact you?
√ To tell me if I have or have not been selected to move on to the interview stage
How do you prefer to communicate with potential employers?
√ Phone for good news, email for bad news
Which events during the interview/visit are most important to your assessment of the position (i.e. deciding if you want the job)?
√ Tour of facility
√ Other: Commutation of expectations and vision of that specific library
What do you think employers should do to get the best candidates to apply?
Appeal to library schools, and post openings
What should employers do to make the hiring process less painful?
Provide feedback on what you could do to improve when requested
What do you think is the secret to getting hired?
I think the secret is that you have to know someone or that full time positions are being filled by paraprofessionals or professionals that are on staff but only working part time, leaving little room to get in.
This survey was co-authored by Naomi House from I Need A Library Job – Do you need one? Check it out!
Hiring Librarians 