Job Hunting Tips & Links

Updated 3/4/2013

Library Job Postings

• ALA JobList – American Library Association
• LISjobs.com
• Library Job Postings on the Internet – compiled by Sarah Johnson, Eastern Illinois University
• Chronicle Jobs – from the Chronicle of Higher Education (academic libraries). By discipline/field, look under: librarians/library administration 
• HigherEdJobs.com – for academic libraries. Under “Administrative” — choose “Libraries.”
• LibGig Jobs – nice aggregator of job postings
• Job Postings – from the iSchool at Drexel University
• Indeed.com – general jobs listing search engine. Try searching for librarian or library.
• GetLibraryJobs.com – browse jobs, post jobs
• Electronic discussion lists:  NEWLIB-L, LIBREF-L, ILI-L, COLLIB-L, PUBLIB-L, NMRT-L, LIBJOBS

Library Job Hunting & Career Advice Resources

• How to Apply for a Library Job – LISwiki – a must read!
• NMRT Resume Review Service – American Library Association
• Check out the sections on job hunting and career planning from LIScareer.com
• ALA JobList Career Development Resources
• What Not to Do When Applying for Library Jobs – In the Library with the Lead Pipe blog
• Job Hunting: What Search Committees Want You to Know – video from a presentation at the ACRL 2011 Virtual Conference
• NextGen: Five Tips to Stand Out – Leah Massar Bloom in Library Journal, Sept. 15, 2008
• Finding a Library Job – Rachel Singer Gordon in Library Journal, June 1, 2005
• Finding a Library Job–Updated – Rachel Singer Gordon in Library Journal, Sept. 15, 2009.
• The Quest: Inside the Job Search – Evan Simpson in Library Journal, Oct. 15, 2005
• Surviving Your First Library Job Search – Steven Hoover in Library Journal, Sept. 15, 2009
• Why I Won’t Hire You – Matt Wilcox, LIScareer.com.
• Top of the Heap or Bottom of the (Trash) Barrel? Tips for Job Applicants – Beatrice L. McKay, in NMRT Footnotes [republished on LIScareer.com], originally written in 1993, but most of the information is quite applicable.
• Academic Interview Process – Nanako Kodaira, ALA New Members Round Table Resume Review Services
• From the Inside Out and the Outside In: The Academic Library Interview Process in a Tight Economy – Karin Duran, Eric P. Garcia, & Mara L. Houdyshell in C&RL News, April 2009
• Strategies for Successful Hiring: Common Sense Interviewing Techniques – Francie C. Davis, Association of College and Research Libraries 11th National Conference, April 2003, Charlotte, NC
• Career Articles & Resources – Special Libraries Association
• Library Interviews: Improving Your Odds – Karen Evans, posted on the Info Career Trends blog
• Blog entries tagged as “interviews“ - from the Career Q&A with the Library Career People blog
• Pitfalls to Avoid During a Library Interview
• Tips for library job applicants in a tight market – Information Wants to Be Free blog
• Making the best of the worst of times: Global turmoil and landing your first library job – Rachel Cannady & Daniel Newton in C&RL News, April 2010
• So You Want to be a Librarian? – Bobbi L. Newman in Librarian by Day blog, Sept. 1, 2010
• Academic Library Job Search Blues – Sarah Baker in Library Journal, Sept. 9, 2010
• So you got the interview, now don’t blow it! -  Blog post from librarian P.C. Sweeney, Sept. 8, 2010
• Interview Questions Are A Two-Way Street –  ACRL blog post, Nov. 16, 2010
• How Hireable Are You? – Blog post by Britt Foster from Hack Library School, Jan. 25, 2011
• Hang in There: How to Get a Library Job Against All Odds – Lisa Von Drasek, School Library Journal, Feb. 1, 2011.
• Cover Letters, Resumes, and Interviews, Oh My! – blog post from Joe Hardenbrook (aka Mr. Library Dude)
• Advice from a Search Committee Member – Leslie Engelson, Library Journal, April 19, 2012.
• Show Up and Be Smart – blog post from library administrator Jenica Rogers. Tips for interviews.
• I Need a Library Job – advice and success stories
• Blog entries tagged as “interviewing” from The Library Adventures of Kiyomi blog.
• Just One Question [Why do you want to work here?] - for college profs, but applicable to academic libraries. Blog post by Thomas Wright, Inside Higher Ed, Feb. 9, 2011.
• What You Don’t Get About the Job Search: The View from Employers - from the Atlantic magazine. Geared towards the business world, but applicable to libraries.
• Bloopers to Avoid in Job Interviews – The Chronicle of Higher Education, Feb. 25, 2013
• On Careers - from U.S. News.com. Geared toward general audience, but applicable to library interviews, too.

Preparing Cover Letters & Resumes

• Resumes, Cover Letters, CVs, and Thank You Letters…Oh My! – ALA NMRT Resume Review Service
• Open Cover Letters – “anonymous cover letters from hired librarians and archivists”
• The Torment of Terrible Cover Letters - blog post from library administrator Jenica Rogers. Good tips for job seekers to follow.
• Search & Screen, or Search & SCREAM? Cover Letters and Resumes – blog post from Joe Hardenbrook (aka Mr. Library Dude)
• Monster.com has cover letter tips and resume writing tips
• Cover Letters: Types and Samples – Virginia Tech University Career Services
• Writing Your Curriculum Vitae – About.com: Graduate School
• The Perfect Resume – Amy C. Whitmer, posted on the Info Career Trends blog
• Making the Cover Letter Work for You – Tiffany Eatman Allen & Richard A. Murray, LIScareer.com
• Blog entries tagged as “resume” – from the Career Q&A with the Library Career People blog
• Common Library / Info Science Action Verbs – LibGig.com
• Action Phrases and Power Verbs – Cynergy.net [originally saw this posted on Monster.com]