The value in education according to area is what determines it as a dying profession.

This anonymous interview is with a public librarian who has been a hiring manager. This person hires the following types of LIS professionals:

Library Assistants, administration, supervising librarian

This librarian works at a library with 10-50 staff members in a suburban area in the Western US.

Approximately how many people applied for the last librarian (or other professional level) job at your workplace?

√ 25 or fewer

Approximately what percentage of those would you say were hirable?

√ 25% or less

And how would you define “hirable”?

Met the qualifications and interviewed well

How are applications evaluated, and by whom?

Library staff weed out those not meeting the criteria. Highest applicants are interviewed by outside committee first, then Library Staff.

What is the most common reason for disqualifying an applicant without an interview?

Not meeting minimum qualifications.

Do you (or does your library) give candidates feedback about applications or interview performance?

√ No

What is the most important thing for a job hunter to do in order to improve his/her/their hirability?

Accurate and up to date resume, honesty in the interview, good attitude, strong work ethic

I want to hire someone who is

optimistic

How many staff members are at your library/organization?

√ 10-50

How many permanent, full time librarian (or other professional level) jobs has your workplace posted in the last year?

√ Other: none

How many permanent, full time para-professional (or other non-professional level) jobs has your workplace posted in the last year?

√ Other: none

Can you tell us how the number of permanent, full-time librarian positions at your workplace has changed over the past decade?

√ There are fewer positions

Have any full-time librarian positions been replaced with part-time or hourly workers over the past decade?

√ Yes

Have any full-time librarian positions been replaced with para-professional workers over the past decade?

√ Yes

Does your workplace require experience for entry-level professional positions? If so, is it an official requirement or just what happens in practice?

Depends on the position. For shelving positions, experience is preferred, but not required. For entry level Library Clerk positions, officially the city prefers experience, but is not an official requirement. It just what happens in practice.

Is librarianship a dying profession?

√ Other: On the west coast it is less emphasized

Why or why not?

The value in education according to area is what determines it as a dying profession. In California, for example, education is less valued as a culture and as such, librarian positions are slim. Temporary or part time positions are often replaced with qualified candidates which results in those who are served by libraries suffering the consequences.

Do you hire librarians?  Take this survey: http://tinyurl.com/hiringlibjobmarketsurvey or take other Hiring Librarians surveys.

For some context, look at the most recent summary of responses.