TTYL! K.I.T! (goodbye)

During my last semester of library school, I always tried to keep the finish line in mind and my motivation going. I told myself that once I finished, I’d have all the free time in the world to finally watch Doctor Who and finally learn to cross-stitch. Turns out I was dead wrong. While I was scrambling to finish my final projects, keep my eye out for jobs, and trying to just live my life, I was also subconsciously prepping myself to remain active once I finished. I volunteered for committees, kept an eye out for other professional development activities, internetted for hours on end, went on interviews for jobs, etc. Well, now I’m just as busy as I was in graduate school. I’ve had the opportunity to meet some pretty gifted, go-get-em types of library school students and I just want to warn you guys, it doesn’t really stop if you plan on staying active in the field. For some types of jobs out there, having a high level of professional activity is just expected, so if you feel like pulling your hair out from stress– just get used to it. In the end though, I think it’s worth it, I’m in this field and I do this work because I find it intrinsically rewarding (but again, making yourself crazy busy isn’t for everyone, work/life balance is achievable).

This is my roundabout way of saying goodbye to HackLibSchool. I’m really terrible at good-byes. I’m the type of person who would rather sneak out away from the goodbye party without actually saying it.

HackLibSchool Conversation Starter

I am pleased to say that HackLibSchool will be holding two events at this years ALA Annual conference. Awhile back, I wrote about trying to bring HLS and the issues we care about to the conference level. Well, I’m happy to say that our Conversation Starter was accepted! To be honest, this is the first year that they have done the Conversation Starter series, so I’m not sure what to expect. However, our session is intended to be a moderated discussion – not like a traditional panelists just talk at you presentation. We want your input on what topics you want to discuss.

Potential guiding questions:

• What aspects of library school curriculum prepare you for the job?
• What emerging technologies helped you hack your education?
• From a student’s perspective, what advice would you give to a veteran? or a potential boss?
• What would you tell yourself going into library school, knowing what you know now?
• Should every student be required to take at least one online class? Why?

Please add more potential questions in the comments! We want to talk about things that are relevant to you! Also, we only have 45 minutes to talk so I would like to invite everyone to come meet and talk with the Hackers at the HackLibSchool/ Library Boing Boing meetup! It’s going to be fun, and hope to see you there!

The Skills You Don’t Learn In School

Photo Credit: Flickr User Donna Cymek

Librarianship is a profession that’s all about helping people, which means we need to be able to work with them. Even if you don’t work with patrons, you’ll still have to work with coworkers that run the gamut. Cat lovers(ahem), gamers, tattooed drinkers, the sweet old lady who doesn’t know what email is(patron or coworker), you might run across them all. You can’t escape people in this profession! Whether you were drawn to this profession because you love books, or because you wanted to put off student loans, having people skills is a must. We’re expected to have some technology skills and maybe even more advanced programming skills. That’s all great! However, there are a lot of things library school can’t teach you. People skills being one of them. No one can teach you how to be in the world, that’s something that we all develop as we move forward in life. Employers are looking for folks who have these skills.

Moving Forward

Me and a couple of bosses.

About a year ago, I started spying on the HackLibSchool project. Anonymously peeking at the original Google doc, figuring out how to use Twitter so I could see what the big deal was, reading other students blogs. I had no clue what I was doing online then, I was just fumbling along, trying to figure out how to be an internet person. I’ve learned so much in the course of a year and it’s all because of this blog. I never thought of myself as a blogger, but I was kicking around so many ideas in my head that I thought I could try. I knew that I wanted to write a guest post for Hack Library School, so I wrote about developing an online brand because that’s what I was attempting to do. When Micah asked me to join HLS as a writer, I was shocked and excited. Getting involved in this project has meant so much to me as a student and a burgeoning librarian. I’ve met and collaborated with an awesome group of people with whom I can brainstorm with. We’ve really built a diverse network that extends beyond our time in school.

Playing Nicely With Others: Doing Group Work

No Bob, I don't want to stab you with these scissors. I LOVE group work.

How many of you have had to do group work in graduate school? What’s that? All of you? Okay, I thought so. Like it or not, group work is integral to library science curriculum. When I first started, I wondered why I had to do do so much group work. What’s the purpose of it? Is there a lesson to be learned? There are so many risks when you have to work with a group of people you don’t necessarily know that well. Coming from an undergraduate background in art history, where you sit in a dark room and stare at slides, you don’t even know who is in your class, let alone have to talk to anyone. It’s a solitary endeavor. However, library school is totally different. You’re expected to talk to your classmates, peer review their work and collaborate with them. That can be really off-putting for someone who is used to a) shy b) used to studying alone c) new to the program, thus not knowing anyone and d) a control freak. This semester, I’ve had to do a couple of large group projects and wondered how collaborating could be made easier.