Please note: this is an anonymous response to an online survey; I do not have any way of contacting the respondent or verifying responses. Their answers may reflect good, bad, or middling job searching practices. I invite you to take what’s useful and leave the rest.
Your Demographics and Search Parameters
How long have you been job hunting?
√ Less than six months
Why are you job hunting?
√ Looking for more money
√ I want to work at a different type of library/institution
√ Looking for remote/virtual work (or at least hybrid)
√ I’m worried I will be laid off/let go/fired from my current position
Where do you look for open positions?
INALJ, LinkedIn
What position level are you looking for?
√ Requiring at least two years of experience
√ Supervisory
√ Clerk/Library Assistant
What type(s) of organization are you looking in?
√ Academic library
√ Library vendor/service provider
√ Special library
What part of the world are you in?
√ Midwestern US
What’s your region like?
√ Rural area
Are you willing/able to move for employment?
√ No
What are the top three things you’re looking for in a job?
Technical service opportunities, remote work if possible, academic work
How many jobs have you applied to during your current search? (Please indicate if it’s an estimate or exact)
Two
What steps, actions, or attributes are most important for employers to take to sell you on the job?
√ Pay well
√ Having (and describing) excellent benefits
√ Funding professional development
Do you expect to see the salary range listed in a job ad?
√ No (even if I might think it *should* be)
Other than not listing a salary range, are there other “red flags” that would prevent you from applying to a job?
Poor reputation, vague job description
The Process
How much time do you spend preparing an application packet?
1-2 hours
What are the steps you follow to prepare an application packet?
Tweak resume, cover letter, supplemental questions
How do you prefer to communicate with potential employers?
When would you like potential employers to contact you?
√ To acknowledge my application
√ To tell me if the search is at the interview stage, even if I have not been selected
√ Once the position has been filled, even if it’s not me
How long do you expect an organization’s application process to take, from the point you submit your documents to the point of either an offer or rejection?
A few weeks
How do you prepare for interviews?
Get to know the organization, practice answers from past interviews that may be relevant, prepare questions
What are your most hated interview questions, and why?
About personal strengths and weaknesses
During your current search, have you had any of the following experiences:
- Submitted an application and got no response √ Happened more than once
- Had an interview and never heard back √ Happened once
- Interviewed for a job where an internal candidate was eventually chosen √ Happened more than once
- Asked for an accommodation for a disability √ I don’t know
- Withdrawn an application before the offer stage √ I don’t know
- Turned down an offer √ I don’t know
If you’ve turned down an offer (or offers), why?
Compensation
What should employers do to make the hiring process better for job hunters?
Post across multiple job sites, open communication
You and Your Well-Being
How are you doing, generally?
√ I’m somewhat depressed
√ Not out of money yet, but worried
√ I feel alone in my search
What are your job search self-care strategies?
Limit time spent applying each day within reason
Do you have any advice or words of support you’d like to share with other job hunters, is there anything you’d like to say to employers, or is there anything else you’d like to say about job hunting?
Keep trying and something will eventually come
Job Hunting Post Graduate School
If you have an MLIS or other graduate level degree in a LIS field, what year did you graduate? (Or what year do you anticipate graduating?)
2010
When did you start your first job search for a “professional” position (or other position that utilized your degree)?
√ More than six months before graduating with my MLIS/other LIS degree
In relation to your graduation, when did you find your first “professional” position?
√ More than three years after graduating
What kind of work was your first post-graduation professional position?
√ Full Time
Did you get support from your library school for your first job hunt (and/or any subsequent ones)?
Very little
Hiring Librarians 
