Are you a newly qualified or existing librarian wishing to kick start your career?

Want to kick start your career as a librarian? Photo: (WPA Photographer – unknown – http://bit.ly/Rkv8tI)

Please check out the wonderful work of the LAI Career Development Group. Laura Connaughton is the current chair of this group. Laura is Assistant Librarian for Library Information Services in the library in NUI Maynooth as well as Subject Librarian for English, Celtic and Media Studies. She outlines below some of the work this section of the LAI are involved in. Please read on as the information may help you to get your library career started or give it the jump start it needs. Who knows the knowledge gleamed from this useful group might even support you in finding that job you always wanted.

For those who haven’t already checked the source of the photo, no that’s not Laura in the photo! The photo was taken by an unknown WPA photographer. It is a photo of a Librarian working at the Pointe Coupee Parish library in New Roads Louisiana in 1936. So as you can see librarians have been helping people for a long time and will no doubt continue to do so well into the future!

Logo: Career Development Group – Library Association of Ireland

***Posted on behalf of Laura Connaughton, Assistant Librarian, Library Information Services, The Library, NUI Maynooth***

The Career Development Group of the LAI represents both existing library and information professionals and new graduates looking for job opportunities.

I am chairperson of this group and we meet once a month to arrange events, talks and other types of training for LIS job seekers.
The main function of the CDG is to develop a proactive approach to employment in libraries through the discussion of issues such as career development, CV and interview tips, alternative funding models for job creation, non-traditional work opportunities. This is done through formal events, informal events such as Library Camp Ireland 2013, talks and joint training with other LAI committees and groups as well as developing a jobs hub for LIS professionals that caters to both traditional and non-traditional library work. So far this year, we’ve ran a successful “Interview Skills Workshop” in the beautiful Pearse St. library. We are currently working on Library Camp Ireland 2014, details to follow!

The aims of the groups are:
• To create opportunities for members to discuss issues around career development and employment
• To create a link for employers and potential employees or interns within the profession
• To liaise with both Education Committees (Professional Standards and CPD) to identify ways to support their work particularly in the area of internships, LIS volunteering and mentoring programmes
• To support the work of the LAI in advocating for the LIS profession, LIS professionals and libraries in Ireland
To find out more about our events or to ask any questions, you can email us or you can:
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ANLTC course ‘Using Multimedia tools to present information’

Please enjoy and perhaps learn something new when you read my colleague Pauline’s account of the recent ANLTC course ‘Using Multimedia tools to present information’. ANLTC have a seminar entitled ‘The Librarian as Researcher’ taking place on Thursday 8th May. Those attending will also have an opportunity to tour our lovely library here in NUI Maynooth.

View from the Special Collections Reading Room in The Library, NUIM (Photo taken prior to landscaping of the area) – (Photo: B.Gardiner)

***Posted on behalf of Pauline Murray, Assistant Librarian, The Library, NUI Maynooth***

I was lucky enough, along with my colleague Elaine Bean, to be able to attend a one-day ANLTC course, in April, called ‘Using Multimedia tools to present information’

The course was given by the well known Phil Bradley
It was apparent even beforehand that this was going to be a course with an emphasis on the practical, when we received a 26 page document listing a wide range of multimedia tools potentially of interest to libraries. In fact this list proved to be central to the day. When we arrived Phil assured us we would be doing most of the work, he would guide us through the various areas and be there to deal with queries, make suggestions and so on.
This worked out very well. He used ‘Pearltrees’ as the collection for the relevant resources, broken down into different areas.
We worked our way through each section, usually starting with some introductory pointers from Phil. Each time, we had lots of scope to try out whatever appealed and plenty of time for discussion.
Of the many interesting resources to explore, some of those which caught my eye include:
• BBFlashback Express
This records your screen and sound and allows edits. There is a free version available to download. It could be considered as an alternative to ‘Articulate’ and would not have the drawback of being restricted to specific computers.

• Animato
With this you can turn your images into videos. The free version limits your slideshow to 30 seconds, but it’s possible, without spending a lot of money, to purchase longer shows.

• Padlet
This you can use as an ice-breaker, a bulletin board or for brainstorming. Basically, it’s a virtual wall, where people can put their thoughts on a common topic, using text, images and more.

Everyone enjoyed the demonstration Phil gave us of ‘augmented reality’. Definitely this was a glimpse of eBooks in the future.

Elaine and I were so impressed by the day, we hope our colleagues will have the opportunity to meet with Phil Bradley too.

Many thanks to the Library, NUI Maynooth for the opportunity to attend the course.

Wait a minute, maybe I can do that too?

Often you want to try something but you are just not sure, well please read the piece below from my colleague Padraic who was recently awarded Associateship of the Library Association of Ireland. His sentiments reflect a lot of what we as people often feel. We are often afraid to try because we are afraid of failure but in the words of John Wayne …
“Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway.” John Wayne
I hope at a later date to include in this blog some more stories from other people who have also been through this experience. In the meantime please read on ….

Jane Cantwell (centre) presented Padraic Stack and Regina Richardson with, respectively, Associateship and Fellowship of the LAI Photo: (http://bit.ly/1hNV9Yb)

***Posted on behalf of Padraic Stack, Digital Humanities Support Officer, NUI Maynooth***

I applied for the Associateship in 2014.
The application form itself is relatively straightforward, is similar to a job recruitment form and can be filled fairly easily from a recent c.v. It provides space to list your professional education / qualifications and your practical experience – essentially your professional career history. There is also a requirement to provide the names of two referees.
The rest of the application consists of a brief professional Development Report and “such other supporting documentary evidence as may be considered relevant”. I wondered what would be appropriate or required here and think I postponed applying a couple of times because I didn’t know. In the end I enclosed a list of continuing professional development activities I had undertaken since my graduation.

I would encourage others to apply – it gives you the chance to reflect on your career to date and to examine areas you might like to develop. It’s a slightly cringe worthy exercise talking about yourself and your achievements but that’s the worst aspect of the application process.

“In It Together: Responding to National Initiatives”

BMA House – Have you registered to attend the M25 Consortium Annual Conference? (Photo: en.wikipedia.org3264 × 2448 Google Images)

Bookings are open for the M25 Consortium Annual Conference. One Day Event:Tuesday 29th April, 2014. This year the conference will take place in the beautiful surroundings of BMA House in Tavistock Square and it promises to be a fascinating day. This poster gives further details of the programme and how to book.

A short review of the Annual LAI/CILIP Ireland Joint Conference and Exhibition 2014

***Posted on behalf of Marie G. Cullen, MLIS, PGDHE, ALAI Assistant Librarian, JPII Library, NUI Maynooth***

My colleague Marie kindly agreed to share her review of the recent Annual LAI/CILIP Ireland Joint Conference and Exhibition held in the beautiful city of Waterford in the sunny south east of Ireland. Waterford City Council Library Service hosted the conference this year. Marie along with Helen Fallon our Deputy Librarian here in the library in NUI Maynooth presented at this conference. Please enjoy Marie’s interesting account of this event below.

*’How many of you have a screwdriver in your desk?’ (Photo: MorgueFile)

A short review of the Annual LAI/CILIP Ireland Joint Conference and Exhibition 2014:
Seizing opportunities, leading change, facing challenges, taking the initiative, transforming the way we do things.
Thursday 10th and Friday 11th April 2014 Tower Hotel, Waterford
The conference was attended by delegates from a range of organisations including public, academic and health libraries. The programme covered a wide and interesting range of topics, including resilience, blogging, using social media, building a DIY book scanner and dealing with change.
One of the workshops I attended was facilitated by Rebecca Davies and was entitled ‘Library and Information Competencies Further Explored’. Rebecca asked participants to give one example of things they do, that they never thought they would be doing. Examples included undertaking ‘Safe Pass’ training (required to allow access to a construction site), singing ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star’ while holding a cuddly toy and liaising with a move management company.
In addition to the plenary presentations and workshops the conference was an excellent opportunity to network with delegates from a variety of library organisations and a range of library suppliers.
Overall the conference was an enjoyable professional and social occasion and the city of Waterford was a lovely place to visit.
Check out tweets from the conference and read Martin O’Connor‘s review of the conference.

Check out details of the conference programme

*Rebecca Davies Pro Vice-Chancellor for Student and Staff Services at Aberystwyth University asked participants at her workshop ‘How many of you have a screwdriver in your desk?’ Based on a show of hands the majority of the 20 or so participants did.

Distance Learning – Masters in Library and Information Studies

My colleague Ruth has kindly offered to share her experience of distance learning. She is currently studying for the Masters in Library and Information Studies. This course is available through Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen. While the university is in Scotland you can complete the course through distance learning. Full details available from their website. Please enjoy details of Ruth’s experience below.

Are you prepared to take a leap into the unknown? (Photo: andrée et playmobil 003 – MorgueFile)

I began an MSc in Information and Library Studies with Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen in September 2013. This is a part-time distance learning course with all study done online through the University’s virtual learning environment, CampusMoodle.
Initially, undertaking a distance learning course was daunting as I had never studied online before. However, the structured nature of the course has made this process easier to adapt to. Lectures are posted online weekly and students are encouraged to complete coursework and to chat on forums as regularly as possible.
How to juggle work, life and study was also something I had to consider strongly before signing up for this MSc. The support I have received from the Library has been extremely helpful in this regard. Moreover, studying by distance learning gives me the flexibility to study in my own time and from wherever suits me best. That does mean, however, that most of my evening/weekends are now devoted to learning about cataloguing and classification!
With one year of the MSc nearly complete I have so far found the experience challenging but enjoyable and interesting. I would encourage anyone who wants to develop their career while continuing to work to strongly consider distance learning.

Living learning and working with special educational needs

Disability Awareness: Online Training at NUI Maynooth. Poster Presentation at the Library Association of Ireland (LAI) Academic & Special Libraries Section Annual Conference, 27-28 February, 2014, Dublin.
(Poster: Mellon, B.)

Would you like to feel more confident when dealing with students or staff with a disability, regardless of whether it is an obvious disability or a hidden one? Disability Equality Training for Public Service Staff is a FREE eLearning course made available by the National Disability Authority (NDA), for staff working in the public service in Ireland.

Check out the NDA website to learn more about this free certificate course. Read about the experiences of NUI Maynooth staff who undertook the disability module in “An Leabharlann” and “SCONUL Focus and view the poster displayed at the Library Association of Ireland (LAI) Academic & Special Libraries Section Annual Conference, 27-28 April, 2014, Dublin.