This anonymous interview is with an academic librarian who has been a hiring manager and a member of a hiring or search committee. This person hires the following types of LIS professionals:
Academic/General Reference/Subject
This librarian works at a library with 200+ staff members in an urban area in the Midwestern US.
Approximately how many people applied for the last librarian (or other professional level) job at your workplace?
√ 25-75
Approximately what percentage of those would you say were hirable?
√ 26-50 %
And how would you define “hirable”?
Held requisite credentials and possessed the skills, experience, and cultural fit necessary to thrive in the role
How are applications evaluated, and by whom?
Recruiting reviews apps and resumes
Associate Dean of Library interviews with a panel of Deans
Dean (me) completes the final interview
What is the most common reason for disqualifying an applicant without an interview?
Educational experience disqualifies (no MLIS)
Do you (or does your library) give candidates feedback about applications or interview performance?
√ Other: When requested
What is the most important thing for a job hunter to do in order to improve his/her/their hirability?
Clean resume; read the job description and tailor interview responses and cover letter to the job; express interest in a long-term role
I want to hire someone who is
Passionate
How many staff members are at your library/organization?
√ 200+
How many permanent, full time librarian (or other professional level) jobs has your workplace posted in the last year?
√ 2
How many permanent, full time para-professional (or other non-professional level) jobs has your workplace posted in the last year?
√ Other: 0
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?
√ No
Have any full-time librarian positions been replaced with para-professional workers over the past decade?
√ No
Does your workplace require experience for entry-level professional positions? If so, is it an official requirement or just what happens in practice?
Yes, Office Requirement
Is librarianship a dying profession?
√ No
Why or why not?
Field is changing, but not dying. Folks need to think outside of traditional roles and be open to unique opportunities to maintain hire-ability.
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.
Hiring Librarians 