by Julie Watson, Head Editor, INALJ Pennsylvania updated by Naomi House on 4/10/14 Tweet-up with INALJ Are you following INALJ on Twitter? Well, you should be! It’s another great way to engage with the INALJ community. We tweet when we post new jobs and share the best articles from INALJ. We also link to great advice…
by Rebekah Kati, Head Editor, INALJ North Carolina What Do You Do When You Can’t Relocate For a Job? The most frequent piece of advice that I was given in library school was that I would need to relocate to find a job. “You’ll likely have to move to a place where you won’t want to…
by Gabrielle Spiers, Head Editor, INALJ Montana You Are Not A Good Fit For This Position Recently I got to be involved in hiring interns which was a very interesting experience partly because I love reading people’s resumes. I find what other people have done work-wise to be fascinating. Part of me wishes that I…
by Jill Olsen, Head Editor, INALJ Nevada My Friend Is Interested in Becoming a Librarian, Can You Talk to Them? I seem to be getting this question a lot lately so I thought I would put it out here and talk about my recommendations to someone who is thinking about becoming a Librarian. I’d love to…
by Alexandra Janvey, Head Editor, INALJ Iowa 6 Great Books on Writing One of my new years resolutions for 2013 was to begin writing seriously and I’ve followed through, with my work appearing in numerous publications in the past few months. To get into the proper mindset, I began devouring a slew of good books…
by Amanda Viana , Head Editor , INALJ Massachusetts . . . Founders’ Day : what library outreach can look like Every community has its own unique events that bring people together. In the town where I work, the Founders’ Day Picnic is one of those events. Organized by the town’s Recreation Department (all volunteers), Founders’…
by Scottie Kapel, Head Editor, INALJ Oregon Podcasts to make your commute bearable I had intended to write this post earlier in the summer in preparation for the height of vacation season, but time got away from me, and now here we are just a hop, skip, and a jump away from fall. Until the holiday…
by Tiffany Newton, Head Editor, INALJ Missouri How to apply for a job: resume and cover letter advice I’d assumed that anyone with a bachelor degree knows how to apply for jobs, but I was surprised by how many graduating students asked me for help at the reference desk at an academic library. Usually when…
by Diana La Femina, Head Editor, INALJ South Carolina Discovering Your Strengths I’m being hard on myself again. I’m at a perfectly good job, with wonderful coworkers and an environment that’s anything but stale. Problem is, this isn’t where I had envisioned myself a few years ago (or even one year ago, or six months ago).…
by Mary-Michelle Moore, Head Editor, INALJ Vermont Mapping out your library career – 3 great reads How to stay afloat in the academic library job pool edited by Teresa Y Neely So you want to work as an academic librarian but you’re not sure what the interview process will look like or what the search committee…
by Caitlin Moen, Head Editor , INALJ Louisiana Translating Your Resume Language Prior to and while attending grad school for my MLIS I worked for 3 ½ years at a church. This is a huge chunk of my work experience, yet, the religious nature of the position makes it a little tricky to speak to.…
by Sarah Parramore , Head Editor , INALJ Middle East / Arabian Gulf Spotlight on Libraries-Egypt What is it? The New Library of Alexandria (Bibliotheca Alexandrina) Where is it? On the Corniche in Alexandria, Egypt http://www.bibalex.org/Home/Default_EN.aspx Why should you visit? Because this library originated in around 200 BC!!! It should be like Mecca to librarians. The new…
by Matthew Tansek, Head Editor, INALJ Rhode Island Some Thoughts as a Novice Researcher at a New Job One thing that can be hard to do once you get settled into any new job, is find avenues of research. Perhaps those fresh from college, with professors words still ringing in their ears will jump onto…
by Sara Dixon, Head Editor, INALJ Kansas Prepping for the Job Interview For this blog post, I want to share some ways that I prepare for job interviews. I’m told that I prepare too much sometimes, but I just feel more comfortable the more that I prepare. The one thing I try to remember, and…
by Emily Guier, Head Editor, INALJ Wyoming INALJ Book Club I recently moved to a new town, and in doing so, left my established book club in Laramie. I’m going through book club withdrawal and have subsequently been brainstorming different book club scenarios I could create in my new town. That got me thinking about…
by Shayna Monnens, Head Editor, INALJ South Dakota Spotted the Perfect Job? So Did Your Friend – The SAME Perfect Job This is it. You are at the stage where you are looking at open positions. Your head is 100% in the game. You have scoured the job market. The market is plumb for the…
by Courtney Butler, Head Editor, INALJ Idaho Positively Pleasant While I have my share of awful, grumpy days (and I don’t think anyone would refer to me as one of those “always happy” people), I make a strong, concerted effort to always be a positive, optimistic force in the workplace. I do this for a…
by Ashley Crace, Head Editor, INALJ West Virginia What are your Weaknesses? When I practiced for job interviews, I used notecards with common interview questions, gathered from varied sources. I started doing this on recommendation from a friend and it worked well for me. I felt more prepared and articulate in the actual interview. One…
by Kristen Jaques, Head Editor, INALJ Maine What I Gained from Living and Working in a Small Town From the moment I relocated to Simmons College in Boston for library school, I took right to city life and imagined that from then on, I would always work and live in the city. When I graduated…
This interview is over 1 year old and may no longer be up to date or reflect the interviewee/interviewees’ positions by Sandra Hoyer, Head Editor, INALJ Washington Being Daring as a Librarian: Nadia Pazolis-Gabriel on Creating Opportunities for Oneself I had the pleasure of meeting Nadia Pazolis-Gabriel during a brief, but exciting, time volunteering with…
by Amanda May, Head Editor, INALJ North Dakota Job Searching Tips for Introverts If you are an introvert, like me, you may not be the biggest fan of social interactions. If I had to choose between a large group meeting and going to the dentist, I would probably choose to go to the dentist. Nonetheless,…
by Marlena Barber, Head Editor, INALJ Tennessee References upon Request When I was in undergrad, my advisor recommended adding “References upon Request” to the end of our resumes. In between that time and graduating with my MLIS, that common practice had changed. Internship and full time positions frequently come with online applications and ask for…
by Nicole Usiondek, Head Editor, INALJ Michigan Teamwork Not too long ago I wrote a blog on the seminar I attended that focused on work style preferences. The seminar was very insightful and was followed by a second seminar on effective teamwork strategies. In every work place scenario, teamwork comes into play some way or…
by Shelley Macon, Head Editor, INALJ Florida Rejected Two months ago I tentatively dipped my toe in the job market. I applied for a job. So, now it has been two months and I haven’t heard anything from the employer. No call. No email. Nothing. Now I know I shouldn’t take it personally. In fact, several…
by Alexis Stapp, Head Editor, INALJ Minnesota Best Regional Job sites As a seasoned job hunter, you probably have some key websites you check daily for jobs, and/or subscribe to RSS feeds and are on various listservs. INALJ is one of them, obviously!, but the ALA JobList makes the cut, too, I’m sure. Perhaps the…
by Yandee Vazquez, Head Editor, INALJ Texas Picking up a new language: Helpful tools for developing a new skill As an individual applying for jobs in Texas, one of the more common preferred skills I see in job descriptions is the ability to speak at least some Spanish. Other states along the border probably ask…
by Rebecca Crago, Head Editor, INALJ Virginia How to Deliver Great Customer Service: Lessons from an ALA Webinar As a newbie to public libraries, I was thrilled to participate in an ALA sponsored webinar on delivering great customer service a few weeks ago. While the session wasn’t taught by a librarian, the overall points discussed,…
Sarah Parramore, Head Editor, INALJ Middle East/Arabian Gulf Spotlight on Libraries-Thailand What is it? The Neilson Hays Library and Galleries www.neilsonhayslibrary.com Where is it? 195 Surawong Road, Bangkok, Thailand Why should you visit? This library houses one of the largest collection of English language materials in Thailand and features local artists in their domed…
by Kate Kosturski, Head Editor, INALJ New York State New Librarianship Master Class: What IS a Librarian? What is a Library? This month, I am participating in the Syracuse University iSchool’s New Librarianship Master Class. I’m just finishing up the first week of classes, which will set the precedent for the rest of the course.…
This interview is over 1 year old and may no longer be up to date or reflect the interviewee/interviewees’ positions by Rachael Altman, Head Editor, INALJ Alabama Meet Suzy Szasz Palmer, Dean of Greenwood Library at Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia I had the pleasure of meeting Suzy at the JobList Placement Center at ALA…
by Tiffany Newton, Head Editor, INALJ Missouri Why I became a librarian My interest in libraries started when I was very young. Some of my first memories are about me reading books (or at least looking at the pictures) at my local library. I still remember my library card number. We didn’t have actual cards,…
by Lisa Huntsha, Head Editor, INALJ Sweden Being an Advocate for the Profession Almost every time I meet a new person and they ask what I do for a living, I am met with the same confused face when I answer: “I’m an archivist.” Then there is a brief moment of awkward silence when I realize…
by Renee Holden, Head Editor, INALJ Nebraska Dystopian Future: YA Book Recommendations I have had a lot of teens come to the reference desk recently saying that they want to read something similar to the Hunger Games. When I ask them what they liked about the book they always say that they would love to…
by Duda Trickovic, Head Editor, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick Portable apps Portable Applications (http://portableapps.com/) is free app that lets you carry your favorite applications with you on an USB drive or Cloud drive, and use on any computer. For example, with the portable Firefox browser, you have all your settings and bookmarks with…
by Brad McNally, Head Editor, INALJ Ohio Defining Success There is something funny about the word successful – it is completely subjective. It is something everyone wants in life, but getting there is a source of a lot of frustration for many people. For some people, success is about having the most physical things: a…
by Claire Schmieder, Head Editor, INALJ New Jersey Adjusting the Sails: Managing Temporary Disruptions in My Job Search I have two elementary-aged sons, who, until a few weeks ago, were busy all day at school. Now, they are home for summer. Yikes! I was able to stay at home with them (for the most part)…
This interview is over 1 year old and may no longer be up to date or reflect the interviewee/interviewees’ positions Venus Bradley…Patient Resource Center Manager by Leigh Milligan, Head Editor, INALJ Wisconsin For the last year, I have been working with Venus as Lead Library Assistant in the Patient Resource Center at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital…
by Africa Hands, Head Editor, INALJ Kentucky Tips on Open Access Writing & Publishing Last month, I wrote about the 4 P’s of writing and publishing as described by Beth Evans during a NMRT webinar. For this month’s post, I continue the conversation this time looking at Maura Smale’s discussion open access publishing. Maura Smale,…
Jennifer Crutchfield, Head Editor, INALJ Connecticut My Top 5 historical places to visit in Hartford, CT It’s the time of year when many families are looking for exciting and educational places to visit. Because of this, I wanted to explore my top five places I love to visit in Hartford. The Connecticut Historical Society is…
by Caitlin Moen, Head Editor, INALJ Louisiana Know a Good Thing I’ve wanted to be a librarian for a long time. I’ve wanted to work in an academic library for a long time as well. I’m open to different duties and roles, but constrained by location because of my family. I had a position that…