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 librarians
This librarian works at a library with 0-10 staff members in an urban area in the Northeastern 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”?
Hirable meaning they met the minimum requirements.
How are applications evaluated, and by whom?
All applications come to me as the Head Librarian and I weed out the ones to present to the Director. We are a small for-profit college so there is no committee and corporate is involved in hiring.
What is the most common reason for disqualifying an applicant without an interview?
Not meeting the requirements such as having an MLIS, having the background or skills necessary.
Do you (or does your library) give candidates feedback about applications or interview performance?
√ Yes
What is the most important thing for a job hunter to do in order to improve his/her/their hirability?
Jon hunters should definitely keep their resume as short as possible but reflecting their skills. I’ve had 5 page resumes that tell me nothing about what they’re capable of doing. During interviews, show direct examples of how you would be able to complete the required task for the job. You can draw parallels to previous positions or just express how you would handle certain situations and why.
I want to hire someone who is
Adaptability
How many staff members are at your library/organization?
√ 0-10
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?
√ 1
Can you tell us how the number of permanent, full-time librarian positions at your workplace has changed over the past decade?
√ There are more 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
Is librarianship a dying profession?
√ No
Why or why not?
Librarianship is not simply a person who sits in a library and checks out books. Librarians are professionals with a set of skills relating to organization, management and data. These skills can be used in so many fields and are necessary for the advancement and organization of information in society. Statistics prove that information is replicating at an exponential rate and people with the minds to organize that information are essential. If we work to change how people see librarians, we will be able to show this modernized view of our profession.
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