cpd23: Thing 2
June 27, 2011
Now you’ve set off with your own blogging, it’s time to meet the neighbours: see who else is taking part and what they’re saying.
I think this “thing” is going to take me awhile to fully complete. This is one of those entries that will probably be edited a lot. But at first glance, here’s what I’ve found:
- Fellow knitter!
- She’s a rare book/special collections type, an area I’ve never been involved in. In a historical way, I find them quite intriguing, but as far as working with them on a day-to-day basis, I don’t have the background or aptitude for it. Still find them very interesting though.
- Traveled for four years before pursuing her career! What an idea! I’d love to travel, but I could not have afforded it.
- She’s a fellow academic librarian-type so I’m interested to hear her experiences.
- Another fellow academic librarian, always curious to hear different experiences
- Law librarian! Intriguing…
That’s all I got so far…
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Welcome to cpd23! It makes me feel good to read back in time in your blog and see that your job hunt was successful! I graduated a few weeks ago and feel a bit frustrated with my job search thus far. I’m looking for an academic library position but at this point I’m branching out to other libraries to get my foot in the door. I’d love to hear more about how you snagged your job.
Hi Carrie! How did I get my job? Well, honestly, I’m not quite sure how to answer that. As far as looking for jobs, look in a lot of places. I’m not sure how you feel about moving, but that is definitely something to consider. If you don’t want to move, you shouldn’t necessarily give that up if it is very important to you, but it will definitely impact your job search. I was looking in about a 5 state radius and it took me 10 months of searching (I started applying before I graduated) to get the job.
It might not help you at this point since you’ve already graduated, but I know that my pre-professional experience in academic libraries definitely helped. Talking to my boss after being hired definitely enlightened me. She said she couldn’t believe how bad some of the cover letters were – poor grammar/spelling/punctuation, disjointed, etc. From reading your blog, it sounds like you’ve gotten that taken care of.
Secondly, I apparently did very well in my interview. You cannot afford to be shy! Be friendly, chatty (but don’t talk TOO much) and always be aware that you’re being interviewed. Even in just casual chatting, be pleasant and professional. But don’t be afraid to be yourself. I used my sense of humor and even shared some of my hobbies and personal interests when the appropriate time presented itself.
I think the most important thing is to be extremely aware of who you’re talking to and how they’re reacting. If they look bored or interested, take notice and respond accordingly. Be nice to EVERYONE regardless of their status. Give the same respect to the secretary as the dean.
That’s about all I can say. If you have specific questions, I’ll do my best, but honestly… I don’t know if there is any one thing I can say did it for me. Good luck to you!