Jobs on the Net for Librarians
Janet Foster, Contributing Editior
Jobs in Cyberspace! Read classified ads, visit employment agencies, or write a résumé all from the convenience of a remote computer with Internet access. The Web contains a myriad of sites for job seekers and its cyber employment office is open twenty-four hours a day. From online employment offices to résumé writing services, the Internet offers a powerful and efficient research tool and facilitates dynamic virtual networking.
Library-Related Resources
For librarian positions, the American Library Association is an excellent starting point. The ALA Education and Employment Page now contains the monthly job listings from American Libraries. To use it, select Career Leads, which is subdivided by specialty. A good tip to keep in mind when sorting through numerous library job ads is to use the browser “Edit” function. Then select “Find in Page” and type in the word “public.” Click on “Find next” to search specifically for employment in public libraries. This strategy elimimates time spent sifting through pages of job listings. The department or type of job, such as children’s or technical services, is also specified on the ALA career site, further narrowing the scope of your job hunt. Select the position title of interest and follow the hyperlinks to a job summary. Information about salary, responsibilities, how to apply, and deadline for submission are noted for each job. Relevant descriptions can be printed out or copied and pasted into an e-mail to yourself. Later, you can read and respond to the most relevant positions.
Perusing the late job entries in American Libraries is also worthwhile. Bookmark the ALA Late Jobs page and check back frequently. New jobs are added continuously and dated chronologically from the most to least current. The site can also be accessed from American Libraries Online, another excellent choice for your personal bookmark list. This site, the virtual counterpart of the print journal, keeps librarians appraised of the latest library trends including Internet news. In addition to Career Leads, American Libraries Online features listings of conferences, continuing education courses, exhibitions, and other events from ALA’s “Datebook.”
Another good place to start your cyber job hunt is at LJ Digital . This well-designed site resides on the Bookwire domain. LJ Digital is the electronic offshoot of Library Journal magazine, the oldest independent national library publication. Click on “Job Search” to browse classified ads or use the search feature to select positions in the public library sector. Jobs can be viewed in groups of ten at a time and, again, using the Edit/Find browser command will make your search efforts more efficient. Visit LJ Digital frequently and follow its employment hyperlinks to a variety of library web sites advertising for employment.
The New Members Round Table encourages participation in ALA and fosters career development within the library profession. Located on the ALA Web site, the New Member’s Round Table’s publication, Footnotes, offers interviewing advice and tips for job applicants. To keep abreast of NMRT news, subscribe to the NMRT discussion list at www.ala.org/nmrt/nmrt-l.html. A list maintained by ALA, NMRT-L provides a forum for new librarians to discuss issues such as professional involvement, training, continuing education, staff development, salaries, or any other topic relevant to newer librarians, new ALA members, paraprofessionals, and students. A membership application form is available online for librarians with ten or less years of experience.
The PLA Web site provides a wealth of information for public librarians, plus a spectacular employment page. Frances Roehm and the late Steve Oserman of the Skokie Public Library (Ill.) created the PLA Career Web located at www.pla.org/links/jobs/htm. Its links to excellent resources make the site a superb reference for public library job seekers. From the PLA Web site, information about upcoming events can be accessed facilitating another aspect of career development- networking via association conferences. Roehm and Oserman, along with Margaret Riley, wrote The Guide to Internet Job Searching, a book published by NTC/Contemporary Publishing that provides valuable tips about navigating through online career sources. Add The Guide to Internet Job Searching to both your personal and public library collections for knowledgable and thorough cyber job-hunting information. Margaret Riley’s own job search site, the Riley Guide, is renowned in the Internet world.
Several librarians have taken the quantum leap into cyberspace and made significant contributions to the creation of subject guides to the Web. Marylaine Block’s Best Job Hunting Resources on the Net is part of her Best Information on the Net Web site, a valuable compendium of library information on the Web. Links are checked frequently for accuracy and a New to net section includes noteworthy additions to the Internet weekly. The Best Job Hunting Resources gives advice about career transition, résumé preparation, cover letters, interviewing skills, résumé writing, and relocation information. Clearly, Block has done her cyber homework in preparing this essential guide for Internet job seekers. Jenny Levine’s Cybrary to the Stars column, is a remarkable librarian Web site. If you’re not familiar with Jenny’s Cybrary or her Librarian’s Site du Jour, be prepared for a super cyber experience. The “Cybrary” is searchable by keyword, allowing viewers to locate past columns about cyber job seeking or resume writing in cyberspace. Bookmark the Cybrary to the Stars and Jenny’s Librarian related links and make the Site du Jour a daily cyber stop.
Cyber Networking
Networking with other librarians via discussion lists like PUBLIB is an excellent way to keep apprised of newly advertised positions while coping with the temporal aspects of job searching. Because time is of the essence in the job market, discussion lists can expedite the process by posting daily or even hourly updates. An electronic discussion list for librarians, PUBLIB promotes jobs and career leads specifically for staff members in the public library sector. The Publib archive can be searched by thread and is maintained by the Berkeley Digital Library SunSITE, also home of the Librarian’s Index to the Internet.
PUBLIB can also be relevant to librarians involved in staff recruitment. Job descriptions can be posted to PUBLIB offering another mode of advertising via the net. To subscribe to the PUBLIB discussion list send an e-mail to listserv@sunsite.berkeley.edu with the message “subscribe PUBLIB YourFirstName YourLastName.” PUBLIB-NET is a subset of PUBLIB devoted to the discussion of the Internet in public libraries. To subscribe to PUBLIB-NET, send the message “subscribe PUBLIB-NET YourFirstName YourLastName” to listserv@sunsite.berkeley.edu. A full list of commands for subscribing and posting messages to PUBLIB and PUBLIB-NET is located at http://www.sunsite.berkeley.edu/PubLib/#Commands.
For more information about networking with other librarians check out the Networked Librarian Job Search Guide, an excellent Web site providing resources for librarians in the job market. In addition to solid general information about the Web, the networked Librarian has compiled a chronological list of job announcements by library association. Links to forty national and regional associations and chapters that list job announcements can be found at pw2.netcom.com/~feridun/assoc.htm. Also included is a comprehensive library jobline that can be printed out and used as a resource guide. Library Jobs on the ’Net markets itself as the largest library-oriented employment site on the Web. Use of a site search engine allows viewers to fully exploit the vast resources maintained at Library Jobs on the ’Net. It provides a map with hyperlinks to individual states and also invites you to search international Web sites such as Canada and Australia. Text alternatives are available for people surfing without a graphical user interface. The State University of New York at Buffalo maintains this comprehensive collection of library job links. Library school Internet placement services serve as another networking resource for library jobs. The University of Michigan School of Information Placement Bulletin , subdivides public library jobs into administration, technical, and reference. Or visit Southern Connecticut State University Library School virtual placement site .
Many public libraries have developed their own Web sites allowing job seekers the opportunity to pay a virtual visit to prospective employers before an interview- referred to as a “pre-interview.” Public libraries with Web sites often advertise jobs within their library systems directly from the Internet. Some good examples of libraries with cyber jobs available include: Kansas City Public Library’s list of job openings and the Job and Career Center at Baltimore County Public Library, which has developed an excellent Job and Career Center Web page. Danbury Public Library in Connecticut advertises for internal positions and has also created a web of employment resources including a local career transition support group. Online statistics show that this page has one of the highest hit rates per month at DPL. The Public Library of Charlotte Mecklenberg County includes a comprehensive Web page advertising positions within the library and provides detailed information regarding application procedures. This exemplary site can be viewed at http://www.plcmc.lib.nc.us/find/emp/default.htm. PLCMC was a pioneer in community networking and continues to excel in cyber services for staff and patrons. The job page is a must see for those interested in employment and cybrarians who like to peruse excellent examples of Web sites with innovative ideas.
Online Newspapers and Career Sites
Cyber newspapers have catapulted onto the Web. Currently, a number of virtual newspapers include classified ads with internal search engines that can be limited by keyword or geography. Using Boolean logic, job titles, area, and salary can be searched simultaneously. major newspapers such as the New York Times and The Washington Post include classified ads sections as regular online features. The New York Times requires an intitial registration, but the short amount of time it takes to register is well worth the benefits of viewing “all the news that’s fit to print” online. Career Path allows visitors to search all the major newspapers in the country at one time or limit newspapers to geographic domains. In addition to using online classified ads for your personal job search, these sites can supplement print resources in public libraries.
Entering the word “librarian” at America’s Job Bank reveals job listings of all state employment agencies. Jobs are divided into forty categories and listings can be sorted by city, salary, and experience required. For those with the spirit of adventure, Career Mosaic provides an international database of jobs.
Easy Resume Construction
Make Résumé Resumix Builder one of your first cyber-stops. Here a Curriculum Vita can be created online. The On-Line Résumé Builder has step by step instructions explaining how to create a scannable résumé. Are you able to leap tall buildings in a single bound? Or does it just seem that way on a busy day at Information Services? Regardless, take a look atthe clever sample data on the life of Clark Kent at the Resumix site to garner ideas for writing a résumé that is automatically formatted. Download a compleated copy of your résumé to diskette and add information as necessary. Keeping a current résumé is a good idea whether or not you are job hunting. This online version can be easily updated and has a professional appearance. Career Mosaic provides a step-by-step example of how to create and format a résumé in ACII text, what it is, and when to use it. One caveat when e-mailing an ASCII text resume is to be careful of how the recipient will disseminate the information. Although popular employment sites like the Monster Board encourage candidates to submit online résumés, a better strategy might be to e-mail résumés only in response to specific job queries advertised by organizations well known in the library world, library schools, and library Web sites.
A recommended cyber resource for job seekers wanting to relocate is the Salary Calculator. This clever interactive site calculates cost of living comparisons in hundreds of U.S. and international cities, thus offering the opportunity to explore a new location and clarify cost of living variances before accepting a job in a new locale.
A panoply of excellent Web sites for librarians seeking employment exist in cyberspace. Selecting a few good Web sites to visit often and getting accustomed to their structure is recommended. Judicious selection of Web sites rather than random surfing make good cyber sense. Search engines like Hotbot and Infoseek can also complement your Internet job hunt. Using Boolean liogic to narrow the scope of the search to “public library” employment will refine your results. Hotbot has a dropdown menu where the exact words can be selected. Infoseek allows you to search subsets of the initial search thereby increasing the number of relevant results.
As a rule of thumb, devote no more than twenty percent of your job hunt time to Internet resources. Using recruiters and newspapers as well as local networking combined with Web components makes for a well-rounded job search. Job hunting in cyberspace and creating a resume via Internet resources can enhance your library career. As in many aspects of life, the journey can be as interesting as the destination. So enjoy the cyber meanderings of pursuing an exciting library career and go online to the future with “Internet Spotlight.”
Cyber and Print Resources Cited
ALA: www.ala.org
ALA Employment page: www.ala.org/education
ALA Late Jobs Site: www.ala.org/education/latejobs
Baltimore County Public Library: www.bcpl.lib.md.us
Best Job Hunting Resources on the Net: www.sau.edu/cwis/internet/wild/jobhunt/work/wkindex.htm#joblist
Career Path: www.careerpath.com
Career Mosaic: www.careermosaic.com
Danbury Public Library Jobs: www.danbury.org/library/jobs.htm
Guide to Internet Job Searching, 1998–99, Margaret Riley, Frances Roehm, and Steve Oserman. VGM Career Horizons, copublished with the Public Library Association, 1998.
Hotbot: www.hotbot.com
Infoseek: www.infoseek.com
Kansas City Public Library jobs: www.kcpl.lib.mo.us/jobs/jobs.htm
LJ Digital: www.ljdigital.com
LJ Digital Jobs: classifieds.bookwire.com/ljdigital/classifieds
Librarians’ Site Du Jour: www.JennysCybrary.com/sitejour.html
Library Jobs on the ’Net: wings.buffalo.edu/sils/alas/usamap.html
Monster Board: www.monster.com
New York Times: www.nytimes.com
NMRT: www.ala.org/nmrt
NMRT—Employment: www.ala.org/nmrt/applicants.html
Networked Librarian: http://pw2.netcom.com/~feridun/libjobs2.htm
PLA: www.pla.org
PLA Employment: www.pla.org/links/jobs.htm
PUBLIB and PUBLIB-Net: sunsite.berkeley.edu/PubLib/#commands
PLCMC Employment: www.plcmc.lib.nc.us/find/emp/default.htm
Resumix: www.resumix.com
Riley Guide: www.dbm.com/jobguide
Salary Calculator: www2.homefair.com/calc/salcalc.html
SCSU: Library Job Hunting Resources: scsu.ctstateu.edu/~jobline/links.htm
University of Michigan, School of Information Placement Bulletin: www.si.umich.edu/pb
Washington Post: www.washingtonpost.com
What Color is Your Parachute? A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career Changers by Richard Nelson Bolles
Remember that Web links and URLs start and stop without notice. The sources listed above were active as of November 1998.