At the Association of College & Research Libraries biennial conference in 2003, two newly minted librarians both noticed the numerous discussions devoted to the recruitment and retention of new librarians--but no one seemed to be asking the new librarians for their opinions. There was a crisis on the horizon and no one wanted our opinions! To remedy that, we decided to put together a research project to gather the opinions of new librarians toward the profession. Who are the new librarians? What do new librarians like about their jobs? What do they dislike? What do they need to be the next leaders? Do they even want to become the next generation of library leaders? What do current administrators and more experienced librarians think of the next generation of librarians?
Read "Is this the Ninth Circle of Hell?"--a NextGen column in Library Journal discussing some of our findings.
First, we reviewed current professional articles that dealt with the future or librarians and recruitment. From this literature review and our own experience, we came up with survey questions that we thought would help describe new librarians and their opinions about the profession. Then we created a web survey targeted to new academic librarians. For the convenience of the interviewee, we asked questions that used a ranking system or multiple choice; however, participants were often given the option to elaborate on particular issues. The survey was posted through “Survey Monkey,” survey creation and hosting software that allowed us to conveniently collect responses and analyze results. The link to the survey was posted in the following listserves: NMRT, Newlib, Nexgen, LIBREF, and Archives. There was also an announcement on the "Beyond the Job" library blog.
We also distributed a shorter version of the survey to librarians that have been in the profession for 10 years or more. This was done in order to compare answers between new and seasoned librarians. The survey for experienced academic librarians was posted on the University Libraries listserv (ULS), a listserv for Reference Librarians (LIBREF) and the College Libraries listserv (CLS).
Lastly, we analyzed the data, filtering out any people who did not fit within our criteria. New librarians were given the option to leave contact information for a follow-up interview. We conducted 10 personal interviews that asked participants to elaborate on issues or comments from our findings.
"The Future of Academic Librarianship"( New Librarians)
"The Future of Academic Librarianship: Administrative Perspective"
Contact Us: Michelle S. Millet or Liza Posas
© Michelle S. Millet and Liza Posas, 2005.
05/09/2005