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The Librarian's Career Guidebook
edited by Priscilla K. Shontz

Shontz, Priscilla K., editor. The Librarian's Career Guidebook. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2004.

Are you trying to break into a career in library science or improve your current position? In The Librarian's Career Guidebook, 63 information professionals from diverse positions, workplaces, and regions discuss a variety of career issues and offer advice to prospective librarians, MLS students, and librarians in various stages of their careers, from entry-level to the highly experienced. Packed with more than 60 chapters, The Librarian's Career Guidebook covers such topics as career options, education, the job search, on-the-job experience, professional development, essential skills and strategies for enjoying your career.

Table of Contents

Foreword (Rachel Singer Gordon)
Introduction (Priscilla K. Shontz)

Section One: Career Planning

Chapter 1: Why Be a Librarian? (Sarah Ann Long)
Chapter 2: The Public in Public Libraries (Erika James)
Chapter 3: Career Options in Academe (Mary Anne Hansen)
Chapter 4: Never a Dull Day in the School Library (Linda Rowan)
Chapter 5: From Makeup to Missiles: Special Libraries Mirror the Diversity and Complexity of Today’s Business Economy (Regina Lee)
Chapter 6: A Bird’s-Eye View: Working for a Library Consortium (Kim Armstrong)
Chapter 7: Association Careers (Stephen A. Kershner)
Chapter 8: Passing It On: A Career as a Full-Time Educator (Elaine Yontz)
Chapter 9: Looking at Libraries from Both Sides: Librarian-Vendors (Karen J. Cook)
Chapter 10: Beckoned by Darth Vader: Careers in Publishing (Trudy Lindsey)
Chapter 11: You Want Me to Put What Where? Freelancing Librarianship as Job, Hobby, and Passion (Jessamyn West)
Chapter 12: Countless Opportunities: Alternative Career Paths for Librarians and Information Professionals (Selma Permenter)

Section Two: Education

Chapter 13: Choosing a Library Program (Kevin O’Kelly)
Chapter 14: The M.L.S.: What Is It Worth? (Chrissie Anderson Peters)
Chapter 15: Now That I’m Here, What Do I Take? (Tanzi Merritt)
Chapter 16: Replacing Classrooms and Carrels with Keystrokes: Distance Education of Library and Information Science Professionals (Amanda J. Roberts)
Chapter 17: Library Work Experience: Get Some! (Tom Bahlinger)
Chapter 18: Get Hired Soon! Improving Your Post-Graduation Employability (Elaine Yontz)

Section Three: Employment

Chapter 19: Hunting and Gathering: Finding Jobs (Suzan Lee)
Chapter 20: Avoiding the Landmines: Evaluating a Potential Workplace (Nancy Cunningham)
Chapter 21: Cover Letters: Tips for Making a Good First Impression (Sarah L. Johnson)
Chapter 22: The Resume: A Short Story about You (John Lehner)
Chapter 23: Interviews in Libraries: Planning, Preparation and Perfection (Tiffany Eatman Allen)
Chapter 24: Negotiation (Mari Marsh)
Chapter 25: Standing Out from the Crowd: Maximizing Your Hirability (Richard A. Murray)
Chapter 26: Leaving a Job: It Really Is a Small World (Madeline A. Copp)
Chapter 27: Make Your Own Opportunities: Staying Professionally Active While Unemployed (Colleen Simmons)
Chapter 28: When You Come to a Fork in the Road … Take It (Beverley Geer)

Section Four: Experience as an Entry-Level Librarian

Chapter 29: Does This Job Make Me Look Fat? or, Making Your First Year on the Job a More Comfortable Fit (Clint Chamberlain)
Chapter 30: I Got the Job, Now What Do I Do? or, Acclimating to the Environment and Defining Expectations in a New Workplace (Marilyn P. Lewis)
Chapter 31: It Just Doesn’t Matter: What You Didn’t Learn in Library School (Jill Emery)
Chapter 32: How to Look Like You Know What You Are Doing: Developing a Professional Image (Sarah E. O’Neal)
Chapter 33: Performance Reviews: Terror, Tedium or Inspiration? (Frances C. Wilkinson and Linda K. Lewis)
Chapter 34: Tenure Track or Tenure Trap? (Christopher Nolan)

Section Five: Experience as an Experienced Librarian

Chapter 35: Preparing for Promotion: How to Succeed without Developing an Ulcer in the Process (Linda Marie Golian-Lui)
Chapter 36: Library Management (Cindy Scroggins)
Chapter 37: Staying Relevant: It’s All Part of Learning (Birdie MacLennan)
Chapter 38: From Acorn to Oak: Transforming a Novice into an Expert (Carol Anne Germain)
Chapter 39: Flamed! The Burned-Out Librarian (Zahra M. Baird)
Chapter 40: Batteries Included: Ten Tips to Supercharge Your Library Career (Janet Foster)

Section Six: Skills

Chapter 41: Through the Mouth, the Fish Dies: the Importance of Good Interpersonal Communication Skills (Juanita Benedicto)
Chapter 42: Talk, Listen, Repeat: Some Thoughts on Communication Skills (Bob Persing)
Chapter 43: Computer and Technology Skills for the 21st Century Librarian (Leo Robert Klein)
Chapter 44: How to Pass the 4:55 Friday Afternoon Test: the Importance of Being Organized (Ladd Brown)
Chapter 45: It’s About Time: Time Management Skills (Beth Thornton)
Chapter 46: Public Speaking Skills (Trudi E. Jacobson and John R. Vallely)
Chapter 47: Librarian as Educator, or Dewey, Dewey, and You (Gale Hannigan and Kathleen Dalton)
Chapter 48: Effective Writing for the Career Librarian (Bob Schatz)
Chapter 49: The Core of Leadership: Skills for Emerging Leaders (Teri R. Switzer)

Section Seven: Professional Development

Chapter 50: The Art and Science of Professional Behavior (Nancy George)
Chapter 51: Click to Connect! Successful Online Communication (Kate Sinclair)
Chapter 52: Conference Attendance (Jeff Bullington)
Chapter 53: Association Work: What’s in It for Me? (Ann Snoeyenbos)
Chapter 54: Mentoring: A Primer (Carol Ritzen Kem) - 46
Chapter 55: Keeping Our Heads above Water: Staying Current with Professional Issues (Denise Landry-Hyde)
Chapter 56: Publish the Thought: Writing for the Professional Literature (Wayne Jones)
Chapter 57: Marketing Yourself: Planning to Achieve Your Professional Goals (Christine Shupala)

Section Eight: Enjoying Your Career

Chapter 58: Decompressing the Overstressed Librarian (Timothy A. Baird)
Chapter 59: Adapting to Change (Mary Anne Hansen)
Chapter 60: Positive Attitude (Dora Ho)
Chapter 61: Balance (Ann Snoeyenbos)
Chapter 62: The Juggling Act: Balancing Family and Your Library Career (Catherine J. Woodworth Wong)
Conclusion: Librarianship for the Love of It (Karla J. Block)

About The Editor:

Priscilla K. Shontz is a web designer and freelance writer who has worked in university, community college, medical and public libraries. She is author of Jump Start Your Career in Library & Information Science and is a past president of the ALA New Members Round Table. Contact Priscilla at pshontz@liscareer.com.

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