Librarianship Professions
School Librarianship as a Profession
Each year there are notices of more K-12 Teacher Librarian positions open in southern California than there are candidates to fill the positions. (See the California School Library Association job hotline.) The majority of the credential candidates currently enrolled in the CSULB Librarianship Program already work in their respective school library media centers under an emergency credential.
Representative professional websites for Teacher Librarians include:
- California School Library Association
- California Library Association
- American Association of School Libraries**
- Computer Using Educators**
- California Learning Resource Network **
- Information Literacy for K-16 Settings**
- Center for the Study of Books in Spanish for Children and Adolescents
- Labor Market Information
Along with CSULB, some of these organizations provide scholarships; check their web sites for details.
The Profession of Library and Information Science
In the broader field of librarianship, graduates work in school, academic, public, and "special" sectors (e.g., museums, agencies, industry). Most librarian positions incorporate three aspects of library work: user services, technical services, and administrative services. Librarians and other information professionals must have knowledge of a wide variety of information sources, be organized and analytical, be able to collaborate and manage, have good communication and often instructional skills; most need technical skills. Some of these careers require additional education or experience.
The Master of Library Science or Master of Library and Information Science degree is not required for a California Teacher Librarians Services Credential. If you ever plan to work in a college or university library, public library, or special library, however, you will probably need a Master of Library Science degree from a library school accredited by the American Library Association In California, those universities include UCLA and San Jose State University. The CSU San Jose program has an off-campus extension program at CSU Fullerton that offers the MLS degree and the credential through evening and weekend classes. At this point, UCLA does not offer a Teacher Librarian Services Credential. CSULB offers a Master of Arts in Education, Option in Librarianship degree, which is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education; it is recognized by some institutions and systems.
