What qualifications do I need to become a librarian?

[Cerdic]

Incredibly unlikely. If that's the case I'll eat my hat.

As long as you have a degree in Hat Eating…

 

[OldShep]

You’d need a lot of luck. Every librarian I know and have met lost their jobs. Replaced with volunteers.

 

[Accy cyclist]

You’d need a lot of luck. Every librarian I know and have met lost their jobs. Replaced with volunteers.

That's bad. Good that some will do it for nothing, but bad that local authorities know this and take advantage.

 

[iandg]

A mate of mine moved from a hospital lab in Stornoway to a library in Scarborough. He was trained as a chemist but had a passion for books and literature as a hobby.

 

[presta]

When I was a kid in the early 70s my father used to have a (voluntary) evening job taking library books around the local care homes, there were no qualifications necessary for that then other than the ability to use a rubber date stamp and put library cards in a rack. I used to get fussed over by the old ladies when I went with him. One, Mrs Phillips, had a sister in Wakefield who she hadn't seen for donkey's years, and didn't expect to see again, so we gave her a lift up there when we went to Leeds for Christmas one year.

 

[Time Waster]

Most librarians I've known recently have been part time only, often being given irregular shifts. But they supported workers with covid and long covid quite well though. Swings and roundabouts.

Judging by how the trainee who upgraded my membership of Cumbria cc library it's easy system if you've half a brain for systems. I ended up "suggesting" to the young lass how to use their system after seeing her struggle. Looked very easy.

 

[wiggydiggy]

None, I think.

The libraries in my area use a lot of volunteers, so it's unpaid but still work.

 

[Accy cyclist]

I'm going to call into the library 10 minutes walk from me tomorrow and ask the librarians if they're paid, or volunteers. 🤔

 

[classic33]

I'm going to call into the library 10 minutes walk from me tomorrow and ask the librarians if they're paid, or volunteers. 🤔

You're likely to get a mix.

On the other hand, volunteers aren't required when machines can do half the work. They require no rest, available all day every day, and don't need training.

 

[Sharky]

So time passes and Accy becomes a librarian and to gain experience, takes a post in the Moscow Central Library.

A traffic cop walks up to the desk and Accy says "Have you booked any good reds lately?"

 

[jowwy]

I went for a 'working with a disability' assessment today. The woman doing the interview was very nice and seemed surprised I'd been sent by the Job Centre, seeing as I already have a part-time job in a retro clothes shop. She said that due to my disabilities full-time work would be hard to do and hard to find. She asked me what I'd like to do. I told her I wouldn't mind being a librarian, or librarian assistant. I have a grade B, O-Level achieved in 1977, along with 3 other O-Levels. and a HND level 2 achieved in 1996, in Leisure Management. She said she'd look into it, but thinks I might need a degree, or a HND In English and maybe maths at least. Do any of you know what I'll need and if so What are my chances of getting a job in Great Harwood or Accrtington library?🤔

arent you 103.....why are you going to work assessments??

 

[si_c]

Incredibly unlikely. If that's the case I'll eat my hat.

A childhood friend of mine is a librarian. She did a 3 year degree followed by a 2 year masters course in Library Science.

Being a librarian is not just about putting books on shelves, it's also about knowing where to find information when people ask for it.

 

[ClichéGuevara]

A childhood friend of mine is a librarian. She did a 3 year degree followed by a 2 year masters course in Library Science.

Being a librarian is not just about putting books on shelves, it's also about knowing where to find information when people ask for it.

Five years to learn how to google?

 

[T4tomo]

On the other hand, volunteers aren't required when machines can do half the work. They require no rest, available all day every day, and don't need training.

I went in the library to hand back a book for the OH, I needed a volunteer to show me how to operate the machine.

@Accy cyclist Brush up on your knowledge of the Dewey Decimal, I believe this is still used for replacing books in the right place, something machines cant do.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

A childhood friend of mine is a librarian. She did a 3 year degree followed by a 2 year masters course in Library Science.

Being a librarian is not just about putting books on shelves, it's also about knowing where to find information when people ask for it.

On t'interweb, increasingly