New Librarians Survey and Responses

*We received a total of 502 responses to this version of the survey. To ensure the select group of respondents were truly new librarians, we filtered the data to include only those librarians who had been in the profession for 5 years or less.*

 
 
1. I am:
  Response Percent Response Total
    Male
20.9% 79
    Female
79.1% 299
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   124
(skipped this question)   0
2. I am:
  Response Percent Response Total
    Under 25 years old
6.3% 24
    26-35 years old
70.4% 266
    36-45 years old
13.5% 51
    46+ years old
9.8% 37
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   124
(skipped this question)   0
3. What is your ethnicity (check all that apply)?
  Response Percent Response Total
  African American
6.2% 23
  Caucasian
84.1% 312
  Hispanic/Latino(a)
6.2% 23
  Native American
2.2% 8
  Asian/Pacific Islander
3% 11
  Other (please specify)
2.4% 9
Total Respondents   371
(filtered out)   122
(skipped this question)   9
4. I have a:
  Response Percent Response Total
    MLS (or equivalent)
69.6% 263
    MLS (or equivalent) and an additional Master's
24.1% 91
    MLS (or equivalent) and a Ph.D. or other Doctoral degree
1.9% 7
    Other (please specify)
4.5% 17
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   124
(skipped this question)   0
5. What characteristics describe your personality? (Please check all that apply)
  Response Percent Response Total
  Active in the community
31.9% 120
  Ambitious
45.5% 171
  Bookish
42.8% 161
  Conservative
11.7% 44
  Charismatic
29% 109
  Creative
61.2% 230
  Extroverted
27.4% 103
  Innovative
42.6% 160
  Intellectual
69.9% 263
  Introverted
39.1% 147
  Liberal Progressive
61.7% 232
  Technologically adept
75.5% 284
  Traditional
16.2% 61
  Other (please specify)
12.2% 46
Total Respondents   376
(filtered out)   73
(skipped this question)   53
6. Why did you become an academic librarian? (Please check all that apply)
  Response Percent Response Total
  Always wanted to be a librarian
11.4% 43
  Love of books
44.7% 169
  Interaction with students
54.2% 205
  Worked well in an academic setting
67.7% 256
  Love of research
63% 238
  It was a calling
15.3% 58
  Secure job market
19.3% 73
  Working with/building collections (collection development)
23.8% 90
  Other (please specify)
24.9% 94
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   74
(skipped this question)   50
7. I have been a librarian for:
  Response Percent Response Total
    0-2 years
50.5% 191
    2-5 years
49.5% 187
    5+ years
0% 0
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   74
(skipped this question)   50
8. I work in a:
  Response Percent Response Total
    Community College Library
8.5% 32
    Four-Year College (all undergraduate programs)
10.6% 40
    Master's Level College or University (some graduate programs)
27.8% 105
    Large Research University (including doctoral programs)
42.9% 162
    Other (please specify)
10.3% 39
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   74
(skipped this question)   50
9. I have had ____ professional academic library positions since graduation (including current position).
  Response Percent Response Total
    1
70.4% 266
    2
24.9% 94
    3
4.2% 16
    4+
0.5% 2
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   74
(skipped this question)   50
10. I have been in my current position for:
  Response Percent Response Total
    Less than 1 year
41.5% 157
    1-2 years
41% 155
    3-5 years
17.2% 65
    6+ years
0.3% 1
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   74
(skipped this question)   50
11. Is your current position:
  Response Percent Response Total
    Tenure-track
26.5% 100
    Non-tenure track
12.2% 46
    Faculty status without tenure
21.2% 80
    Professional Status
28.3% 107
    Other (please specify)
11.9% 45
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   74
(skipped this question)   50
12. In which department/area of expertise do you work? (Please check all that apply)
  Response Percent Response Total
  Reference
72.8% 275
  Electronic Resources
22% 83
  Acquisitions
8.2% 31
  Serials
8.2% 31
  Cataloging
14.3% 54
  Instruction/Information Literacy
51.9% 196
  Collection Development
37.3% 141
  Special Collections/Archives
15.9% 60
  Other (please specify)
23.8% 90
Total Respondents   378
(filtered out)   74
(skipped this question)   50
13. What are you MOST satisfied with in your current position? (Please check all that apply)
  Response Percent Response Total
  Pay
23.3% 81
  Support for professional development
51.1% 178
  Working Environment
57.8% 201
  Collegiality of librarians and faculty
42.8% 149
  Collegiality of workplace
48.6% 169
  Perception/respect of profession
13.8% 48
  Administrative support
13.5% 47
  Other (please specify)
14.9% 52
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
14. What are you LEAST satisfied with in your current position? (Please check all that apply)
  Response Percent Response Total
  Pay
56% 195
  Support for professional development
16.7% 58
  Working environment
15.2% 53
  Collegiality of librarians and faculty
13.2% 46
  Collegiality of workplace
12.1% 42
  Perception/respect of profession
39.4% 137
  Administrative support
27.3% 95
  Other (please specify)
16.7% 58
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
15. Are you interested in being an administrator in an academic library setting someday?
  Response Percent Response Total
    Yes
56.6% 197
    No
43.4% 151
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
16. As more librarians retire in the next few years, at what level do you plan to fill in the gap in:
Stay where I am right now Be a higher-ranking librarian (above entry level) Be in mid-management (such as department head) Be a top administrator (such as Director or Dean) Respondent Total
5-7 years?
9% (32) 60% (210) 33% (115) 3% (9) 348
7-10 years?
3% (11) 19% (65) 58% (202) 25% (86) 348
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
17. What skills do you feel you need to acquire as you move ahead in your career? (Please check all that apply)
  Response Percent Response Total
  Budgeting
66.4% 231
  Management
65.2% 227
  Interpersonal skills
26.7% 93
  Networking skills
47.4% 165
  Project planning
54% 188
  Fundraising & development
52.9% 184
  Publishing
51.7% 180
  Business skills
37.4% 130
  Subject knowledge
44% 153
  Other (please specify)
8.3% 29
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
18. Which of the above skills/experiences do you think you will be able to gain in your current place of employment?
  Response Percent Response Total
    None
7.8% 27
    Less than half
44% 153
    More than half
36.8% 128
    All
11.5% 40
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
19. How well do you think you are being prepared for your future career responsibilities?
  Response Percent Response Total
    Not being prepared at all
11.5% 40
    Somewhat prepared
52.3% 182
    Sufficiently prepared
27.6% 96
    Very prepared
8.6% 30
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
20. How is your professional development supported at your current institution? (Please check all that apply)
  Response Percent Response Total
  Full monetrary support to attend workshops/conferences/seminars
32.5% 113
  Partial monetary support to attend workshops/conferences/seminars
57.8% 201
  Leave with pay to attend workshops/conferences/seminars
53.2% 185
  Compensation for research time
8% 28
  Release time for research
18.7% 65
  Continuing education programs provided locally
39.7% 138
  Mentorship
24.1% 84
  Management or business classes
7.2% 25
  Project development
8.9% 31
  No or little support
7.2% 25
  Other (please specify)
8.3% 29
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
21. Are you involved in a national library association or section, such as ALA, CLA or ACRL?
  Response Percent Response Total
    Yes
82.9% 287
    No
17.1% 59
Total Respondents   346
(filtered out)   56
(skipped this question)   100
22. If yes, which ones?
 Total Respondents  
280
(filtered out)   37
(skipped this question)   185
23. Are you involved in state or regional library associations or sections?
  Response Percent Response Total
    Yes
66.3% 228
    No
33.7% 116
Total Respondents   344
(filtered out)   56
(skipped this question)   102
24. If yes, which ones?
 Total Respondents  
223
(filtered out)   38
(skipped this question)   241
25. What is the likelihood that you will stay in academic librarianship in the next:
Not at all Unsure Somewhat Most likely Absolutely Response Total
0-2 years
1% (4) 4% (15) 5% (16) 35% (121) 55% (192) 348
3-5 years
1% (3) 11% (38) 11% (39) 42% (145) 35% (123) 348
6-10 years
2% (7) 21% (72) 18% (62) 39% (137) 20% (70) 348
10+ years
4% (15) 27% (95) 16% (55) 39% (137) 13% (46) 348
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
26. What do you feel are the top challenges facing libraries and/or librarians in the near future? (Please check all that apply)
  Response Percent Response Total
  Recruitment and retention of new librarians
37.6% 131
  Compensation issues
61.8% 215
  Diversity
25.9% 90
  Budget/Funding
78.7% 274
  Being overworked (more work with less people)
60.9% 212
  Keeping up with technology
52% 181
  Legislation (copyright, intellectual property, privacy, etc.)
40.8% 142
  Other (please specify)
9.8% 34
Total Respondents   348
(filtered out)   55
(skipped this question)   99
27. Would you recommend academic librarianship as a career choice?
  Response Percent Response Total
    Yes
90.7% 313
    No
9.3% 32
Total Respondents   345
(filtered out)   57
(skipped this question)   100
28. Why or why not?
 Total Respondents  
256
(filtered out)   42
(skipped this question)   204

 

 

 

 

Recruitment and Retention Project