Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Residency Season & Great News!

Announcement! 
I have accepted a new position at Towson University. Effective this month, I am no longer a Resident Librarian and have moved into a tenure track faculty position of Research Instruction and Special Collections Librarian. It’s one of those new-fangled hybrid type posts that seeks to address the varied needs of the academic library along with the specialized skills of a librarian. I am delighted to be in this new position as they are both areas of the library that I feel the most compelled to work within.  So, off I go!

Residency Jobs for New Grads
That means that my old Residency position is now open and seeking applications.  It was my favorite job, ever. The combination of learning so many new things along with working with such a competent and amiable group has made my transition from library school to the academic library better than I imagined.  The encouragement from my mentors to not only participate but engage in and start new endeavors made my residency truly unique. I feel my skill-set has grown by light years. If you’re looking for the type of job where you will be sitting alone at a computer all day filling in data with little to no human contact, do not apply for this residency! However, if you aspire to enter the academic library field, are committed to diversity, enjoy learning, can handle constant change, love people and can think creatively, you will think you’ve died and gone to heaven.  Swear.  
Here are a couple of Towson librarians leading a New Faculty Orientation in 2006

And, the fun doesn’t stop there either. Emory has just announced their new Library Fellows Program and Ohio State has opened two positions for residents. It looks like its residency season out there!

Residency Resource Links
If you’re fuzzy on what a Residency is, take a look at my blog posts from the past, and check out ACRL's  RIG, (Residency Interest Group), website. RIG and The Baltimore Bookie are also both on Facebook. I would also recommend picking up a copy of “The New Graduate Experience: Post-MLS Residency Programs and Early Career Librarianship.” Along with a plethora of great information, there is a section on the implementation of my residency at Towson, (authored by my co-workers).  Megan Perez, a former resident at the University of Arkansas, is one of the editors. It’s an awesome resource on the topic. Can't get enough about residencies? Be sure to check out our Google Residency Map to see all of the residency opportunities across the country.

2 comments:

  1. Congratulations! So glad to hear that. I'm also applying for the OSU Residency. It'll probably be stiff competition with so many great applicants. :)

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