If you have been inspired by the library (or by a librarian) and are considering making the library your career, this page should be some help to you!  Click on the links below to find out specific information related to librarianship and careers in libraries!  Don't miss the fun pages related to libraries and librarians!

General Information About Librarianship

Graduate Library Schools

Diversity of Librarian Specialties

Diversity of Librarians

Job Opportunities

Fun librarian and library sites! (Yes, we have a sense of humor!)

Talk with a Librarian!!

This website is intended to provide information for students who might be interested in the growing and challenging field of Library and Information Science. Whether you call yourself a librarian, information scientist or specialist, knowledge liaison, or information technologist, it is the same exciting field which has been dramatically invigorated by the computer and the Internet. Our responsibilities remain the same at the core - the preservation, organization and distribution of information; all done with a strong sense of public service at its best and of the centralness of freedom of information for that public.

Although Ph.D.'s are granted in library science, this site will concentrate on the most common degree, the Master's degree.

The following sites give overviews of the profession. Note that several are government sites so don't be discouraged by the dry language.

Career Development for Librarians
This is a well-written chapter on the process of moving from being a student to being an employee upon completion of a qualification program in librarianship or library science.  Up-to-date it well describes the work of today and the future for librarians.

Occupational Outlook Handbook: Librarians 
Up-to-date (written in 9/2000) this federal government overview covers among other aspects the nature of the work, job outlook, earnings, related work, and training. Provides a number of useful links to additional information.

California Occupational Guide: Librarians 
Similar to the federal Occupational Outlook article, but not as up-to-date, written in 1996.

The Library and Information Science Professional's Career Development Center
This site is for MILS students, new professionals and anyone considering a library-related career.  It is a well organized and helpful site.

American Library Association, Accredited LIS Master's Programs 
Lists all U.S. graduate schools with accredited master's degrees and provides information on distance learning opportunities as well as guidelines for choosing a program. Information on scholarships is also available at this general site as well as from individual library schools.  

Graduate School - Library Science 
This site from U.S. News and World Report ranks the top 20 library schools and also ranks in some specialties offered by the library schools. 

Historically Black Colleges currently offering library and information science degrees.

• Clark Atlanta University, School of Library and Information Studies 
• North Carolina Central University, School of Library and Information Sciences 

Joint Law and Library Science Degrees 
Rates library schools as to the depth of training in the field of law, including which universities offer joint law and library science degrees. Be sure and scroll to the end of the list to see the rating codes and their meanings. From the American Association of Law Libraries.

Library Schools - Fine Arts and Visual Resources Librarianship 
Rates library schools as to the depth of training in the fine arts, humanities, book arts and visual resources. It does so by listing actual courses offered in these fields by each library school. From the Art Libraries Society of North America.

Below are a variety of sites that speak to a particular specialty within librarianship. This is by no means a comprehensive list, rather it is a sampling to give you an idea of the range of specialties and libraries in existence.

American Association of Law Libraries 

American Association of School Librarians 

American Library Association 

American Society for Information Science and Technology 

American Theological Library Association 

Art Libraries Society of North America 

Association of College and Research Libraries 

Association of Research Libraries 

Medical Library Association 

Music Library Association 

Prison Libraries 

Public Library Association 

Special Library Association 

Western Association of Map Libraries 

Also consider looking at "What Else You Can Do with A Library Degree: Career Options for the 90's and Beyond," edited by Betty-Carol Sellen (call number at the University Library, California State University, Long Beach Z682.35 V62 W47 1997).  Although already a little out of date (1997) it gives you a lot of options you may not have considered within librarianship.

At the present time both library schools and libraries are actively seeking students and librarians who represent the broad spectrum of today's population. There is a tremendous under-representation of ethnic minorities, in particular, in the library profession. A variety of programs have been developed in individual library schools and within associations (such as those listed below) that provide students with a choice of scholarships and other opportunities to acquire the necessary educational degree. Locally, UCLA's Diversity Recruitment and Mentoring Committee is available to assist. Again, this list is not comprehensive but rather representative.

American Indian Library Association 

Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association

Association of Christian Librarians 

Association of Jewish Libraries 

Bibliotecas Para La Gente (Northern California Chapter of Reforma) 

Black Caucus of the American Library Association 

California Librarians Black Caucus 

Chinese American Librarians Association 

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered Round Table, ALA 

Korean American Librarians Association 

Reforma (National Association to Promote Library Services to the Spanish Speaking) 

Reforma (in Spanish)

Resources for Librarians with Disabilities 

Use these sites now before going to library school to realize the many different types of specializations, types of positions, and types of organizations (not necessarily a library) where the librarian of the future will play a major role.

American Library Association Employment Page 
Under Employment look at the monthly Career Leads

Library Job Postings on the Internet 
Maintained by a librarian at Bridgewater State College

SI Jobfinder Placement Bulletin 
Made available by the University of Michigan, School of Information

U.S. State and Regional Library Associations
In addition to listing of associations, includes local library job lines on the Web


Fun Sites
Stereotypes in librarianship run rampant, and librarians aren't often noted for their hipness or senses of humor.  We hope these pages will prove that theory wrong!

Cool Librarians
A site completely dedicated to cool librarians and explains why you should "worship a librarian."

Librarians in the Movies
While quite scholarly in nature, this site is the be-all-die-all site for finding librarians in the movies.

Library Humor
As this site says, if we can't laugh at ourselves, who can?

Library Songs
From Jimmy Buffet to Green Day, this site from Blisspix lists songs that refer to libraries and librarians.  A cool bonus are songs about books and reading too!

The Lipstick Librarian
"She's bold!  She's sassy!  She's helpful!  She's the Lipstick Librarian!"  This is one of my favorite sites.  It busts every major stereotype about female librarians.

The Renegade Librarian
This site is awesome!  It is a meta site with links to such interesting sub-topics of renegade librarians, such as modified librarians (those with tatooes, piercings, etc.), ska and bellydancing librarians. 


Talk with a Librarian

The following librarians at California State University, Long Beach would be pleased to talk with you about a career in the library, any library. We enjoy our profession immensely, feel it makes a difference in society, are challenged by the rapid rate of change and would like others to experience the same satisfaction in their careers.

This page created by Gretchen Johnson
and maintained by Tracey L. Mayfield, Family and Consumer Sciences Librarian
University Library, California State University, Long Beach