This interview is over 1 year old and may no longer be up to date or reflect the interviewee/interviewees’ positions by Joy Rodriguez, Head Editor, INALJ Delaware Changing Library Career Tracks After Graduation, Britt Foster . . . Solo Librarian When she graduated from library school in 2011, Britt Foster planned on working as a…
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Articles
Library 101: The Missing Course that You Wish You Could Have Taken
by Shayna Monnens, Head Editor, INALJ South Dakota Library 101: The Missing Course that You Wish You Could Have Taken When we go to library school, we learn all kinds of different techniques. How to provide reader advisory, how to do original cataloging, database creation, and reference work are all topics that are covered in…
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Desk Yoga: Job searching & stretching
by Melanie Masserant, Head Editor, INALJ NYC Desk Yoga: Job searching & stretching (Simple stretches to sooth the seated body) How many hours are you seated at your desk every day on average? The total of hours spent searching, online networking, and resume tailoring is a modern-day desk sentence for job seekers. Since our bodies…
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5 Basic Tips for Doing Well in the Interview
by Sean O’Brien, Head Editor, INALJ Colorado 5 Basic Tips for Doing Well in the Interview So you got the interview! Congratulations! But now, you realize, you still have to get through the scariest part; the interview. But hey, don’t worry, we’re here this month to give you a few basic tips that will help…
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Library Superstar Dream Jobs

by Emily Guier, Head Editor, INALJ Wyoming Library Superstar Dream Jobs Often, I’ll see a news story about a cool space and know that a librarian is the unsung superstar. That’s right, I said superstar. The following is a list of some dream jobs: 1) GM Heritage Center, http://www.gmheritagecenter.com/about-gm-heritage-center/. I heard about this archive on…
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Looking Towards the New Mexico Library Association Conference: April 17-19, 2013
by Mychal Ludwig, Head Editor, INALJ New Mexico Looking Towards the New Mexico Library Association Conference: April 17-19, 2013 Here in Albuquerque New Mexico, it’s the first day (pre-conference sessions) of the annual New Mexico Library Association Conference. I thought I’d share some of the interesting sessions and talks that I plan on attending, over…
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Opt In
by Africa Hands, Head Editor, INALJ Kentucky Opt In Guess what friends? It may not seem like it, but you are in charge of your career, personal development, and advancement. The career website Careerealism has a tagline, Because Every Job is Temporary. Sure it’s somewhat disconcerting, but these days it’s true. You can’t rely on…
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How to build a custom RSS (to help you to save time during your job search)
by Elena Bubelich, Head Editor, INALJ Quebec How to build a custom RSS (to help you to save time during your job search) Everyone knows how long it could be to search in or to check a multitude of sites offering information about jobs. For example, almost every day I check near 30 sites with…
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The Buddy System
by Caitlin Moen, Head Editor, INALJ Louisiana The Buddy System Job hunting is exhausting. Job hunting is life-consuming. Job hunting can eat up your entire identity until you cannot think or talk about anything else. And here’s a hint: your friends and family will get sick of hearing about that awesome job you hope will…
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Career Counselor
Career Counselor by Kelly Quaye I just returned from the ALA Midwinter Meeting (this was 2012) so my mind is still abuzz with the many great programs and services on offer. Did you know that ALA has a Conference Placement Service where you can meet with a professional career counselor during conference? I highly recommend…
Articles
The Road Less Traveled By Chelsea Jordan-Makely
The Road Less Traveled (Postcards from a Library Job Seeker) By Chelsea Jordan-Makely reposted from 9/26/2012 It has been a busy month. Less than four weeks ago, I resigned from two library jobs I adored, received my MLIS, and moved to Oregon with my husband, who accepted a faculty position at a small university here.…
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Thank You Notes = Ace in Hand
by Julie Watson, Head Editor, INALJ Pennsylvania Think thank you notes are just for your grandmother? Think again. According to a 2011 CareerBuilder survey, 22 % of hiring managers say that thank you notes matter. Why do they matter? Neglecting to thank your interviewers shows a lack of follow-through and sends the message that you…
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New look at the list of references
Interviews
Meet Rachel Chenault: INALJ Alabama Assistant Editor

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 Rachel Chenault: INALJ Alabama Assistant Editor and Reference & Instruction Librarian at South University Rachael A: Favorite Library you have been to? Rachel C: The Erie County…
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e-Portfolio Primer
by Veda Darby Soberman, Head Editor, INALJ Hawaii e-Portfolio Primer So, you’ve entered the job hunt armed with a basic arsenal of a well-crafted cover letter, polished resume and stellar references. Don’t think you are fully prepared yet. One more weapon which is making its way from auxiliary to essential is the e-Portfolio. An e-Portfolio…
Interviews
Sharon Miller…Mechanic’s Institute Library Director
This interview is over 1 year old and may no longer be up to date or reflect the interviewee/interviewees’ positions by Kiersten Bryant, Head Editor, INALJ California Sharon Miller…Mechanic’s Institute Library Director Sharon Miller is the Director of the Mechanic’s Institute Library, a historic membership-based library in the heart of San Francisco, founded in 1854…
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Support Staff Silos
by Courtney Butler, Head Editor, INALJ Idaho Support Staff Silos There’s a lot of talk in job searching about cross-industry skills. Employees and job seekers with skills that can be used in a number of different ways are more marketable and ultimately more useful to employers. Sometimes, however, I think this idea gets a bit…
Articles
Downton Abbey and Dream Questions on the Ref Desk
by Renee Holden, Head Editor, INALJ Nebraska Downton Abbey and Dream Questions on the Ref Desk I kid you not…I was sitting at the reference the desk the other day and a patron came up to me and said with a copy of Downton Abbey in her hands “I love, love, love this show. I…
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The Art of Down Time
by Diana La Femina, Head Editor, INALJ South Carolina The Art of Down Time Oofah, it’s been a busy month! My first INALJ blog post, Learn From My Mistakes, came out this morning. (Stay with me now, this is the segue.) I reread it to see how it came out and to get some inspiration…
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Skype Your Way to Success
by Christina Wilson, Head Editor, INALJ Alberta Skype Your Way to Success As a hiring manager, working in a public library I found Skype to be an effective tool when faced with the prospect of interviewing candidates from across this vast land. Although our city had an airport, service was “regional” and the next largest…
Interviews
Camille Salas… MLS Student and Intern with Viewshare.org
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 Camille Salas… MLS Student and Intern with Viewshare.org Sandra: Hi, Camille, tell us about yourself. Where are you from and how did you come to be a part…
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Feed your RSS Reader – Blogs to follow for career advice
by Mary-Michelle Moore, Head Editor, INALJ Vermont Feed your RSS Reader – Blogs to follow for career advice Just because Google Reader is shutting down is no reason not to keep cultivating new RSS feeds for resume, cover letter and general interview advice. When I graduated from high school, I was told to always tell…
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Work You Can’t Not Do?
by Ryan Nitz, Head Editor, INALJ Alaska Work You Can’t Not Do? Since most people reading this are in the LIS field, I feel like it’s pretty safe to assume that we share a fascination with information and learning. TED talks are one of my favorite ways to come across new information, ideas, and perspectives.…
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A Case for Learning HTML
by Rebekah Kati, Head Editor, INALJ North Carolina A Case for Learning HTML I remember sitting in a required technology class during my first semester of library school and wondering if I was ever going to use any of the information presented. I was so sure that I was going to be a reference librarian,…
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Taking a look at Ireland’s Trinity College Library
by Matthew Tansek, Head Editor, INALJ Rhode Island Taking a look at Ireland’s Trinity College Library As library and information science professionals it can be easy for us to get caught up in new trends, learning the hottest technology, or even researching a new avenue for research. So I thought I would take this opportunity…
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6 Things You Should Do After Your Library Job Interview
by Kristen Jaques, Head Editor, INALJ Maine 6 Things You Should Do After Your Library Job Interview The Scenario: Today you just had an interview with a terrific library where your skills and passion will truly be an asset. Good job, you! However, there is much more work to be done if you want to…
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With Eyes Wide Open: seeing your learning and experience in a new light
by Amanda Viana, Head Editor, INALJ Massachusetts With Eyes Wide Open: seeing your learning and experience in a new light As an undergraduate English major I had a professor who was memorable mainly for her absurdly specific essay guidelines: ‘five sentences per paragraph, three paragraphs per page, go over and I won’t read it’. But…
Interviews
Rosa Longacre …Registrar/Archivist
This interview is over 1 year old and may no longer be up to date or reflect the interviewee/interviewees’ positions by Todd Simpson, Head Editor, INALJ New York City Rosa Longacre …Registrar/Archivist Todd: In the interest of full disclosure, we met when we were both Library Assistants, you were working in ILL and I was…
Articles
How to Stand Out on LinkedIn
by Leigh Milligan, Head Editor, INALJ Wisconsin How to Stand Out on LinkedIn A couple weeks ago, I attended a webinar through Drexel University called “How to Stand Out in the LinkedIn Network” The title of the webinar caught my eye and I decided to attend as I love professional development opportunities. I use LinkedIn…
Articles
The Unintentional Librarian
by Dawn Thompson, Head Editor, INALJ Ohio The Unintentional Librarian When I began the library science program at Kent State University in 2007 I was unsure about my decision to attend a Masters program in library science. My plans hadn’t included attending library school. My plan had been to get an MFA in nonfiction from…
Articles
Preparing for a job interview
by Jennifer Crutchfield, Head Editor, INALJ Connecticut Preparing for a job interview Hi everyone! I am currently getting ready for the rare occurrence of a job interview, which is coming up in a few days. I am really excited about the interview because it is with a great company, but I’m also really nervous because…
Articles
Fear of Success: Following Up
by Alfonso Colasuonno, Assistant, INALJ New York City Fear of Success: Following Up What makes INALJ great is that it is a positive, supportive network of information professionals looking to help one another, and offer concrete ways to do so. By reading the blog entries on the site, and reaching out to your fellow information…
Articles
Finding Hidden Treasure: a Cache of Librarian Blogs
by Sarah Deringer, Head Editor, INALJ Mississippi Finding Hidden Treasure: a Cache of Librarian Blogs Every great once in awhile I find a collection of good blogs to follow, and this week I found four blogs that shine so much that Captain Jack Sparrow would not be able to keep his hands off them. The…
Articles
Coding Classes 101
by Amanda May, Head Editor, INALJ North Dakota Coding Classes 101 Is coding an essential skill for information professionals to learn? Well, I think that it really depends on how you look at it. On one hand, I believe that information professionals do not need to know any programming languages in order to be successful. …
Articles
Work/life balance, stress reduction, learning, and having fun
by Rachael Altman, Head Editor, INALJ Alabama Work/life balance, stress reduction, learning, and having fun I participated in the Association for Library Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS) E-Forum: Work/Life Balance on March 13-14. The discussion was hosted by Leslie Burke, Collection Development and Digital Integration Librarian at Kalamazoo College, and Robert Roose, Support Services Manger…
Articles
Lasting Final Impression – Ask Those Questions
by Shayna Monnens, Head Editor, INALJ South Dakota Lasting Final Impression – Ask Those Questions I came across this very interesting article the other day by BrazenCareerist.com, and I was so blown away by the content that I had to share. You may have already seen this article. I know that I have seen it…
Articles
The ABC’s of an Internship in a Research/Business Library
by Amanda Marie Yetter, Head Editor, INALJ Maryland The ABC’s of an Internship in a Research/Business Library Follow along and learn more about internships in a research/business library from …A to Z. A: Ancestry.com—Collections including Census information, Immigration and Travel, Birth Marriage and Death records even yearbooks and other information such as phone directories…
Articles
The Pope and Open Access
by R.C. Miessler, Head Editor, INALJ Indiana The Pope and Open Access The recent election of Pope Francis may not seem to have much to do with libraries, but in fact, it may play a major role in determining the future of open access to Vatican Library documents. But first, a bit of context. EMC…
Articles
Job-hunting and interviewing when you have a disability
by Holly Lipschultz, Head Editor, INALJ Illinois Job-hunting and interviewing when you have a disability Job hunting is nerve-wracking, but it is even more anxiety-inducing if you have a disability. There’s so many questions involved in addition to the usual ones: When should I disclose my disability? What if the interviewer asks? What jobs can…
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Preparing for a Phone Interview
by Marlena Barber, Head Editor, INALJ Tennessee Preparing for a Phone Interview Congratulations! You have been contacted for a phone interview with a potential future employer. I would like to share with you how I prepare for phone interviews. A phone interview is a wonderful opportunity for you to present yourself well to a potential…