Best Careers 2009: Librarian

Look before you leap!

I've been a business/corporate librarian for nearly 20 years. I'm so sick of the lack of respect most administrative units hold for librarians. We were always paid well below other professionals in the organization--human resource types, accountants, EEO Specialists, financial professionals, etc. etc. etc.

Although our patrons constantly told us of our value to them and their projects, our top management never cared and we were constantly on the chopping block. When push came to shove, the library and librarians always finished last. Staff, space and resources were always cut from the library. It was demoralizing. When I looked at the comments for Occupational Therapists on this site, everyone seems to feel valued and loves that field. There are jobs in something like that. NO jobs in librarianship, particularly in tough economic times and not much economic incentive. I wish I had studied something more in demand. I don't feel valued in this profession.

Frustrated MLS of NY @ Sep 12, 2009 17:06:35 PM

Job Outlook and MLS

Totally agree with John's comments. 10 years ago ALA spoon-fed eager would-be rhetoric that retirees will make an enormous hole that new MLS grads can fill!

Great! 1000s of MLS students enroll over the next decade. Today, what we are seeing more than anything is those retiree positions are in fact just not being reopened. There is not need for them or no budget to rehire. I feel terrible for John and others like him (there are hundreds if not more, which is unacceptable). To be an academic subject librarian you really do need a second degree just to compete because all of the applicants today already have the MLS. The exception is the hard sciences or perhaps business but if you have a degree in those fields you likely can pull down more money than you would as a Librarian so...that is why the job market in those subjects is a little better.

Anyhow, still a sad issue. The MLS really helps people who have no experience in libraries to learn a little about the field but it needs some kind of internship or practicum to make it viable. Without real on the job experience it is hard to compete.

SR of CA @ Sep 10, 2009 13:46:56 PM

Another Illusion

The No Worker Left Behind Program here in Michigan won't allow funding for one to pursue a MLS degree. According to an unemployment office personnel the state retired librarians are able to double dip as they are rehired on a part-time basis.

Judy of MI @ Sep 08, 2009 09:11:21 AM

Education is a farce

Most of the degree and credential requirements are to show commitment to the profession, not so much the skills that are learned. Currently, I believe, for most degrees the payoff will take a long time to justify the cost of an education and may never for some degrees.

Exception is medicine. The medical schools create a large barrier to entry for most people to become a physician, so there is an undersupply of doctors. One should consider to become a physician. The near future will probably see many imported to make up the shortage, I would expect.

Jeff of MI @ Sep 02, 2009 16:02:10 PM

My experience

Just wanted to say that I, too, have recently graduated with a M.S. in Library and Information Science (from one of the "top programs in the country" - or so they led us to believe). And honestly, I don't even feel that I'm qualified to be an "entry level" librarian. Seriously, the qualifications are ridiculous! I feel like I have to have a second Master's in Computer Science just to even be able to meet the minimum qualifications! Honestly, can libraries really recruit people with advanced technical knowledge, especially these days with all the cutbacks that they are experiencing?

In any event, even with the non-technical positions, I still lack the "minimum qualifications" to get most jobs. Want to be a health sciences (i.e. medical) librarian? Well, I hope you have a nursing degree. Want to be a social sciences librarian? You'd better have 2+ years "teaching experience" and "demonstrated knowledge" of that field (i.e. articles in scholarly journals). The list just goes on and on. Seriously, if you want to be a librarian, you'd better have AT LEAST two Master's degrees, but even with those, a lack of experience can just kill you in a job interview. Seriously, HOW are you supposed to get experience if you need experience to get the type of job that allows you to gain experience?

The bottom line is that this field is not worth getting into. I say that because, even with a Master's degree, you STILL can't even get your foot in the door! So why spend the money when your degree means ABSOLUTELY NOTHING? (It is, after all, the "bare minimum" needed to get into the profession).

All I heard is that you had to "go to school and better yourself". So I do that, and what happens? I've submitted resume after resume, completed application after application... and what do I have to show for it? But oh - I'm sure my graduate school is happy, seeing as how they're $40,000 richer and I'm going to be paying off loans for the rest of my life. Yes, that's right, the rest of my life. You might ask how that can be, possessing as I do the illustrious "Masters degree". To that, let me just say that it's hard to pay off loans when you're working as a cashier at Wal-Mart. Because trust me, if you get a Master's in Library and Information Science, then that is in essence the only thing you are qualified to do.

John Reynolds of NY @ Sep 02, 2009 02:19:09 AM

Stop saying there is a shortage

My daughter just graduated with an MLS and can't find a job. The demands for what an employer wants are endless. And did you let people know if they "specialize there are more demands? Want to work in that law office - get a JD degree. Want to work in that academic library - need another MA or Ph.D and be able to teach college level classes. Want to work in the Medical library, how about tacking on an RN. Oh, and don't forget to learn Spanish along the way to get that job in a public library even in Indiana. Shortage? NO!!!Good pay for all these demands? NO!!! Let's get real here.

Joan of OH @ Aug 13, 2009 10:27:31 AM

Another Debbie Downer on Librarian jobs

The truth is that at this time there are few library jobs & most pay poorly. The projection for an increase in library jobs is not good--at least not for a long time.

Sometimes a librarian lucks out and gets a terrific job at good pay, with a reasonable work load & decent recognition and respect.

The job can be quite boring or you might have one where you're overworked, underpaid and unappreciated. Some librarians cut back their activity & become very mean-spirited, perhaps due to exhaustian. Sorry to say, a few of them need psychiatric evaluation, should be under a doctor's care, take their lithium, get off of drugs &/or alcohol, or get decent counseling. Some of them are angels, wonderful, bright, intelligent, curious, fun-loving, educated, community minded and creative creatures. They are very helpful & can find out anything you need to know with their valuable education, experience and expertise.

Sometimes some of these jobs include multi-tasking, by doing all of the jobs at one time in a single branch or being the only one in a whole department. In those cases, the pay may be good but it can be unrealistic and exhausting. Some librarians have serious physical illnesses due to this kind of stress.

I'm a librarian with my master degree in Library & Information Science in 1984. I worked part time in a library before getting that degree, after not finding work as a teacher when I graduated from college under the Ronald Reagan Recession.

My experience has been, everytime there's a conservative president in office the job market becomes terrible (and an angel doesn't get his/her wings.) This is especially true for librarians. The first thing to get the axe is the library.

The truth is most librarians make far less than 40,000/year to start & may just make a little over that after a very long time--if they're lucky enough to find a job. This is unfortunately true even though many other educated persons do so well.

If you know someone who can help get you the job and are not too old or too young, you might luck out getting a managerial position. Good luck.

At this time, there looks to be even less libary jobs in the future unless progressive people come back into vogue along with love of education, learning, literature, the arts, and general civilizing things such as public libraries, book in conjunction with computers. Let's hope so.

Last but not least, there's a weird movement by a small but powerful group of anti-culture/education/civilization/anti-progressives who say things like libraries are obsolete because of computers & the Internet and it isn't a business...it's too socialistic. Among them are those who want to automate most library jobs and make everything that has been to mankind, civlizing and social, done by yourself at home on your computer without any social interaction and no mixing with people in person--very strange don't you think? Public enterprise helps private enterpise succeed.

hly of MI @ Aug 11, 2009 18:34:13 PM

Don't Want to be a Debbie Downer but . . .

I live in Ohio, which has experienced a 30% loss in state funding in the last few months and is projected to get even worse in the next biennum (2011-13). Ohio used to be the national leader both in the number of our libraries and in the strength of our programs. I would not call either public or school librarianship a growth industry as we are losing positions at a precipitous rate in both venues. However, special librarianship is a growth industry, thanks to government stimulus money: the Dept. of Defense is hiring archivists by the boatload. So if you're considering this career or a library student, the more highly specialized your skills, the greater your chances of finding a niche job. I think the salaries listed here for public librarians are extremely inflated also. I am nowhere near the high 40s, even with 10 years in field. Just a dose of reality from someone in the public library trenches. This is a great, flexible career for working moms who have a stable main income from their spouses, but not the best choice for a sole income. Be advised.

Hikari of OH @ Jul 23, 2009 12:59:57 PM