Tag Archives: statistics

by | October 3, 2015 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: 576 Job hunters

It’s Staturday!

It’s time for our annualish check-in with our surveys.  This week: the survey with the most respondents, which I affectionately call Job Hunter’s Revenge.

Last time we checked in, we had 543 responses.  Now we’ve got 576!  

Results!

Do you expect to see salary range listed in a job ad?

salary


Yes, and it’s a red flag when it’s not 223    38.8%
Only for certain kinds of employers 80    13.9%
No (even if I might think it *should* be) 202    35.1%
Other 63    11%

Have you ever stretched the truth, exaggerated, or lied on your resume, or at some other point during the hiring process?

liars

Yes              59         10.3%
No             446         77.6%
Other               60         10.4%

When would you like employers to contact you?

when to communicate


To acknowledge my application    429    74.9%
To tell me if I have or have not been selected to move on to the interview stage    519    90.6%
To follow-up after an interview    373    65.1%
Once the position has been filled, even if it’s not me    511    89.2%
Other    69    12%

People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

How do you prefer to communicate with potential employers?

communication method


Phone    47    8.2%
Email    245    42.6%
Mail    1    0.2%
Phone for good news, email for bad news    238    41.4%
Other    39    6.8%

Which events during the interview/visit are most important to your assessment of the position (i.e. deciding if you want the job)?

important events


Tour of facility    394    70%
Being taken out to meal    18    3.2%
Meeting department members/potential co-workers    521    92.5%
Meeting with HR to talk about benefits/salary    217    38.5%
Being able to present    73    13%
Other    127    22.6%

People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

Demographics

Are you currently employed, even if part time or in an unrelated field?

currently employed
Yes    464    80.7%
No    108    18.8%

Have you been hired in the last two months, even if part time or in an unrelated field?

hired last 2 mos

Yes    128    22.3%
No    438    76.2%

How long have you been job hunting (or if recently hired, how long did you look before that)?

length of search


Less than six months    184    32%
Six months to a year    156    27.1%
A year to 18 months    83    14.4%
More than 18 months    147    25.6%

What type(s) of organization are you looking in?

org type

Academic library    468    82.1%
Archives    196    34.4%
Library vendor/service provider    163    28.6%
Public library    382    67%
School library    92    16.1%
Special library    311    54.6%
Other    132    23.2%

People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

What position level are you looking for?

pos level

Entry level    382    67%
Requiring at least two years of experience    349    61.2%
Supervisory    150    26.3%
Department Head    81    14.2%
Senior Librarian    86    15.1%
Branch Manager    60    10.5%
Director/Dean    35    6.1%
Other    52    9.1%

People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

Where are you?

where 1


Australia/New Zealand    0    0%
Canada    22    3.8%
Midwestern US    150    26.1%
Northeastern US    170    29.6%
Southern US    104    18.1%
UK    1    0.2%
Western US    110    19.1%
Other    17    3%

Where are you?

where 2


Urban area    217    37.7%
City/Town    177    30.8%
Suburban area    116    20.2%
Rural area    54    9.4%
Other    9    1.6%

Are you willing/able to move for employment?

willing to move


No    155    27%
Yes, anywhere    209    36.4%
Other    204    35.5%

Would you like to include a short bio with your answers?

org type


No    439    76.3%
Yes    113    19.7%
Other    18    3.1%
This survey was co-written by Naomi House, of I Need A Library Job.  If you’re job hunting, INALJ is a wealth of information and it has job ads up the wazoo.  

Also if you’re job hunting, and haven’t taken the survey yet, please do!  If you’ve got friends, please share the link:

http://tinyurl.com/hiringlibJOBHUNTERsurvey

Finally, if you have questions, comments or concerns, we’d love to hear them.

You can either comment below, or email hiringlibrariansATgmail.

3 Comments

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by | December 6, 2014 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: 543 Job hunters

It’s Staturday!

Have you been enjoying the follow ups with individual job hunters?  

Last time we checked in, we had 428 responses.  Now we’ve got 543!  Here are the year-end

Results!

(As always, please forgive the cut off labels on the charts – this is how Google forms deals with verbosity)

 

Do you expect to see salary range listed in a job ad?


Yes, and it’s a red flag when it’s not 216   40%
Only for certain kinds of employers 73   13%
No (even if I might think it *should* be) 188   35%
Other 59   11%

 

Have you ever stretched the truth, exaggerated, or lied on your resume, or at some other point during the hiring process?


Yes 57   10%
No 420   77%
Other 56   10%

 

When would you like employers to contact you?


To acknowledge my application 405   75%
To tell me if I have or have not been selected to move on to the interview stage 489   90%
To follow-up after an interview 353   65%
Once the position has been filled, even if it’s not me 480   88%
Other 67   12%

 People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

How do you prefer to communicate with potential employers?

Phone 47 9%
Email 231 43%
Mail 1 0%
Phone for good news, email for bad news 222 41%
Other 37 7%

Which events during the interview/visit are most important to your assessment of the position (i.e. deciding if you want the job)?


Tour of facility 374 69%
Being taken out to meal 18 3%
Meeting department members/potential co-workers 491 90%
Meeting with HR to talk about benefits/salary 202 37%
Being able to present 68 13%
Other 121 22%

 People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

Demographics

Are you currently employed, even if part time or in an unrelated field?

Yes 438 81%
No 102 19%

Have you been hired in the last two months, even if part time or in an unrelated field?


Yes 123 23%
No 411 76%

 

How long have you been job hunting (or if recently hired, how long did you look before that)?


Less than six months 171 31%
Six months to a year 146 27%
A year to 18 months 82 15%
More than 18 months 139 26%

 

What type(s) of organization are you looking in?


Academic library 445 82%
Archives 188 35%
Library vendor/service provider 155 29%
Public library 361 66%
School library 90 17%
Special library 291 54%
Other 129 24%

 People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

What position level are you looking for?


Entry level 362   67%
Requiring at least two years of experience 326 60%
Supervisory 139 26%
Department Head 75 14%
Senior Librarian 82 15%
Branch Manager 57 10%
Director/Dean 33 6%
Other 49 9%

 People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

Where are you?


Australia/New Zealand 0 0%
Canada 19 3%
Midwestern US 146 27%
Northeastern US 154 28%
Southern US 100 18%
UK 1 0%
Western US 106 20%
Other 16 3%

 

Where are you?


Urban area 199    37%
City/Town 171 31%
Suburban area 111 20%
Rural area 53 10%
Other 7 1%

 

Are you willing/able to move for employment?


No 145 27%
Yes, anywhere 200 37%
Other 194 36%

 

Would you like to include a short bio with your answers?

No 415 76%
Yes 108 20%
Other 15 3%

Number of daily responses

This survey was co-written by Naomi House, of I Need A Library Job.  If you’re job hunting, INALJ is a wealth of information and it has job ads up the wazoo.  

Also if you’re job hunting, and haven’t taken the survey yet, please do!  If you’ve got friends, please share the link:

http://tinyurl.com/hiringlibJOBHUNTERsurvey

Finally, if you have questions, comments or concerns, we’d love to hear them.

You can either comment below, or email hiringlibrariansATgmail.

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by | February 9, 2013 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: More Secrets of Getting Hired (Coding in Process)

It’s Staturday!

Building on what went up last week, I looked a little more at the answers to the question:

What do you think is the secret to getting hired?

So far I’ve looked through the first 100 responses (we’re up to 389 total responses now, by the way).  I’m continuing to refine answer categories. Here’s what I have so far:

(what will eventually be) Results!

Networking/Who you Know: 37
Reputation, online or otherwise: 2
Presenting yourself well: 28
Positivity, enthusiasm, and/or passion: 7
Knowledge: 9
Experience: 6
Fit: 11
Luck: 18
Being flexible, thinking outside the box: 5
Persistence, never giving up: 10
I don’t know, you tell me: 21
Research: 7 (such a librarian answer)
The secret is that there is no secret: 3
Youth/Other demographic factor: 4
Not being me: 3

Other: 21

Here is one of the answers I’ve got coded as “other”

Humility. I think employers are scared by people who think they know it all. And no matter how much previous experience or training a candidate has, there will still be a period of adjustment after the hire. The key is admitting that you’re not perfect and projecting enthusiasm, determination, and positivity toward any potential obstacles.

I marked this one for Presenting yourself well and Positivity, enthusiasm, and/or passion, but “humility” is a separate secret I think, so I’ve marked it for other as well.  What do you think?

If you’d like to take a look at the raw data – all the answers to this question – it’s attached here:

Secret to Getting Hired_385

If you decide to do anything with it (and you are welcome to), I ask for three things: make your work freely and publicly available, email me at hiringlibrariansATgmail to let me know what you’ve done, and then link back to this site.

If you’re job hunting, and haven’t taken the survey yet, please do!  If you’ve got friends, please share the link:

http://tinyurl.com/hiringlibJOBHUNTERsurvey

This survey was co-written by Naomi House, of I Need A Library Job.  If you’re job hunting, INALJ is a wealth of information and it has job ads up the wazoo.  

You can either comment below, or email hiringlibrariansATgmail.

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by | February 2, 2013 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: The Secret to Getting Hired (Coding in Process)

It’s Staturday!

I’ve started taking a look at the answers to the question:

What do you think is the secret to getting hired?

So far I’ve looked through the first 50 responses, in an attempt to build answer categories (we’re up to 385 total responses now, by the way).  Here’s what I have so far:

(what will eventually be) Results!

Networking/Who you Know: 19
Reputation, online or otherwise: 2
Presenting yourself well: 17
Positivity, enthusiasm, and/or passion: 6 
Knowledge: 4
Experience: 2
Fit: 5
Luck: 6
Being flexible, thinking outside the box: 4
Persisitence, never giving up: 9
I don’t know, you tell me: 7
Research: 5 (such a librarian answer)
The secret is that there is no secret: 2
Youth/Other demographic factor: 2
Not being me: 2

Thoughts and observations are very welcome – please comment away!

If you’d like to take a look at the raw data – all the answers to this question – it’s attached here:

Secret to Getting Hired_385

If you decide to do anything with it (and you are welcome to), I ask for three things: make your work freely and publicly available, email me at hiringlibrariansATgmail to let me know what you’ve done, and then link back to this site.

If you’re job hunting, and haven’t taken the survey yet, please do!  If you’ve got friends, please share the link:

http://tinyurl.com/hiringlibJOBHUNTERsurvey

This survey was co-written by Naomi House, of I Need A Library Job.  If you’re job hunting, INALJ is a wealth of information and it has job ads up the wazoo.  

You can either comment below, or email hiringlibrariansATgmail.

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by | January 26, 2013 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: Where We Look (Coding in Process)

It’s Staturday!

So I’ve started taking a look at the answers to the question:

Where do you look for open positions? (e.g. ALA Joblist, professional listserv, LinkedIn)

In total, 377 respondents named 1729 venues.  That’s not 1729 distinct venues, that’s just taking each place a person named and counting it.  And a lot of people named very general things like:

professional listservs

and

the standard boards

Right now I’m in the process of coding.  By that I mean, I’m deciding when answers are distinct from each other, and when they can be grouped together.

We left this “Where do you look?” question open ended, which means that there are a lot of variant terms. It would have been simpler to have made this a multiple choice question, and to have restricted the answers to a particular controlled vocabulary.  However, this restriction would have also reduced the range and detail of answers.

I’ve consolidated some answers together already (for example I Need a Library Job and INALJ).  But many are still distinct, either because they may not be the same thing and I am still deciding whether or not to combine, or because I thought the answer was funny.

I’d like to share with you this week a little bit of commonalities and variation included in the:

Results!

ALA 197

ALA 26
ALA JobLIST 168
ALA listserv/listservs 3

Chronicle 24

Chronicle 2
Chronicle for Higher Education 3
Chronicle of Higher Ed 7
Chronicle of Higher Ed job lists 1
Chronicle of Higher Education 10
Chronicle.com 1

Higher Ed 31

Higher Ed 1
Higher Ed Jobs 29
Highereducattionjobs 1

Inside Higher Education/Inside Higher Ed 2

Etc. 21

etc 20
etc., etc. 1

I Need a Library Job? 138

INAJ 1
INALJ 128
INALJ (Newsletter) 1
INALJ Blog 1
INALJ digest 3
INALJ! 1
INLG 1
INLJ 2

NJLA 8

NJLA 5
NJLA job postings 1
NJLA Listservs 1
NJLA website 1

Indeed 83

Indeed 35
Indeed (app) 1
Indeed (RSS for library positions in my area and areas nearby) 1
Indeed.ca 1
Indeed.co.uk 1
indeed.com 42
Indeed.com (email alerts) 1
Indeed.com internet job search engine 1

LIBGIG 32

Libgib 1
LibGig 29
LibGIG (on twitter) 1
LibGig (RSS) 1

LIBJOBS 6

Libjobs 3
libjobs (RSS feed) 1
LIBJOBS email list 1
LibJobs listserv 1

LIS JOBS 28

LIS Jobs 24
LisJobs.com (RSS/Combined Library Job Listing) 3
LIS-JOBS-LIST 1

LinkedIn 81

Linked in 78
LinkedIn (INALJ) 1
LinkedIn groups 1
LinkedIn’s RSS 1

METRO 14

METRO 3
Metro (ny) joblist. 1
METRO job bank 1
Metro Job Postings 1
METRO Jobs 1
METRO library council job board 1
METRO NY Roundtable 1
Metro.org 2
MetroLibraries.net for job opportunities in Minnesota (where I live) 1
Metromode 1
Metronet Jobline (specifically for MN library jobs) 1

MLA 6

MLA 2
MLA Jobline & Careers 1
MLA joblist 1
MLA jobs 1
MLA website 1

Newspapers 11

Newspapers – Print Classifieds 1
Newspapers – washingtonpost.com 1
newspapers/local papers 9

Listservs 121

Professional listservs 116
Professional listservs – Cataloging-related listservs 1
professional listservs – lotsa listservs 1
Professional listservs – Various listservs 1
professional listservs (and over two dozen) 1
Professional listservs (emails) 1

RAILS 15

RAILS (Reaching Across Illinois Library System) 9
RAILS (RSS) 1
RAILS Job Board 4
RAILS website 1

SAA 13

SAA 5
SAA Career Center 2
SAA job board 1
SAA Job Center 1
SAA job list 1
SAA listserv 3

SLA 36

SLA career center 1
SLA Job Board, 1
SLA job list 8
SLA Jobline. 1
SLA listserv 2
SLA local chapters listservs 1
SLA locals joblists 1
SLA Michigan Chapter Job Listing 1
SLA NY-NJ job blog 1
SLA/Special Libraries Association 16
sla-dbf 1
SLA-ny 2

This is just a small portion of all the answers! What do you think?  Here are some of my questions:

  • Are Job Lists, Job Boards, and Job Lines all the same thing?
  • Should I try to make distinctions for format – RSS v. email v. visiting the website?
  • Are INAJ, INLG and INLJ really typos for INALJ?  Are any of the NJLAs typos for INALJ or vicey versy?
  • Should I lump all the ALAs in together?
  • How do I decide which METRO comes from which state?
  • Are all those Higher Education sites distinct, and are all the answers assigned to the right places?

Thoughts and observations are very welcome – please comment away!

If you’d like to take a look at the raw data – all the answers to this question – it’s attached here:

Data for 377 places

If you decide to do anything with it (and you are welcome to), I ask for three things: make your work freely and publicly available, email me at hiringlibrariansATgmail to let me know what you’ve done, and then link back to this site.

If you’re job hunting, and haven’t taken the survey yet, please do!  If you’ve got friends, please share the link:

http://tinyurl.com/hiringlibJOBHUNTERsurvey

This survey was co-written by Naomi House, of I Need A Library Job.  If you’re job hunting, INALJ is a wealth of information and it has job ads up the wazoo.  

You can either comment below, or email hiringlibrariansATgmail.

Leave a comment

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by | January 19, 2013 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: 360 Job hunters

It’s Staturday!

Have you been enjoying reading the individual responses from job hunters?  

Last time we checked in, we had 103 responses.  Now we’ve got 360!  Here’s the full circle of:

Results!

(Please again forgive the cut off labels on the charts – this is how Google forms deals with verbosity)

 

Do you expect to see salary range listed in a job ad?

job ad 360

Yes, and it’s a red flag when it’s not      150    42%
Only for certain kinds of employers        47    13%
No (even if I might think it *should* be)      122    34%
Other        41    11%

Have you ever stretched the truth, exaggerated, or lied on your resume, or at some other point during the hiring process?

Lied 360

Yes               45         13%
No             273         76%
Other               42         12%

When would you like employers to contact you?

contact 360

To acknowledge my application     261    73%
To tell me if I have or have not been selected to move on to the interview stage     322    90%
To follow-up after an interview     237    66%
Once the position has been filled, even if it’s not me     316    88%
Other       42    12%
People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

How do you prefer to communicate with potential employers?

Communicate 360

Phone        38    11%
Email      158    44%
Mail         1      0%
Phone for good news, email for bad news      134    37%
Other        29      8%

Which events during the interview/visit are most important to your assessment of the position (i.e. deciding if you want the job)?

Events 360

Tour of facility      235    67%
Being taken out to meal        12     3%
Meeting department members/potential co-workers      321    91%
Meeting with HR to talk about benefits/salary      137    39%
Being able to present        51    15%
Other        65    19%
People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

Demographics

Are you currently employed, even if part time or in an unrelated field?

currently employed 360
Yes        293       81%
No          65       18%

Have you been hired in the last two months, even if part time or in an unrelated field?

recent hire 360

Yes        93     26%
No      264     73%

How long have you been job hunting (or if recently hired, how long did you look before that)?

job hunt length 360

Less than six months       99    28%
Six months to a year     102    28%
A year to 18 months       55    15%
More than 18 months     100    28%

What type(s) of organization are you looking in?

org type 360

Academic library       292    82%
Archives       119    33%
Library vendor/service provider       110    31%
Public library       241    68%
School library        73    20%
Special library       197    55%
Other        72    20%
People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

What position level are you looking for?

Position Level 360

Entry level      233    65%
Requiring at least two years of experience      206    58%
Supervisory       86    24%
Department Head       50    14%
Senior Librarian       63    18%
Branch Manager       39    11%
Director/Dean       24     7%
Other       36    10%
People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

Where are you?

Country 360

Australia/New Zealand          0      0%
Canada          8      2%
Midwestern US      107    30%
Northeastern US      107    30%
Southern US        70    19%
UK          1      0%
Western US        60    17%
Other          7      2%

Where are you?

where 360

Urban area       124     34%
City/Town       113     31%
Suburban area         83     23%
Rural area         35     10%
Other           5       1%

Are you willing/able to move for employment?

move 360

No       106    29%
Yes, anywhere       135    38%
Other       119    33%

Would you like to include a short bio with your answers?

bio 360

No       276    77%
Yes         70    19%
Other         14      4%

Number of daily responses

No Responses 360

This survey was co-written by Naomi House, of I Need A Library Job.  If you’re job hunting, INALJ is a wealth of information and it has job ads up the wazoo.  

Also if you’re job hunting, and haven’t taken the survey yet, please do!  If you’ve got friends, please share the link:

http://tinyurl.com/hiringlibJOBHUNTERsurvey

Finally, if you have questions, comments or concerns, we’d love to hear them.

You can either comment below, or email hiringlibrariansATgmail.

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by | October 4, 2012 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: 160 Responses to the Original Survey

The last time we visited summary statistics for the original survey was during the ides of March!  At that time, there were 101 responses, which had been collected in a little under a month.  After that initial response to the launch, responses had dwindled down to a trickle (which was fine, because I was trying to get those original ones posted).  Now the new survey has caused a spike, and there has been enough growth to give you some new stats and graphs.  Thank you, people who hire librarians!

Distribution of Responses Over Time

These stats are for responses collected between February 24 and September 20th, 2012. The charts and tables in this post are automatically generated by the Google Form.  So there are a few problems, including the truncation of labels on the charts.

Please remember the limitations of this project, which is more for FUN than for SCIENCE. The survey responses are a result of non-probability sampling so it is inappropriate to assume that the responses are representative of the entire population of library hiring managers, etc. I have no way of knowing that the people who responded actually have anything to do with library hiring – they are mostly anonymous, even to me.

As with most career sites, I think job hunters should completely disregard anything stated here when appropriate.

That being said, here are the aggregated:

RESULTS!

Applications

How many pages should a cover letter be?

 

 

Only one! 80 50%
Two is ok, but no more 41 26%
As many as it takes, but shorter is better 27 17%
As many as it takes, I love reading 1 1%
Other 11 7%

How many pages should a resume/CV be?

Only one! 5 3%
Two is ok, but no more 43 27%
As many as it takes, but keep it short and sweet 79 49%
As many as it takes, I want to look at every accomplishment 15 9%
Other 18 11%

Do you have a preferred format for application documents?

.doc 3 2%
.docx 2 1%
.pdf 48 30%
No preference, as long as I can open it 95 59%
Other 12 8%

Should a resume/CV have an Objective statement?

Yes 11 7%
No 82 51%
I don’t care 54 34%
Other 13 8%

If applications are emailed, how should the cover letter be submitted?

In the body of the email only 3 2%
As an attachment only 63 39%
Both as an attachment and in the body of the email 28 18%
I don’t care 49 31%
Other 17 11%

Demographics

What library/institution type do you hire for?

Academic library 72 45%
Public library 47 29%
School library 2 1%
Special library 15 9%
Archives 6 4%
Other 18 11%

How many staff members are in your library?

0-10 43 27%
10-50 60 38%
50-100 22 14%
100-200 19 12%
200+ 14 9%

Are you a librarian?

Yes 146 91%
No 6 4%
It’s complicated 6 4%

Are you now or have you ever been:

a hiring manager (you are hiring people that you will directly or indirectly supervise) 137 87%
a member of a hiring committee 127 80%
human resources 7 4%
Other 6 4%

People may select more than one checkbox, so percentages may add up to more than 100%.

Thank you again to everyone who responded!

Dutch Women Voting for the First Time

 I’d love to hear your thoughts! Over the last six months, have you noticed any interesting commonalities among the longer interviews? Is there advice you agree or disagree with? Did anything particularly surprise you?  Please leave a comment.

Thank you for reading!

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by | April 26, 2012 · 8:17 am

Stats and Graphs: Stand Up and Be Counted

I must admit I’m a little low on ideas about what aspects of my data to explore in Stats and Graphs posts. At this point I only have four responses from archives and two from school libraries, so I feel it would be a little silly to look at just those responses. If you have any requests, please do let me know. In the mean time, I’m going to take minute to encourage you to participate in a few things where you can make your own voice heard.

First of all, you have just over ONE DAY LEFT to vote in the ALA elections. According to a post by Aaron Dobbs on the ALA Think Tank group, as of April 20th, only 18.22% of the membership completed their ballots (15.64% had completed their ballots with a week to go last year).  What abysmally low numbers!  But you can change those stats by voting,or by encouraging your colleagues to vote! If you want to look at what our two presidential candidates think about library hiring, Barbara Stripling and Gina Millsap both were gracious enough to take the survey and answer a few more questions. If you want to look at the results of a survey about last year’s low voter turnout, take a look at this post from Life in Oleg.

Second of all, are you one of my fellow 2011 library school graduates?  Have you taken the Library Journal Placements & Salaries Survey?  Here’s a blurb about it:

Did you graduate in 2011 from an ALA-accredited master’s degree program? Please consider participating in the annual Library Journal Salary & Placements survey. The purpose of the survey is to gather the statistics which gives an idea of how the field looks for those librarian and information specialists that are just entering the profession. This allows librarians and information specialists to see trends in employment and recruitment, as well as the strengths and weaknesses in the job market. It also allows schools of library and information science to be advocates for their graduating students. You can complete the survey by contacting your Master’s program office and lettubg them know you want to participate; or, if your school has chosen to not participate in the annual survey, you may contact Dr. Stephanie Maatta (es7746@wayne.edu) directly for information about accessing the survey.

This survey is huge, and Important People read it. Please help make sure the picture of what it’s like for new graduates is accurate.  Your data will most likely be used, among other things, by library school administrators to make decisions about how to train and support students, so you can really help out the profession and your colleagues by participating. I contacted Dr. Maatta to get this blurb and she was very gracious, so don’t be afraid to contact her for information or assistance with the survey.

Third of all, and finally, I wanted to share one of my favorite ways to kill time like a geek. Do you just like taking surveys?  Are you interested in participating in scientific research? The Social Psychology Network provides links to over 219 web-based experiments that welcome your input.

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by | April 19, 2012 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: Well, Isn’t That Special?

Here are the fun-with-Excel stats and graphs from our first 14 responses from special libraries.

If you would like to help build a more detailed picture of what hiring managers are really looking for, please go to www.hiringlibrarians.wordpress.com/participate

Applications

As many as it takes, but keep it short and sweet 9 64.3%
Other 1 7.1%
Two is ok, but no more 4 28.6%
 Total 14 100.0%

As many as it takes, but shorter is better 1 7.1%
Only one! 9 64.3%
Two is ok, but no more 4 28.6%
 Total 14 100.0%

.pdf 4 28.6%
Other 1 7.1%
No Answer 1 7.1%
No preference, as long as I can open it 8 57.1%
 Total 14 100.0%

I don’t care 7 50.0%
Other 2 14.3%
No 4 28.6%
No Answer 1 7.1%
 Total 14 100.0%

As an attachment only 4 28.6%
Both as an attachment and in the body of the email 3 21.4%
Other 1 7.1%
I don’t care 4 28.6%
No answer 2 14.3%
 Total 14 100.0%

Demographics

0-10 11 78.6%
10-50 2 14.3%
50-100 1 7.1%
 Total 14 100.0%

It’s complicated 2 14.3%
No 1 7.1%
Yes 11 78.6%
 Total 14 100.0%

a hiring manager 14 100.0%
a member of a hiring committee 10 71.4%

**Respondents could pick more than one response, so total is more than 14.

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I’d love to hear your thoughts! Have you noticed any interesting commonalities among the longer interviews? Is there advice you agree or disagree with? Did anything particularly surprise you? Are there questions you’d like to see added to the survey? Please leave a comment.

And thank you for reading!

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by | April 12, 2012 · 8:00 am

Stats and Graphs: 118 Perspectives on Experience

This week the stats and graphs post will be a little different, and perhaps somewhat silly.

Our discussions last week about the need for experience made me wonder about the surveys as a whole.  I went through the 118 I have collected and pulled out all the answers that include the word experience. If you don’ t like math, skip to the end where there’s a nice word cloud for you.

With 20 questions and 118 responses, there are 2,360 possible places for me to find the word “experience.”  I only found it in129 responses, which is 5.5% of total possible.

However, 6 of those questions deal with demographics and the question of anonymity, so those would not really be a place to find respondents talking about experience, so that reduces the total possible places by 708, leaving 1652 possible places.  Which raises experience mentions to 7.8%.

Of the remaining 14 questions, five more are multiple choice, dealing with formatting for resumes and cover letters.  One of these questions (dealing with resume length), does have a few write in responses about experience, so I will leave that in.  So that leaves 10 questions, 118 respondents, and 129 which include the word “experience.”  So, 10.9% of all the responses to individual questions contain the word “experience.”

The question that created the highest number of occurrences of the word experience was “What are the top three things you look for in a candidate?”, with 38 respondents mentioning “experience” (32.2%).

What does this signify?  Nothing much really, I just think math is fun.

And now, your word cloud, which includes the text of all of the responses to individual questions that contain the word “experience”, minus the common words like “the”.

Experience Word Cloud

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