What You'll Do

  • Check books in and out of the library.
  • Teach library patrons basic computer skills, such as searching computerized databases.
  • Review and evaluate materials, using book reviews, catalogs, faculty recommendations, and current holdings to select and order print, audio-visual, and electronic resources.
  • Keep up-to-date records of circulation and materials, maintain inventory, and correct cataloging errors.
  • Search standard reference materials, including online sources and the Internet, to answer patrons' reference questions.
  • Analyze patrons' requests to determine needed information and assist in furnishing or locating that information.
  • Supervise daily library operations, budgeting, planning, and personnel activities, such as hiring, training, scheduling, and performance evaluations.
  • Plan and teach classes on topics such as information literacy, library instruction, and technology use.
  • Confer with colleagues, faculty, and community members and organizations to conduct informational programs, make collection decisions, and determine library services to offer.
  • Code, classify, and catalog books, publications, films, audio-visual aids, and other library materials, based on subject matter or standard library classification systems.

Essential Skills

Reading Comprehension 3.88/5
Active Listening 3.88/5
Speaking 3.88/5
Writing 3.62/5
Critical Thinking 3.62/5
Monitoring 3.38/5
Service Orientation 3.38/5
Active Learning 3.25/5
Social Perceptiveness 3.25/5
Instructing 3.12/5
Judgment and Decision Making 3.12/5
Time Management 3.12/5

Career Fit Overview

Use this summary to sense whether the day to day rhythm and focus of this path line up with what energizes you.

Top passions

  • Organizer: Bringing order to data and processes satisfies you.
  • Helper: Supporting people and making a difference matters to you.
  • Analyst: Investigating problems and finding patterns keeps you engaged.

Common styles

Cooperation, Dependability, Integrity, Adaptability/Flexibility, Initiative

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Key Abilities

This career demands strong capabilities in the following areas:

Oral Expression 4.25/5
Oral Comprehension 4.12/5
Written Comprehension 4.12/5
Written Expression 3.75/5
Information Ordering 3.62/5
Near Vision 3.62/5
Category Flexibility 3.5/5
Speech Recognition 3.5/5

Technologies & Tools

Adobe Acrobat Adobe After Effects Adobe Creative Cloud software Adobe Dreamweaver Adobe Illustrator Adobe InDesign Adobe Photoshop Adobe Premiere Pro Apple Final Cut Pro Apple iMovie askSam Systems SurfSaver Autodesk AutoCAD Blackboard software Blogging software Cascading style sheets CSS CatchTheWeb CATNYP Classification Web Data visualization software Database software

Work Environment & Style

Common Styles for This Career

  • Cooperation (High importance: 4.54/5)
  • Dependability (High importance: 4.53/5)
  • Integrity (High importance: 4.53/5)
  • Adaptability/Flexibility (High importance: 4.48/5)
  • Initiative (High importance: 4.43/5)

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How to Become One

This career requires extensive preparation, typically including a graduate degree (Master's or Doctoral) and several years of experience. Most professionals in this field have invested significant time in education and training.

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Also Known As

This career is known by many different job titles across industries. Here are all the variations:

Access Services Librarian Acquisitions Librarian Audio Visual Aids Technician (AV Aids Tech) Audio Visual Collections Coordinator (AV Collections Coordinator) Audio Visual Commissioning Specialist (AV Commissioning Specialist) Audio Visual Coordinator (AV Coordinator) Audio Visual Specialist (AV Specialist) Bibliographer Bookmobile Librarian Catalog Librarian Cataloger Catalogue Librarian Cataloguer Chemical Librarian Children's Librarian Circulation Manager Classifier Collection Development Librarian Digital Librarian Document Manager Electronic Resources Librarian Elementary Librarian Elementary School Librarian Film Librarian Government Documents Librarian Hospital Librarian Information Scientist Institution Librarian Instruction Librarian Instructional Services Coordinator Instructional Technologist Instructional Technology Specialist Interlibrary Loan Services Librarian International Broadcast Music Librarian Law Librarian Librarian Library Associate Library Media Specialist Library Services Coordinator Library Services Specialist Library Specialist Media Center Specialist Media Librarian Media Specialist Media Technician Medical Librarian Medical Record Librarian Metadata Librarian Multimedia Coordinator Multimedia Services Coordinator Multimedia Specialist Music Librarian News Librarian Outreach Librarian Periodicals Librarian Prison Librarian Public Services Librarian Record Librarian Reference and Instruction Librarian Reference Librarian Research Librarian School Librarian School Library Media Specialist Serials Librarian Special Collections Librarian Special Library Librarian Systems Librarian Technical Services Librarian University Librarian Visual Coordinator Visual Specialist Youth Services Librarian