This post originally appeared on December 18, 2013. A year two follow up with Mr. Wang will post shortly.
Raymond Wang took the Job Hunter’s survey on February 27, 2013. His responses appeared as This Should Be a Profession That Cares and Has Empathy, Not a Profession That Reinforces a “Dog Eat Dog World.”
Your Background and Situation
How long has it been since you got your library degree?
3 years
How many years of library work experience do you have?
2 years part time off and on
How many years of work experience outside of libraries do you have?
2 years as a middle school math teacher
How old are you?
33
What’s your current work situation?
driving for a private car service ( Uber) and freelance tutor
Are you volunteering anywhere?
Not right now, I have in the past.
Your Job Hunt
How long have you been job hunting at this point?
over 2 + years
What kinds of jobs are you currently applying for?
entry level librarian position
Approximately how many positions have you applied to?
50 +
Approximately how many interviews have you gone on?
10+
How do you prepare for interviews?
look over the job description, pull some sample interview questions from a website or commonly asked interview questions for librarians. Write the responses out and rehearse them with a friend or mentor.
Have you traveled for interviews? If so, who paid?
Yes, I have paid all expenses
Have you declined any offers?
Yes I have declined interview offers, not job offers.
What do you think is the biggest obstacle in your job hunt? How are you working to overcome it?
The interview process, getting the interview, and then delivering your responses perfectly. Some of the interviewers are stone faced and almost robotic. It makes you feel even more anxious, so you have to just smile and keep smiling even if they don’t smile back.
Have there been any major changes in your job hunting strategy? Are you doing anything differently than from when we last heard from you?
I got a mentor to look over my application before I submit, resume, cover letter, and answers to supplemental responses Also, I try to do a mock interview practice before the real thing.
State of the Job Market
Has job hunting been a positive or negative experience, for the most part?
pretty negative because I was never prepared to deal with such a competitive job market
Would you change your answer to “what’s the secret to getting hired”?
networking, timing, and answering the same old interview questions that make you stand out from the rest.
Anything else you want to tell us?
Thank you for letting us participate and I hope this will be useful to everyone in the library profession including (library employers)
If you took the Job Hunter’s Survey some time in the last year and are interested in doing a follow-up, even anonymously, please contact me at hiringlibrarians AT gmail.
Hiring Librarians 