“MOOCs and Libraries: the good, the bad and the ugly” – July 12th 2013, London

Guest Post by Laura Connaughton, Assistant Librarian, NUI Maynooth

I attended the First European MOOCs and Libraries Conference, “MOOCs and Libraries: the good, the bad and the ugly” in Central London on July 12th 2013. This event was hosted by the Open University Library in partnership with OCLC Research and JISC. The aim of the day was to “focus on the challenges MOOCs pose to the traditional delivery of library services, and the opportunities they offer for libraries to rethink and revitalise their proposition”. The morning part of the conference concentrated on updates on MOOC development in the UK. Unfortunately due to a flight delay I missed the first speaker, Hugh Davis of Southampton University. However, I was just in time for Sian Bayne, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Edinburgh, who spoke about developing, designing and successfully running six MOOCs with Coursera covering a wide range of topics. Sian spoke particularly about the MOOC on “E-Learning and Digital Cultures” and how the participants used open access resources, videos, articles, readings, Google hangouts, blogs, Twitter etc. during their participation in the course. Some participants relished this kind of interaction whereas some felt it was overwhelming. Feedback also raised the concern of the lack of a visible presence of a “teacher”. This is something that will be looked at in their review process. A full MOOCS @ Edinburgh Report can be found here.

Next up was Merrilee Proffit, Senior Program Officer for OCLC Research. Based on OCLC research, Merrilee spoke about the involvement of some libraries in the US with MOOCs. Libraries that have been proactive in their involvement possess strengths that matched the needs of MOOC development such as copyright expertise, resource expertise, knowledge of licensing, fair use knowledge, linking, library research and instruction. The OCLC research showed that MOOCs are highlighting the fact that libraries need to rethink, for example, information literacy and how we can (and should) adapt it to support this form of teaching and learning. The rising cost of Higher Education in the US is one of the main reasons for the continuing fast-paced emergence of MOOCs there. In conclusion, Merrilee suggested attendees sign up to a MOOC to become more aware of that kind of MOOCs are available and get thinking about how libraries can participate in them.

Following on from Merilee was Jennifer Dorner of the University of California, Berkeley. Jennifer spoke about the MOOC experience offered by Berkeley. There was an initial lack of involvement or consultation with librarians at the outset, however, they became more involved when some librarians got together themselves to look at their ‘perceived’ role and potential for development. University of Berkeley librarians decided to focus their support on the ‘teachers’ rather than the MOOC participants directly as they felt this would be unsustainable. This librarian working group also are looking at developing a Research Skills MOOC including looking at helping MOOC participants navigate open resources, be aware of and how to use these resources. This nicely followed up a point made by Sian Bayne earlier regarding information overload among participants and how to ensure its avoided.

The second part of the day had one formal presentation from Sally-Anne Betteridge, a Graduate Trainee from the University of Birmingham who is a regular MOOC participant. She spoke of her experiences in participating in MOOCs. Her first MOOC was one in Gamification, she then participated in the “E-Learning and Digital Culture” which Sian spoke of earlier in the day (her favourite MOOC so far), she also signed up for “Aboriginal World Views on Education” and “The Camera Never Lies” – both decent MOOCs but lacked the excellent delivery of the University of Edinburgh one. Her general feedback was positive; certain aspects she preferred such as in-course assessments and certain content, use of Twitter instead of Discussion Boards and good interaction with fellow participants using social media. She disliked recordings of lectures (felt like an outsider watching these), endless multiple choice assessments, and difficulty of accessing some course resources (available in certain countries only). Overall she seemed to have enjoyed participating in MOOCs but didn’t feel like she got an ‘academic purpose’ from them so she wouldn’t substitute them for her formal education. However, following her participation in the Digital Culture MOOC from University of Edinburgh she did browse (and consider) their Masters course.

The final part of the day was a participatory workshop facilitated by JISC. In this workshop, we discussed the potential impact of MOOCs on our services, how we can better understand the challenges MOOCs present to libraries and the provision of information and content for teaching, learning and research. We, as librarians, have the skill-set to add value to MOOC design and development such as expert knowledge in areas such as copyright, knowledge of resources both paid for and open, fair use knowledge, library research and instruction, content accessibility, terms of use etc. Our library instruction and teaching support may be redefined in conjunction with the continuing development of MOOCs. Some of the main outcomes were to get the library involved from the beginning i.e. work with academics on building a MOOC, get up to date with licensing and access laws, create our own MOOC, support the MOOC faculty, support MOOC students rather than being a hidden resource, create in person support opportunities, reassess library assumptions and practices and importantly take a MOOC – to further our own knowledge of how they operate.

All in all, I found the conference extremely interesting and thought provoking. MOOCs are very much in their infancy, however, they’re growing at a furious pace and it is vital that the library is aware of what we can offer in terms of support and development.

Image Credit: Mathieu Plourde

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Life is lossy: a preliminary review of the current Coursera MOOC on metadata by Dr. Jeffrey Pomerantz

Guest post by Giada Gelli, LIS Professional

Who, by now, hasn’t heard of MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses)? I certainly had heard of this relatively new phenomenon, but had never given it too much weight. After all, I was not in college nor working in the academic field during what can be considered the explosion of the open online education revolution. Wikipedia tells me that MOOCs were born in the form we know them today in 2008, but 2012 seems to have been their absolute year of fame with even the New York Times dubbing it the ‘Year of the MOOC’.

At the end of last month, as I found myself facing another spell of unemployment with nothing lined up in terms of work (thank you, recession), the sudden realisation of a lot of newly-gained free time prompted me to have a look at what MOOCs offerings were out there. I had a look at one of the major players in the field, Coursera, and I was struck by the breadth and depth of options of their free online courses. There are obviously other MOOC providers out there, but my search that day ended there.

In fact, it didn’t take me very long to fall in love with one of the Coursera offerings, a module on metadata taught by Dr. Jeffrey Pomerantz of the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (quite a mouthful as Dr. Pomerantz puts it!). I had come across the University of North Carolina in the past few years for some of their work done in the field of digitisation and digital curation, so somehow I felt connected to them – the quirkinesses of the web. Also, after working with metadata for a while, I was eager to go back to basics and brush over all of the theory and conceptual models I might have forgotten while working on specific datasets and schemas, in order to get a fresher look on the subject and maybe even get to do some XML coding – happy days!

So, without thinking too much about it I set out to enroll on the Metadata: Organising and Discovering Information course (#MetadataMOOC on Twitter). Unfortunately for me the course had already started 3 weeks before. Nonetheless, the nature of the MOOC model allowed me to enroll at such a later stage without any real impairment to my learning, except for the fact that I would not be able to submit previous homework on time and get formal accreditation for it. But I didn’t mind this aspect, as I felt my main goal was to learn, not to gain points. The signing up process struck me as the easiest ever, similar to those online products we revere so much for their user-friendliness. In a minute I had created my Coursera account and I was subscribed to an awesome looking course.

I was immediately launched into the deep belly of a well-structured academic module. The video lessons neatly organised into units stacked in an orderly hierarchical tree, with only the ones done so far visible on the page, thus allowing for a bit of mystery surrounding future lessons still to come. The lessons’ titles were simply music to my ears: thesauri, Dublin Core, LCSH, HTML, DTD, CDWA Lite etc. In addition, some interesting links to be explored were grouped on the left of the workbench: announcements, downloads, homeworks, sillabus and even more appealing ones such as discussion forums. There was even a Mapping the Metadata MOOC link, where pins had been dropped on a Google Map to show the location of all course participants – thousands from what I could see, and literally from all over the world. This was getting exciting by the minute.

After the smooth, user-friendly experience of the signing-up process I went straight to the introductory video of the first unit of lessons. Even though my Mac uses HTML5 and a message popped up on the page saying that I should switch to Flash, the video launched without glitches and the course began. Dr. Pomerantz started with a welcome and a warning: this was going to be a course for total beginners, perfect for those with very little knowledge about metadata. At first that struck me as perhaps not very appropriate for me. However looking at the syllabus the course seemed to be so comprehensive, and judging by the lessons’ titles very detailed, that I was not put off by it and decided to plough ahead. The academic flavour of the MOOC experience was now beginning to tickle my taste buds. It was like being back in university, but without having to pay fees, how bizarre!

The introduction was quickly followed by a couple of brief lessons engineered around the idea of finding examples of metadata use in our daily lives: phone metadata and the NSA scandal of metadata harvesting (metadata *is* data), the new tagging feature of the latest Apple operating system Maverick, all tangible examples of metadata in action around us.

The lessons went on to explain what metadata is (data about data anyone?), with some very true statements such as:

“…this course is about something that's difficult and maybe impossible to pin down. In Information Science we study all of these weird subjective phenomena - no gravity, or electromagnetism, no well-behaved physical phenomena for us here in Information Science.”

The course then continued on to explore Dublin Core - there’s an entire unit dedicated to it - plus a whole host of metadata schemas and controlled vocabularies used to produce metadata for digital objects of all sorts.


This is how much of the course I have explored so far, and I have to say I am very impressed by it. The homework in the form of multiple-choice questions peppered with more practical exercises is very meaningful and the lessons are enriched by links, recommended readings and interviews with inspiring practitioners in the field of metadata and digital preservation.

In particular, I must mention a very good interview with historian and archivist, or rather free-range archivist (yeah!) Scott Jason (@textfiles) of the brilliant Archive Team and the even more brilliant archive.org. In a very insightful conversation with Pomerantz, Jason pointed out that through initiatives such as the Internet Archive computer history has changed forever. It is thanks to the dedication of various teams of professionals, but also of many amateur (read: nerd) collectors of all times out there, that an extensive library of videos, music, books, magazines and even software is now made freely accessible to everyone on the internet.

Such efforts are so important if we wish to preserve the current and recent history of computing technologies, while securing future access to the metadata that is being constantly produced. Faced with such a wide-scoped digital preservation task, we can only try our best to save as much as we can from oblivion, obsolescence and data corruption, without falling into the illusion that we can archive and preserve everything that has ever been created in the digital world. At the end of the day, in Scott’s words, ‘life is lossy, it is not a lossless protocol’. Preserve we can, but preserve everything shall remain mere utopia.

Screenshot taken from Dr Jeffrey Pomerantz's MOOC

Further reading about this library MOOC:

Metadata MOOC in the news by Dr. Jeffrey Pomerantz on his blog
A tale of two MOOCs by Steven Chang on Infoseer
MOOCs and Libraries by Abby Clobridge on Against the Grain

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Online education steaming ahead...

The recently published 2013 Horizon Report emphasized that online education remains a popular key trend in education delivery formats, of which the MOOC model sticks out in particular marking the future ahead.

Some online education statistics as stated in the infographic below (US market):
- 6,700.000 students enrolled in at least one online course (= 32% of all higher education enrolment)
- 3,000.000 students enrolled in a full-time online college
- 89% of public four-year universities and colleges offer online courses
- 72% completion rate for students who take online courses at a community college
- 10:1 ratio at which online colleges are growing compared to traditional colleges

MOOC statistics (US market):
- 2.6% of universities currently offer a MOOC
- 9.4% of universities have MOOCs in the planning stage
- 33,000+ students enrolled, on average, per class
- 2,000.000 approximate total enrolment across Coursera, edX, and Udacity

With regard to full-blown accreditation of MOOCs, the MOOC2DEGREE initiative represents a first step into the right direction. On the local horizon, IT Sligo will offer it's very own MOOC (a 6-week course in Lean Six Sigma Quality), Ireland's first, starting from September. However, no credits will be given.

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Is the current MOOC model in higher education sustainable?

This week I came across Coursera, a company which has partnered with several high profile universities to offer MOOC (massive open online courseware). The tagline that promises "The World's Best Courses. Online, for Free" seems like a no-brainer for potential attendees, and I readily signed up for a few interesting courses including Edinburgh's module on E-learning and Digital Cultures. But what is in it for Coursera, and indeed the institutions that produce the content?

This very issue, and in particular the contract between Coursera and the University of Michigan, is highlighted in the Chronicle of Higher Education. It seems Coursera themselves are not even sure how they will ultimately generate a sustainable revenue stream, but one possibility is through commercial advertising and sponsorship. However, The Chronicle states that "when and if money does come in, the universities will get 6 to 15 percent of the revenue"; in short, those investing in, developing and producing the content and materials will get less than a sixth of any revenue generated. One silver lining is that all IP rights remain firmly with the institutions.

Whilst there are obviously other potential gains offered by the promotional heft of the Coursera platform, I still wonder why the institutions have signed up to such a seemingly inequitable agreement with a commercial start-up. Surely the prestigious universities involved (Princeton, Stanford, UPenn) could focus on their own individual platforms, or more realistically, join the existing edX not-for-profit alliance started by MIT and Harvard?

Perhaps it is the lower up-front investment of the Coursera model that is attractive, even if a little myopic. A substantial $60m has already been invested in edX and "officials at MIT and Harvard said that eventually edX will have to figure out a way to be self-sustaining, and it does not have a business plan -- another aspect it shares with Coursera".

How open courseware will be supported long term - via institutional investment or commercial start-ups - remains to be seen. The near-zero marginal cost model of online education theoretically pushes prices close to zero also, and the trick will be to use these products to upsell or cross-sell to higher margin offerings such as degree programmes. The University of Washington has just announced exactly this - they will now be offering for-credit courses through Coursera, in line with the pricing of their existing UW fee structure (around $2000 per module, or $5000 for a set of three). Aside from these paid credit courses however, at present MOOC is generally being subsidised by the high tuition fees paid by the students who are attending the institutions and until the cost curve of higher education changes fundamentally, this will likely continue to be the case.

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Turning E-Learning into Engaged-Learning

Last January I registered for Codeacademy brimming with good intentions and motivation. The first few weeks I was a model student, but after a month or so I started missing the weekly deadlines due to work and other commitments, and shortly afterwards I gave up completely. It wasn’t a conscious decision, but once I fell behind by a couple of weeks it was all too easy to forget about it altogether (I am still getting the weekly reminder emails, which are a constant source of guilt!).

I also signed up for a Coursera course (Computing for Data Analysis) a few months ago, thinking a shorter time frame may be more manageable, but unfortunately the programme commenced at a very busy period for me and I never seemed to find the time to even get started with it. I did make it through Google’s recent Power Searching MOOC (I was primarily interested in seeing what Google view as the key issues and skills), though I admit it was a struggle, and in some cases I played the videos in the background whilst doing other things. Maybe online learning is just not for me?

So I was really interested to see the post-course reflections of Roger Peng, the tutor of the aforementioned Coursera module: Some Thoughts on Teaching R to 50,000 Students (further information on the participation levels and attendance of participants is detailed here). Peng took away several lessons from his initial experience of delivering instruction through MOOC infrastructure including: 

• 50,000 students is in some ways easier than 50 students.
• Clarity and specificity are necessary.
• Modularity is key to overcoming heterogeneity
• Time and content are more loosely connected

Peng will also be running the course through his Simply Statistics blog shortly. It will be interesting to compare the feedback and experiences of users across both platforms (read the comments accompanying Peng’s post for feedback from the Coursera participants).

I don’t believe that truly effective online teaching can ever be a case of simply videoing a face-to-face lecture and uploading it to YouTube, even though I have experienced several examples of this in the past. To do so, is largely missing the point; even if the 'content' needs to be broadly the same, it requires very different packaging. In the same way that active learning strategies are so valuable in the classroom, interaction and participation is just as important (if not more so) with online and asynchronous learning.

My own lack of success to date as an online student may partly be due to time pressures, but I am a great believer that if something is important enough you will make the time. Maybe I just wasn’t passionate enough about the topic to really push myself to see it through? But surely one of the characteristics of good instructional design involves stimulating interest and encouraging engagement (within reason)? I also get discouraged easily when faced with the prospect of lengthy presentations and videos – in this respect I think Peng’s comments about modularity are key. Personally, I am far more engaged as a learner when presented with a menu of resources each covering a single concept or idea, rather than a single longer presentation. With the former I can select the relevant content I need, achieving an immediate pay-off that motivates me to continue. I can essentially tailor the content specifically to my personal learning needs even within the infrastructure of a generic programme or module. Conversely, with the latter my interest quickly tapers off when presented with less relevant material or aspects I'm already familiar.

Most recently, I have registered for a Coursera module on Elearning and Digital Cultures starting in January 2013. A pre-course email circulated this week recommends that participants should use a blog to record and share their learning, so depending on my success this time around, you may see my own reflections on the Coursera experience here in the near future.

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Open Educational Resources: Embracing the Remix

Nothing is original according to Kirby Ferguson, presenter of the Everything is a Remix TED Talk. Innovation and creativity is nearly always derived from and built on what has come before, and simply refines and repackages it to suit a new purpose or need. Society benefits from this kind of sharing and 'remixing' as it bypasses needlessly duplicated costs, leading to more efficient transmission and dissemination of ideas.

Open Educational Resources (OERs) provide a useful illustration of Ferguson's idea. The OER space typically includes content such as open textbooks & journals, course materials and learning objects, as well as software applications and tools for teaching and learning. There is no formal, established definition of what constitutes an OER at present, however the OLCOS Roadmap* recommends three intrinsic properties for existing and future resources:

• Content and metadata should be free to access for educational purposes
• Resources and content should be liberally licensed to allow for re-use, modification and re-purposing
• Tools and applications should be open-source with open APIs

These resources are not only free to access, but ideally can potentially save educators time and effort by allowing them to remix existing content without running into copyright or IP roadblocks. However all OERs are not created equal, and finding high quality, accurate resources can take time, particularly within the context of a domain that is growing all the time. Some resources may also need a large amount of local customisation (or localisation) before they can be utilised, but at a macro level these costs are relatively small compared to the potential benefits.


OER portals
Libraries can play a key role by selecting, curating and remixing the most suitable resources for their users. Fortunately there are a number of portals and websites that have completed a substantial portion of this groundwork already.
.
Ready to Research is a collection of research-related OERs compiled by the Open University in partnership with several other UK institutions. The portal contains around 150 hours of content, including a mixture of more traditional research skills (qualitative & quantitative methods, referencing and avoiding plagiarism) alongside nascent and emerging aspects such as digital literacies, developing an online academic identity, and new technologies in publishing and dissemination.

Rather than creating new content and material from scratch, the site acts as a portal or toolkit by pointing users to a carefully curated set of resources, all of which have been made available by the authors under Creative Commons. Consequently there is a real sense of richness and variety to the material, stemming from the broad range of perspectives on offer - from the incipient reflections of a PhD blogger to the experienced advice of an LSE Professor. It is also great to see the excellent NDLR MyRI content incorporated as part of the Metrics and Data Measurement section. The site is suitable for end-users, but educators may prefer to simplify or streamline the comprehensive bank of resources by selecting (or indeed re-purposing where copyright allows) particular key resources.


Open University MOOC on OERs
For those interested in learning more about curriciulum and instructional design using OERs, the Open University’s Institute of Educational Technology is running a MOOC on the topic in Autumn 2012. More details will be announced soon but you can register your interest here.

*Geser, Guntram (2007-01). "Open Educational Practices and Resources. OLCOS Roadmap 2012". Salzburg, Austria: Salzburg Research, EduMedia Group. p. 20. Retrieved 2010-11-06.

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"Outreach is easier if you reach people through others” A summary of the Rare Books Group Annual Seminar 2017: Bringing New Audiences to Special Collections,

Michelle Breen is a librarian at the University of Limerick. Michelle manages the library’s communications, conducts a range of assessment activities and performs research linked to customer service and quality initiatives in an academic library. 
Michelle has presented widely on information management and assessment topics and has had her work published in peer reviewed journals, conference proceedings and LIS practitioner literature. 
Michelle is an active member of the LAI, advocating for CPD for library staff and she acts as a moderator and content creator for the Rudaí23 MOOC. 

Picture courtesy of Elaine Harrington

The Chair of the Rare Books Group David Meehan of DCU welcomed an enthusiastic group of librarians and archivists to the Chester Beatty library on November 24th. The delegates from all over Ireland’s museums, archives and libraries, (academic special and public) discussed how to bring new audiences to Special Collections.

I am a member of the LAI and treasurer of the Western Regional Section so I know first hand the value of the contributions of the various sections within the LAI but I must confess this was my first Rare Books Group event. It won’t be my last.

I am also a member of CONUL’s Communications & Outreach group and I am very interested in Outreach and how libraries can become better at it.

I won’t repeat here all of the topics and talk titles from the programme, you can view a summary on Twitter at #RBGseminar17 or view the speaker details on the programme. What I found most interesting on the day was the different successful approaches to outreach that are being practiced in Irish libraries and archives.

Outreach is defined as "an organization's involvement in the community," so libraries who provide services to their external audiences are ticking one particular type of outreach box. However, outreach to traditional audiences could be considered a declining business. The traditional scholarly or academic community is moving online because that is where they expect to find the material they want for their research. Inreach, (which is outreach inside your organisation) could therefore become a significant strand in your library’s activities, engaging your most loyal supporters, already key stakeholders, in your collections and what you are trying to achieve through them.

Perhaps you’ve lost the outreach opportunity to the family historian with the growing dominance of Ancestry. But there are new audiences out there; children, teenagers, and young people for whom there is a resurgent interest in the past. Is it the 1916 factor? The public has an insatiable demand for history at present. Giving teachers, learners, senior citizens, and occasional users a helping hand in our libraries is crucial for libraries. With community impact highlighted through funding agencies such as the Wellcome Trust it is smart to think about outreach to these new audiences.

Picture courtesy of Elaine Harrington

How do we ‘do’ Outreach?

Doing outreach is hard when there are physical barriers in the way of your collections. The very thing you want to show off is under lock and key, so consider your audiences as if they were going to be guests in your home. Send them an invitation, make the environment welcoming, provide a hot or cold drink, give them Wi-Fi and access to the bathrooms. They are your guests!

Run a lunchtime lecture, don’t be afraid that only 5 people will turn up, they WILL tell their friends, and you will get more people the next time. Consider carefully where you host your event, the hard to access parts of your campus or building or town might provide mystery and intrigue to your audiences and they might be thrilled to be there. Do good signage, promise them coffee and they will come. Plan your event carefully and you will naturally find the collaborators you need.

If you are in the glorious position of being able to design a seminar space, like the beautiful seminar room in Chester Beatty Library, then ask your audiences what they’d like to see in there. Make it clear what you can offer them, what they are getting when they come. If you are ever in need of advice about Outreach and how to do it well I recommend you tap in to the expertise of the Rare Books Group of the LAI. I am sure that their chairperson David Meehan can steer you in the right direction or you can ‘reach out’ to them through their Twitter account or their webpage.

Keep up the good work everyone at LAI RBG! Go raibh maith agaibh.

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LILAC 2016

Guest post by Colin O'Keeffe

Ireland hosts the annual LILAC Conference every few years, 2016 is one of those years, and this year’s conference was held from 21st-23rd March at UCD’s O’Brien Centre for Science. Although hosting the conference in Ireland increases accessibility for Irish librarians it also diminishes the chance to secure funding to attend the full three days of events, a more likely scenario when travel to the UK is involved. That situation applied to me, I secured (a not unsubstantial) amount of funding to attend as a day delegate on Tuesday, 22nd March. This was to be my first LILAC, and as an Information Literacy Librarian, this conference was of particular interest to me. I booked in advance in order to avail of the marginally discounted early-bird rate but more importantly to secure a place in the parallel sessions that I wanted to attend. These sessions constitute the majority of LILAC’s programme of events and certain sessions are very popular, therefore it pays to study the full programme before booking to ensure a place.

From others’ descriptions I knew that the primary distinction between LILAC and the numerous other conferences that I have attended over the years would be the scale of the former. This year’s LILAC remained true to form, consisting of 93 separate events including three keynote addresses. Here are the sessions that I attended and my impression of them.

Keynote Address: Char Booth

The keynote address for day two was delivered by the current Library Associate Dean at California State University San Marcos, Char Booth. She has, to date written several books relating to library accessibility and reflective teaching, with the latter topic being the primary subject of her keynote, titled ‘Why Reflect? The Holistic Process of Stepping Back’. Char’s talk was engaging and well delivered, initially exploring the theory behind self-reflection, before describing initiatives that she has undertaken in order to assess and challenge both her own and subsequently her team’s teaching practices. The presentation then changed focus to examine the concept of ‘information privilege’, apparently many students are unaware that the access to information that they take for granted at university will cease on graduation. Additionally, students are unaware of the monetary cost of information. Char lauded the ever expanding open web and outlined how a group of her students edited a Wikipedia page for assessment purposes. Overall, Char’s enthusiasm, delivery, content and very polished slides made this particular keynote a very enjoyable experience. Slide are available here.

Parallel Session 1: Antony Groves

The first parallel session that I attended took the form of a workshop. It introduced and demonstrated Vine, a video sharing service that allows users record and share six second looped videos, created via a smartphone app. At the University of Sussex Library this has been utilised to show the physical location of the library, promote library training sessions and demonstrating of database filtering. Though easy to use, six seconds is a very limited amount of time to teach anything, though adequate time to advertise or highlight something to viewers. My group easily created and uploaded a Vine via smartphone; this service could easily be deployed on a library website, e-learning platform or display screen, though the looped nature of the video would require a full suite of Vines to ensure that content remains fresh to viewers. See Antony's vines here.

Parallel Session 2: Kimberly Mullins

The next session was a presentation on a new librarian/faculty partnership approach to integrate IL into academic courses; this is viewed as the most effective way to make IL relevant to students, which can sometimes prove challenging. Kimberly introduced IDEA (Interview, design, embed and assess) as a framework to integrate IL into academic courses. Librarian/faculty collaboration is considered the ‘Holy Grail’ in relation to IL delivery and IDEA ensures that IL outcomes and course outcomes are one in the same. IDEA is something I would definitely consider if I had faculty buy in. See Kimberly's presentation here.

Parallel Session 3: Fiona Mogg

I then attended a talk that outlined a project that saw Cardiff University Library, via school partnerships, provide critical thinking and digital literacy support to Welsh school students. The talk covered two initiatives undertaken by the library. The first was a MOOC, this was offered to level 3 students preparing for university in Wales, with the library providing a supporting role. The second initiative was a library/school partnership with a group of schools who are preparing students for the Welsh Baccalaureate. The library was tasked with providing support for both digital literacy and critical thinking. The projects seemed like very worthwhile initiatives that could be replicated in Ireland. Full presentation here.

Parallel Session 4: Philip Russell, Claire McGuinness, Jane Burns and Emer O'Brien

Next was a progress report on what librarians are doing, via the Task Force on Information Literacy (TFIL) to advance information and digital literacy in Ireland, especially in relation to lobbying government. The challenges that we face in Ireland in relation to promoting IL to government were outlined. The fact that references to libraries and information services were omitted from several recently released government digital literacy and ICT reports raised eyebrows. TIFL’s response and future plans were outlined. It seems that IL is still not on the radar of Irish government and will continue to play ‘poor cousin’ when compared to ICT and digital literacy/skills. The challenge continues. Access the full presentation via slidehare.

Parallel Session 5: Rachel Posaner and Emma Green

The final session described a distance learning project, undertaken via Moodle, to provide IL support to a large group of NHS students. In this initiative, four librarians utilised lots of tools to provide support to 1,500 students including online reading lists online forums for discussions and screen sharing technology. This one I felt was useful as the college where I work provides a library service to a group of Malaysian students, so online and distance support is the only feasible option for this cohort. We are about to re-launch our website using Libguides over the summer and already have online reading lists, so what the four librarians have been able to achieve in relation to IL support is feasible for this solo IL librarian. Full presentation available here.

Though I’ve attended many library conferences over the years, I’ve never been to one with the scale of LILAC. The amount of session choices, though fantastic, is somewhat of a double edged sword, you get to choose what you know you’ll enjoy, but you know you’ll miss out on a lot of good sessions. I attended 5 sessions, the maximum amount, out of 31 run on that day, but there were others that I would have really enjoyed also. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my day at the conference; to get others’ musings on the full three days I consulted Twitter, and there, via conference storyboards the consensus seems to be overwhelmingly positive for LILAC 2016.

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Could 2013 be the Year of Responsive Design?

Rather than tailoring disconnected designs each tailored to a particular device or browser, we should treat them as facets of the same experience. In other words we can craft sites that are not only more flexible, but that can adapt to the media that renders them.

Ethan Marcotte, Responsive Web Design, 2011 

2012 was perhaps the year of the M-word (that's MOOC, in case you missed it) and open access, both of which captured the mainstream's attention for various reasons. This year it may be the turn of Responsive Design (or "I'm not saying native apps are dead but....").

I blogged about this idea some time ago, and I still hold a similar view. I think HTML5-based web apps will continue to grow at the expense of native mobile apps, as content providers realise that responsive design can often offer a far more elegant solution. Digital publishers must now now only consider downscaling desktop design for smartphones and tablets, but also upscaling it for TV. As HTML5 is accessible through any browser it means anyone can access it; with a native app you need an iOS version, an Android version, a Windows version (well, possibly :)).

Many people don't just use mobile devices to access content on the go, but more generally also. From a content provision perspective (particularly for publishers of journals, newspapers etc.) responsive design can work really well (The Boston Globe is one example, though they also have a mobile app alongside it, so make of that what you will!). In the context of library websites, evidence suggests a lot of people still view static information like opening hours and contact details from their phones. You don't need an app for that; good responsive design makes much more sense. However, the growing use of mobile devices does provide an opportunity to rethink your overall content strategy in general. Content providers normally pare down and streamline their information delivery significantly for mobiles, but if it's not important enough for the mobile environment, is it really valuable content at all? Delivering a more targeted and less cluttered content approach across all devices may well be a more successful way of reaching your users.

That said, there are obviously contexts where apps can add real value compared with simply viewing information in a browser. Content aimed at creating rich interactive experiences for users or apps that utilise functionality specific to certain devices (for instance, augmented reality apps that tourists can use on their phones) are some examples where native apps still make sense. Apps can also offer benefits from a branding and marketing point of view by creating unique and memorable experiences for the user, and this can apply for libraries also. So mobile apps may well be sticking around for the next while, but the nature and quantity of them may be very different to what we see today.

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Libraries must embrace the liquid revolution

Guest post by David Egan, academic library user and mature student

Imagine you are a fourteen year old boy who wants to learn how to use a cool piece of audio software - Garageband for example - and ask yourself which would you prefer to do: read a manual that was written by a team of software engineers who are not inclined to use a comprehensible word if there is an incomprehensible technical alternative, or listen to a teenager who is fluent in both the programme, and your particular strain of the English language, talk you step by step through the basics while you watch his computer screen illustrate exactly what yours should be doing.

If you chose the former you probably are a software engineer who prefers acronyms to euonyms. If, on the other hand, you chose the latter, you are, I suspect, normal. This option is not only more painless but it is also arguably far more effective. Using this approach, as with the manual, you get the semantic meaning of the words, however, you also get the audio stimulus of hearing the words being spoken and you get a visual display that reinforces memory and assists understanding. This argument has been well made by many lecturers to their students promoting the virtues of attending lectures above simply reading text books.

Since returning to college as a mature student, I have needed little persuasion on this point. I enjoy lectures far more than I do reading textbooks. I have also rediscovered the pleasures of being back within the walls of an academic library. The silence, the smell of books, the sheer weight of intellect that lines the aisles lends these halls a literary gravitas that cannot be matched in the architecture of lesser places. In spite of this, in the context of the technological world in which we live, if the Web is analogous to the teenager in the Garageband instruction video, it pains me to say it, but academic libraries are analogous to the comparatively daunting and difficult Garageband user manual.

Whether we like it or not, this is the age of the Web. Instant, excellent and unlimited entertainment, communication, titillation and education, and it is especially in this last sector that libraries are suffering by comparison. Wonderful places though they are, compared to typing the word "Descartes" into Youtube, libraries are intimidating and difficult. Kids today, while researching video game cheats or school projects, have learned how to go about getting answers on the web and, given a college project in a few years’ time, I suspect that many of them will at least begin their search with this approach. As YouTube and Google get better and better at bringing up easy to perceive and easy to understand answers, it could be predicted that fewer and fewer kids will bother to progress beyond their computer screens.

I love reading, but as a student with a full time job and a full time family I don't get as much time as I'd like to settle down with a book. In spite of my attraction to them, libraries are often not an option. I do however possess an iPhone, and these days, although I cannot read while traveling heat sealed into a Luas, while walking from stop to destination, while unpacking a dishwasher or while mowing a lawn, thanks to all-you-can-eat data, I can listen.

On Youtube, I can listen to debates, discussions and interviews involving some of the greatest thinkers in their fields. On Topdocumentaryfilms.com I can listen to over 2,600 documentary films or collections, on topics from “nine-eleven” to Nietzsche, and on iTunes-U I can listen to some of the finest lecturers alive or dead delivering whole semesters of recitations, crafted over many years, for the most privileged of students from the worlds best universities. Mooc-list.com lists 140 colleges and institutions currently offering “massive, open, online courses” or MOOCs (see Laura Connaughton’s post of July 17) and most of these courses include free audio or video content. Thanks to this technological revolution I have been lucky enough to sit (stand, walk, mow, etc.) through hundreds of hours of these lectures from the hallowed halls of Oxford, Harvard, Cambridge, MIT, Yale and Stanford.

This, if you will, is liquid literature (though “vociture” might be a more etymologically correct term), and its volume is growing by the day at a rate with which its older relation, solid literature - that which involves the written word - could never compete. As documented elsewhere on this blog (including Alexander Kouker’s post from January last on the first digital-only public library, BiblioTech, in Texas) libraries have done well in their efforts to adapt to the emergence of the soft version of solid literature - e-books, pdfs, electronic articles and blogs - however, it seems that they have been far more resistant to embracing the liquid revolution and as a result, they may lose out to the charm and convenience of the most popular and brilliant librarian ever: Google.

So, if this were true, what could be done to arrest the demise of our beloved libraries? Writing in a recent issue of a college newsletter Alexander Kouker moots the idea of librarians roving the aisles equipped with iPads aiming to assist unsure patrons. This is a good idea for a couple of reasons. First of all, if I may judge fellow students and fellow males by my poor standards, while blindly fingering entirely the wrong shelves with feigned command, a student is about as likely to ask a librarian for help as a lost male driver is to ask a passerby for directions. Secondly, this allows the librarian to expose the true, virtually (if you'll forgive the pun) unlimited potential of the library to direct the user to their goal.

These roving iPad librarians (I will resist the temptation to refer to them as iBrarians!) could approach unsure users, direct them towards the correct shelves, and advise them of what is available locally and in other libraries. Roving librarians could be in communication with each other by way of Viber or a similar app, and one who is less qualified in a particular field could instantly summon a colleague with the appropriate knowledge of Web resources required by the user.

If, going one step further, libraries were equipped with a number of simple computers - with nothing more than a basic capacity to browse the Web quickly - and a continuous supply of cheap, airline type disposable headphones, the roving librarian could guide the user to one such station, and Viber that machine with the relevant links that they have called up on their iPad enabling the user to read, watch or listen to the remote literature available in their area of interest.

As Alexander pointed out there are obstacles that need to be overcome before such a scheme could operate smoothly,  cost and noise being the two most obvious. With regard to the former, if libraries were directing large volumes of traffic to income generating sites like YouTube, perhaps they could use that traffic as collateral in negotiating some small fee. There may also be advertising opportunities that they themselves could exploit. The issue of noise is a physical one that could conceivably be dealt with by way of quiet areas closed off from semi-quiet areas as is currently the practice in many libraries including Iowa University Library (see their noise policy here).

For better or worse, we are raising a generation of kids who are used to convenience learning. Some may argue that the realm of academic libraries, or libraries in general, is limited to that of solid literature and that audio and video are for some reason out of bounds. However, if one looks at the purpose of a library, it is hard to see why one should make such a distinction when what differs is, after all, simply the method of recording. Can it seriously be argued that an idea is worth more if it is recorded with written words instead of spoken ones? If this is true, should we disregard the teachings of Socrates? If it is not true, why should libraries limit themselves to the epistemology of the written word? In fact, one could argue that, given the relative absence of a structured catalogue of liquid literature, libraries have an even greater role to play in this area in that they are well positioned to impose such a structure, at least upon the more important works of the medium.

Posted upon the blog of John Blyberg of the Darien Library in Connecticut is a document entitled “The Darien Statements” which arose out of a summit there concerning the future of libraries. It is a grand, concise and optimistic list of statements that the authors believe to be true about the library including the notion that “the library has a moral obligation to adhere to its purpose despite social, economic, environmental, or political influences.” It goes on to state that “our methods need to rapidly change to address the profound impact of information technology on the nature of human connection and the transmission and consumption of knowledge. If the library is to fulfill its purpose in the future, librarians must commit to a culture of continuous operational change, accept risk and uncertainty as key properties of the profession, and uphold service to the user as our most valuable directive”.

It is a bold aim, but one that is surely worthy of continued pursuit.

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Five librarian webinars in April

Below is a set of interesting and free webinars taking place this month. Topics include deciphering social media analytics, the application of universal learning design in the library, Windows 8.1, technological change in delivering reference services and managing your library’s web presence.

Extracting real value from social media with analytics
Tuesday, 22 April 2014, 6pm – 7pm (Irish Standard Time)
Learn how social media analytics can help you achieve a 360-degree customer view by transforming “Big Data” from millions of online sources into valuable insights. Go beyond just listening to uncover patterns and trends in attitudes and sentiment from particular segments, identify relationships and affinities associated with your product or brand, and discover evolving topics that can open the doors to new market opportunities.
Attendees will learn how to:

1. Capture unstructured data, including text and emoticons, and transform it into actionable insight via text analytics and sentiment analysis
2. Incorporate social media data with other data types, including survey research, demographics and transactional detail, to achieve a 360-degree view of your customers and anticipate what they are likely to do next
3. Get started, including a social media analytics framework to assess where you are today and how to progress to the next step, with real-stories of organisations that have taken the journey from "just listening" to gaining true ROI

Accessibility of library spaces and services: thinking beyond automatic door openers

Wednesday, 23 April 2014, 6 – 7pm IST

Libraries generally avoid a one-size-fits-all customer service philosophy because library users have diverse needs and interests. However, anticipating and responding to special needs can yield a patchwork or panicked approach.

The concepts of Universal Design (UD) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) have application in the public library setting. Using the UDL research-based framework, examine how a range of library users might engage and access library spaces and services. Learn how to think about what makes your library truly welcoming to all people, beyond an automatic door opener.

This webinar can benefit all public library and library system staff, especially those who work with special populations.

For more information about Serving Special Populations, visit http://pld.dpi.wi.gov/pld_ssp

Note - Internet Explorer is the preferred browser for this platform (Java required). No registration is required for this webinar.

Introduction to Windows 8.1

Wednesday, 23 April 2014, 6 – 7:30pm IST

Discover what is new with the latest release of Windows and how it will help you in everyday business tasks, wherever and whenever you need it. The consistent and new interface for your PC, phone and tablet computing and the new tools and applications that will enable you to get things done will be demonstrated. 

The latest version of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, cloud connectivity, and built-in apps working together will be some of the tips shared.

Adapting reference service to new technology: embrace the evolution

Wednesday, 23 April 2014, 8pm – 9pm IST

Is traffic at your reference desk disappearing? How do you reach out to the users who make use of your library’s power and Internet access – but not your human resources? How can your library support flipped learning without going getting sucked down a MOOC-shaped black hole? Can librarians maintain their brand as information experts in the age of pervasive connectedness?

Portable Internet devices and persistent access to online resources is changing the way people learn. With that come significant shifts to the way people use library spaces and services. Rather than fearing this disruption, libraries should lean into the change. 

Through mobile library services, flipped and co-learning experiences, and virtual reference tools, libraries can continue to demonstrate the importance of reference skills.

At the end of this one-hour webinar, participants will:

• Identify the opportunities presented by changes in public technology use

• Determine strategies for integrating technology in the reference workflow

• Be able to tie reference service into long-term plans for comprehensive library service

Web content strategies for libraries

Wednesday, 30 April 2014, 4pm – 5pm IST

Are you happy with the content on your web site? Is there a consistent voice and message across the whole site? Is all of your site's content accurate and up-to-date? Is it clear who is in charge of which content, and how often new content should be posted? Do staff responsible for creating content have the skills, time, and support they require to do so successfully? Is there a clear process for vetting new kinds of content? 

If you answered “No” to any of these questions, never fear: content strategy to the rescue! 

This webinar will help attendees develop their own content strategy for creating and managing content of all types across a typical library web site. Improve the overall web experience for your customers and make life easier for staff!

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The good librarian

https://www.flickr.com/photos/fabi_k/3548653738

Michelle Dalton, in her most recent Libfocus post called on librarians to communicate with each other more and to share our knowledge and experience. She made this call based on a previous post by Aoife Lawton. The post that follows can be seen to be following in the spirit of their call.

I recently put a call out to a number of librarians asking what, for them, makes a good librarian. I didn't try to define what a good librarian was. I worked on on the basis that we know one when we see one. And that we recognise the qualities that make a good one. I asked for three qualities from each person.

So, what, then, are those qualities that make a good librarian? I received, what I consider to be, excellent replies and these replies are posted, word for word, below... [each persons answer is one paragraph]

Obviously it depends so much on the role, but in acquisitions I think proven analytical skills, excellent communication and an ability to up-skill quickly are essential. The evolution of the digital environment means no one can rest on their laurels. There are obviously a number of other things such as being approachable and organised, but those are top for me right now

1) People skills - not necessarily are you gregarious or extrovert, but can you engage with people? Do you have a sense of empathy? Do you like helping people? Librarianship is first and foremost a service profession.  You need to provide a good quality service to your users, and being able to engage with people, who have a wide variety of library familiarity, goes a long way in establishing that.  I remember a colleague laughing in the face of someone who asked a really stupid question, a really really stupid question.  That’s appalling.  You keep a straight face and answer the question to the patron’s satisfaction, then, if you like, laugh about it afterwards, privately.
2) IT skills – like it or not, technology is ubiquitous.  Unless you’re specialising in, for example, rare books or special collections, you’ll be using IT a lot (heck, even if you are rare books bod or collections specialist, you’re still likely to be using computers. I’m not saying you need to be able to code, or hack into networks, but you at the very least when someone from your IT department (if you have one, that is) speaks to you about computers, you should be able to discern if he or she is pulling the wool over your eyes.
3) A synthesis of 1) and 2) Pedagogical skills -  give a man a fish etc etc.  Your, and your users, life will be made easier if instead of you finding the material or doing the catalogue search, you can effectively teach your users how to do the same.  Can you effectively cut through library jargon and demonstrate your mastery of your library by showing others how it’s done?
Finally a key skill in the negative.  A love of books is not a pre-requisite or even necessarily desirable for work in libraries: you’ll spend far more time dealing with people I’m afraid

I would say the ability to network and market the library, the ability to embrace change, a willingness to learn

It's interesting because I would say there's a big difference in what employers look for in public libraries compared to academic. I'm going to answer it from a public libraries perspective. The main thing you need to have is experience though the type of experience can vary. In public  libraries its still very much about the books, so even if your previous experience is in a book shop, it will count. You need to be able to demonstrate a good knowledge of fiction. The second thing I would say is a good knowledge of how public libraries fit into the wider community, their ethos, their purpose or role that they play in the community- who they serve and why. That's not necessarily a skill rather than a way of thinking. Public libraries are all about people and serving the community and a good librarian has to be as well. The third thing I would look for is people skills - good communication.a good librarian will develop partnerships, build relationships, connect with groups, and communicate daily with colleagues and public. You need to be able to resolve issues both with the public and colleagues. Unfortunately this is something you learn with time, you can't do a MOOC on it. You will get asked in interviews in public libraries about this and its important that you can demonstrate that you can handle conflict through good communication.
Hope this is helpful, they're not the kind of things you can learn but you can acquire them through volunteering, or working in other sectors, not just libraries

Three things that I look for when hiring library staff:
I like to try new things in my library. Whether that's eliminating the traditional non-circulating reference collection, standardizing loan rules so that everything goes out for the same amount of time, circulating unusual items like sewing machines and ukuleles, or using open source software, I need my staff to be open to experimentation; staff buy-in is essential when you're trying to push the envelope.
Working with the public, especially a changing public with evolving needs and expectations, can be difficult. In order to provide excellent service to the public, staff need to be calm, collected, and courteous. Staff also need these traits to work with well each other. If staff don't get along, work could become a lot harder. This is especially true in a library with a small staff – like mine.
Finally, and most importantly, I look for people who want to work at my library. I want staff to be excited to be here and to find satisfaction in the work.
These three traits – being open to experimentation, being calm/collected/courteous, and being excited about the job – are some of what I look for when hiring.
PS – I'm always willing to review resumes and cover letters and to talk to new librarians looking for advice! [Any body wishing to take up this offer can contact Alex Lent]

Qualities would be patience kindness and a passion for life. Library skills are a given as you just did a degree or masters, work helps you develops those skills, Skills would be to lead, work well with teams and look for collaborations to better the library even outside collaboration, I suppose it depends on the library sector but they need to know that sector really well and the organisation. And know the leaders, mover and shakers within that sector

I guess the things I'd be looking for are an aptitude with IT skills or willingness to try it out. I think it's important for all aspects of library work that someone is thorough and I'd be trying to establish this from CV and interview questions. Finally because of the environment we work in (academic libraries) where library work can vary greatly, I'd be looking for flexibility.

For a cataloguing librarian -someone with attention to detail, self-motivated and enthusiastic.It's hard to separate out skills, temperament and aptitude - particularly when librarians undertake so many different roles, but the longer I work the more I value good communication skills, which are vital in every environment.

I think interest /curiosity is key, along with respect for users, a commitment to professional development, effective searching skills, & a lot of energy

Sure, no problems. Three skills, qualities or characteristics hmm let me see... Creative, analytical and humble. Let me explain why! Creative, to be curious and always learn new things and questioning what we are doing. Analytical, to be able to go behind the obvious see patterns and be able to see consequences and draw conclusions. Humble, to be able to understand and be empathetic to keep good relations and networks and capable to communicate in a polite way.

I would say adaptability, customer service and resilience. The profession is changing so fast in so many ways that you need to be able to adapt to things as they happen. You also have to be prepared to think outside the box and try new career paths within the field if needed. Customer service is important as too many people still think all we do is sit in an office and read books all day. You need to be good with people to work in most library jobs. Finally resilience as it's not an easy profession to work in and sometimes you need a thick skin to cope with both changes and patrons!

Willingness to learn new skills or update existing ones & show evidence thereof. Willingness to change & adapt & evidence thereof. If resistance is futile (the Borg) at least use it your advantage. Willingness to work in a team - don't ask someone to do something they you're not prepared to do; listen to others' reasons for not doing X, sometimes just listening is sufficient & other times a longer process may be required for both sides. Back to willingness to adapt.

I would say: a desire to continuously learn and develop new skills and expertise, a willingness and ability to collaborate and build relationships, & you need to be a good communicator too

Be creative - being able to identify opportunities and spot potential for a service or resource that is not being delivered by other units in the wider organisation. Being creative helps librarians embrace change.
Know your audience - be they students, academics or the general public, if you don't understand the needs of the people you support, or if you don't know how to ask the right questions to get to that point, then you've failed.
Be a champion for your profession - be that locally by advocating for the library in the wider organisation or nationally/internationally through representation on committees/groups and by contributing to the research literature.

Enthusiasm for the profession, pro-active mindset, willingness to learn continuously

a LIS degree. Experience can be acquired on the job (with a hard-working attitude as the prerequisite)

1. Interesting and Interested. These qualities can't be understated and I think one informs and develops the other.Librarians tend to come from a wide variety of backgrounds and have lots of different interests- this means our scope of information is quite broad. To be interested in users of our services, not just in their well being and research needs but to be interested in what they have to say- how they say it and in what contexts helps us learn new things and new ways to interact with people.
2. Love to Learn. Being a librarian is the career where you are guaranteed to learn something new every day
3. Resilience - Some days are harder then others, some people will never understand you worth or what you do, others expect you to be a miracle worker with no funding.... getting a job in this sector can be disheartening.

1. Be sociable. You should be interacting with other library staff, users and any other stakeholders: telling them about what you and your library are doing and learning about what they're doing.
2. Be curious. As a librarian you're in a great position to be always learning new things. If you're not, refocus your job to make sure you are.
3. Be strategic. Library's change slowly so plan ahead for the projects that might take take six months or two years to come together - always keep a few long term projects or potential projects in mind.
Not that I consider myself an exemplar of the above but it's something I aim for!

1. user/client focused, rather than a library-centric mind-set
2. the ability/aptitude to continually identify how new technologies can be harnessed to support No.1
3.to be able to work methodically,accurately,with attention to detail so that (all) outputs are reliable and factual/evidence-based where possible

People skills, including communication skills, are essential.

 A librarian must be willing to learn.  You can learn how to do most things if you want to.
 A librarian needs to be able to adapt to change and have a flexible approach to work

Firstly I would look for someone who is motivated and passionate and really wants to work in a library. Who is willing to join committees and advocate for the profession. 

I would look for someone who is curious, who keeps an eye on current trends in the library world and is willing to upskill to improve their skills. 

Finally I think it’s important to have a sense of social justice and empathy. We deal with the public a lot, so it’s good to have empathy to them and your workmates. As we deal in information it’s very important to have a sense of social justice and value intellectual freedom and privacy.

A big thanks, in no particular order, goes to Shona Thoma, Mick O'Dwyer , Ger Prendergast, Jack Hyland, Ronan Madden, Jane Burns, David Hughes, Helen Fallon, Michelle Dalton Niamh O'Donovan, Siobhan Dunne, Elaine Harrington, Claire Sewell, Daniel Gunnarrson, Brid McGrath, John McManus, Breeda Herlihy, Siobhan McGuinness, Alex Lent and Alex Kouker...

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Advice for LIS grads entering the job market

@libfocus thanks for the share. What would be your top tip for recent graduates trying to enter the job market?

— Slip Ireland (@SLIPIreland) June 25, 2015

Some variation of the above question is one that librarians often see in their Twitter feed. With that in mind I thought it might be helpful to gather together some such tips into one place. Rather than just having my tips I decided to ask others librarians for their personal tips and advice. What follows, in no particular order,  are mine and their tips.


"Get on Twitter. And when on Twitter - spend time on your bio. Let people know who you are. And then engage, engage, engage: Tweet, Retweet, discuss articles, engage in dialogue with others. Follow key #lis people. Use the lists function to manage those you follow.
Network. Librarians are know for their collegiality. If somebody offers to help they mean it. Keep their email on file for down the road when you might need advice. Use those you meet working in the field as mentors. We want to help the next generation.
Create your brand and keep it updated. Use Twitter, LinkedIn, Blogging. Don't let it get out of date. And don't put stuff on social media you wouldn't want an employer to see or know. Employers do look at social media platforms when hiring people. Put your best foot forward.
If you don't want to have your own blog do guest posts - @Libfocus encourages guest bloggers.
Apply for anything to get experience. Expect to start at the bottom of the heap. In the near future I expect a library qualification to be a basic requirement for an entry level job.
Expect 50 people to apply for every you job you do.
But persevere - librarianship (and related field jobs) rocks..."

"I think my top tip is to keep it about the work. Don't get bogged down in finding a permanent job, just keep focused on doing work you find interesting, be it voluntary, paid whatever. If you're focused on doing work you enjoy you will always be learning, you will be moving forward and enjoying what you are doing, which is the main thing."

"Getting experience is the key.  I did a great internship with Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI) it helped me get on the ladder. (Controversial, I know to be praising internships).
Really work on your CV and cover letter, with huge competition for the few available jobs, you only have seconds to make an impression.
Make sure your CV / cover letter is tailored to the job you're applying for.
Keep a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) diary-  (I use Google sheets) - to keep track of examples of your CPD for future reference for interviews.
Get involved with LAI groups / sections, go to CPD events, write guest blog posts, put all this on CV. It shows your dedication to the profession."

"One suggestion I would have is to keep your skills updated - learning doesn't stop when you finish your MLIS."

"Know the library sector you are entering. For example if you wish to enter the legal sector, know the issues, the challenges, the current topics, for and of the area. Look up current material - journals within the sector or conferences that have been given, assess what they have been talking about. 

Whatever the library sector is (a) understand different types of library management systems, even if you have never used them have a knowledge of them and (b) the users of the library so again if in the legal sector you have a range of users, and you also have students or trainee solicitors that you may need to look after. If it is the public library sector know the local authority and the community that uses that library. 

Be prepared for long interviews, with two or more on the panel.  Be prepared to know Irish for Public library positions and be prepared to have a full drivers license as a requirement in some cases for public library positions"

"I would say be very ambitious and apply to loads of different places, not just libraries. Apply to anything or anywhere related to information management, customer service, IT or IT support And apply for loads of jobs.  If you don't apply don't expect anything to happen. Also get extra ready for interviews, find a mentor and ask for coaching before every interview"

"Volunteer if you can afford it. Say yes to as many opportunities as you dare. Join a professional organisation. Join a committee."


"Every interview/role deserves a fresh version of you and your CV. This is your chance to convey in your cover letter, cv and interview that  you understand what is involved in the job, how you meet the requirements (and exceed them!) and that by hiring you will add to the expertise and development of the workplace.
Make sure everyone you know, knows you are looking for a job. Many jobs are not advertised in the public space, often roles are minimally advertised so having a number of people keeping an eye out for you can help. It is important that they know your skills and interests as non-traditional library roles might need some translating.
Stay connected to your classmates, teachers and your professional network.  Join the LAI - students have free membership during their period of study and for one year after they graduate.
Keep looking for ways to keep your CPD up to date not just with library skills but with IT, communications, and people skills.
Looking for a job is very hard and it can take a lot of you, especially given the competitiveness of the market. It is important to remember that this is only one part of your life at this one time. It does not define you.  You will find work, it may take time and you may have to take step sideways to get to where you want to be."

"I would say don't be afraid to try something different to what you expected. This can help you gain valuable experience and skills. For example if you want to work in an academic library don't discount non-academic jobs. I Would also advise having some sort of blog / website to showcase your online presence. Make sure employers can find good things about you online."

"Don't knock something and be unwilling to try it if you think it's not well paid enough. Think of what skills will you learn from trying it instead. Go outside what you think is the zone for that job to learn skills to use in that job."

"Though there are glimmers of hope for new and recent graduates over the past year or so, it’s still challenging to get a foot in the door in the workplace. A few tips I would suggest (having been unemployed for a short time myself or let’s just say ‘in between jobs’!). Keep in touch with people – be on Twitter, attend networking events, meet colleagues for coffee – basically keep in touch with the ‘Library world’. It’s really easy to fall out of the loop when you’re not working in the field you want to be.  You have to make a conscious effort to keep involved.
If you can, keep improving your CPD, look out for events run by, for example, the NPD or LAI CDG or ANLTC and attend them if you can. Have a look at doing a MOOC – again, improving your CV each time. And most of these suggestions are free.
Don’t lose hope! That’s really important to just keep positive about things, sometimes your career path will bring you on a scenic route, but that’s ok – you’ll gain skills and experience that will keep boosting your CV and can be transferable for further job opportunities."

"Be adaptable, be familiar with new tech & for ***** sake dont give anyone the 'I love books' line on why you want to be a librarian ;)"

"... LIS grads getting-a-job advice, that's a tricky one.
The one advantage of completing the UCD / DBS course is that you could potentially work in many different employment contexts. Keeping an open mind regarding a chosen/preferred "career path" (an oxymoron in itself of course) is therefore one thing to consider from the outset.
If the determination and aim is to settle into an academic library setting, I would emigrate for a few years before entertaining Jobbridge or underpaid short-term contracts. I know from talking to recent graduates (here and outside) how seriously exhausting and difficult thing still are. A lot of people are very demoralised. As you know, competition is still more than stiff in Ireland for academic library jobs. If I happened to just come out of library school, I'd skip the circus here and pitch for a job abroad.
This is probably something you didn't want to hear, but that would be my honest advice to anyone looking for an academic library job."

"In 140 characters? ;) 1) NETWORK 2)  Find a niche - a specialism, something you either enjoy or are good at 3) Don't be afraid of internships - these can be a foot in the door. Join the LAI & attend as many seminars/conferences as you can - they often have student/unemployed rates. Oh and join Twitter :)"

"Attend free conferences and networking events! Take any opportunity you can afford to. You never know where a three month contract might lead."

"Get connected. Join the LAI, attend events and if possible get on an LAI committee. As well as meeting lots of people it looks good on CV"

"Persevere... and try and view everything and anything as an opportunity to gain experience! #goodluck"

Hopefully these tips and advice will be of use to those of you seeking work in some area of the LIS world. They are geared towards the Irish sector but many will hopefully be transferable to elsewhere.
And perhaps some of you reading this will have your own personal tip(s) not covered above, if so perhaps you might like to leave a note in the comments, we'd love to hear them...

And finally, a big thanks, in no particular order, must go to the following for their tips and advice:
Laura Rooney Ferris , Jenny O'Neill , John McManus, Jane Burns, Alexandra Oulamara, Helen Fallon , Michelle Dalton,  Shona Thoma , David Hughes, Alex Kouker, Laura Connaughton, Elaine Harrington, Claire Sewell, Mick O'Dwyer, Siobhan McGuinness and finally Rudai23

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