I’m so grateful to the authors on this list, who took the time to work with me to create a post that shared their recent research into LIS careers and hiring. This list is in order of appearance on Hiring Librarians, as part of the Researcher’s Corner series, from most recent to the very first.
One of Us: Social Performance in Academic Library Hiring
Arch and Gilman highlight the ways in which meals and other unstructured social activities create opportunities for unexamined bias to contaminate search processes, and provide recommendations for rethinking and retooling.
Arch, X., & Gilman, I. (2021). “One of Us: Social Performance in Academic Library Hiring.” In Proceedings of the 2021 Association of College and Research Libraries Conference. https://alair.ala.org/handle/11213/17561
Power, positionality, and privilege: a study of academic librarian job postings
The authors describe their research into Data professionals’ job postings and highlight concrete steps that libraries can take to create hiring practices that support increased diversity in our profession. The piece draws from their 2020 article focused on Data professionals, and an additional 2022 article by Thielen (co-authored by Wanda Marsolek) focusing on Engineering librarians’ job postings.
Thielen, J., & Neeser, A. (2020). Making Job Postings More Equitable: Evidence Based Recommendations from an Analysis of Data Professionals Job Postings Between 2013-2018. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, 15(3), 103–156. https://doi.org/10.18438/eblip29674
Thielen, J. & Marsolek, W. (2022). Taking a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility Lens to Engineering Librarian Job Postings: Recommendations from an Analysis of Postings from 2018 and 2019. Journal of eScience Librarianship, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.7191/jeslib.2022.1212
Cataloging Managers – What Do They Do Exactly?
The authors share their analysis of job ads for Cataloging Managers, comparing their findings with a 2008 study. They not only provide bulleted lists of the skills and qualifications that recur across ads, but analysis of how these requirements have changed over time.
Brannon, S., Sassen, C., & Yanowski, K. (2022). Roles and Responsibilities of Cataloging Managers: An Updated Study of Job Advertisements. Technical Services Quarterly, 39(1), 17-36. DOI: 10.1080/07317131.2021.2011144
At the Intersection of Autism and Libraries
Discussion of research into the work and hiring experiences of autistic librarians. “In my mind, if more hiring managers and supervisors were aware of some of the issues, practices may improve for autistic librarians. Even just having an understanding that there is neurodiversity within the field is so important; so often we turn outward, and think of services for neurodivergent patrons, when we should also be thinking of inclusive practices for our own staff.”
Anderson, A. (2021a). Exploring the workforce experiences of autistic librarians through accessible and participatory approaches. Library & Information Science Research, 43(2). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lisr.2021.101088
Anderson, A. (2021b). Job Seeking and Daily Workforce Experiences of Autistic Librarians. The International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion, 5(3), 38-63. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48644446
Computer Programming for Librarians
“Learn to code” is ubiquitous advice for library workers. But what language? Brighid Gonzales studied a decade’s worth of library job applications to find which programming language(s) are most desired by libraries. Aspiring systems librarians, this is the post for you!
Gonzales, B. M. (2019). Computer programming for librarians: A study of job postings for library technologists. Journal of Web Librarianship, 13(1), 20-36. https://doi.org/10.1080/19322909.2018.1534635.
Navigating the Library Interview Process with Disabilities
Gail Betz interviewed 40 academic librarians with disabilities about their interviewing experiences. She describes common strategies deployed in three categories: Interview day structure, Intrapersonal coping methods, and Interpersonal coping methods.
Betz, G. (2022). Navigating the academic hiring process with disabilities. In the Library with the Lead Pipe. https://www.inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2022/hiring-with-disabilities/
Job Ads and Academic Standards and Proficiencies
Melissa Gold and Meg Grotti look at the relationship between the skills we have determined are essential to librarianship via written standards, and the skills that are sought in job ads.
Gold, M. L. & Grotti, M. G. (2013). Do job advertisements reflect ACRL’s standards for proficiencies for instruction librarians and coordinators?: A content analysis. Journal Of Academic Librarianship, 39(6), 558-565. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2013.05.013
Education and Training of Access Services Librarians
Michael Krasulski looks at how a Head of Access services might gain the skills necessary to the position.
Krasulski, M. (2014). “Where do they come from, and how are they trained?” Professional education and training of access services librarians in academic libraries. Journal of Access Services, 11(1), 14-29. https://doi.org/10.1080/15367967.2014.867728
Comparing Reference Service in Academic and Public Libraries
What skills do you need to be a good reference librarian? Laura Saunders and Mary Wilkins Jordan uncover similarities between what public and academic libraries want.
Saunders, L. & Jordan, M. Significantly different? Reference services competencies in public and academic libraries. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 52(3), 216–23. https://journals.ala.org/index.php/rusq/article/view/3306/3510
Who’s Retiring From Library Work, and Who Isn’t ?
Eric C. Shoaf takes a deeper look at what exactly is happening with those boomer librarians, what this means for recent graduates, and how it affects the profession as a whole.
Shoaf, E. & Flowers, N. Library worker retirement plans: A large survey reveals new findings. Library Leadership & Management, 27(4). https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=lib_pubs
Tenure and Promotion Experiences of Academic Librarians of Color
Ione Damesco and Dracine Hodges report on their survey study of academic librarians of color. They provide a clear description of some of the obstacles and challenges for academic librarians of color, and recommend solutions.
Damasco, Ione & Dracine Hodges. Tenure and promotion experiences of academic librarians of color. College & Research Libraries, 73(3). 279-301. https://doi.org/10.5860/crl-244
Experiences that Influence the Outcome of Recent Grads’ Academic Library Job Searches
Ashley Rosener, Lindy Scripps-Hoekstra, and Max Eckard report four experiences that increase the likelihood of a new graduate finding an academic job.
Eckard, M., Rosener, A. & Scripps-Hoekstra, L. Factors that increase the probability of a successful academic library job search, The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 40(2). 107-115. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2014.02.001.
Tenure and Promotion in Libraries, Part 2 – Resource List
Lori Smith and Penny Hecker provide a resource list for those interested in learning more about tenure and promotion in academic libraries.
Tenure and Promotion in Libraries, Part I – Louisiana Libraries
Lori Smith and Penny Hecker describe criteria used by Louisiana libraries to determine if a librarian will get tenure, and include their personal experiences. This is an informal account of research published as:
Smith, L. & Hecker, P. (2012). Tenure and promotion: Criteria and procedures used by University of Louisiana System Libraries. Codex: Journal of the Louisiana Chapter of the ACRL (2)2. http://journal.acrlla.org/index.php/codex/article/view/71.
What Skills and Knowledge do Today’s Employers Seek?
Dr. Linda Main describes the results of research conducted by SJSU, detailing emerging job trends and providing tips for job hunters to keep on top of these trends. More information is contained in the report:
San Jose State University School of Library and Information Science. (2013). Emerging Career Trends for Information Professionals: A Snapshot of Job Titles. https://slisweb.sjsu.edu/about-slis/publications/emerging-career-trends-information-professionals-snapshot-job-titles
New Academic Librarians’ Perceptions of the Profession
Laura Sare and Stephen Bales detail some of the aspects that new librarians find satisfying and dissatisfying in their first jobs. More aspects are described at:
Sare, L., Bales, S. & Neville, B. (2012). New academic librarians and their perceptions of the profession. portal: Libraries and the Academy (12)2. 179-203. 10.1353/pla.2012.0017
What Not to Do During the Interview
Melissa Laning and Emily Stenberg analyzed 36 essays detailing personal job hunting experiences (all found in The Chronicle of Higher Education between 2007-2011), and came up with three common interview errors.
Laning, M. & Stenberg, E. (2012). “What not to do during the interview.” This slideshow could not be started. Try refreshing the page or viewing it in another browser.
Hiring Librarians 