Librarian

The classic image of a librarian is of someone who checks out books, or directs visitors to areas where they can find information they need. The reality today is much more complex. Librarians are educated professionals, usually with a Master of Science degree, and sometimes teaching certification in the state where they work.

While many librarians do work in school, university or public libraries, their occupation in modern times involves not only keeping current with diverse published materials, but also with computers and a wide variety of media operations. Performing research has become more multifaceted over time, and with the abundance of information available on the Internet, librarians must be able to differentiate quality resources from lesser materials, and also teach others to distinguish between them.

School, public and reference librarians analyze visitors' wide-ranging needs, and know where and how to find answers or appropriate resources. Other librarians work in technical services, helping to prepare and classify materials for visitors to use, and they may write the summaries and abstracts found in electronic catalogs. Administrative librarians manage all the planning and operations of libraries, including acquisitions, fundraising, budgeting and supervising other employees.

The larger the library the more specialized a librarian's work may be. Smaller setups often require a librarian to handle a cross-section of duties, while larger facilities may allow a librarian to specialize in, for example, children's collections. Beyond the wider-known types of libraries, librarians may work with special collections, such as those for museums, medical centers, legal firms, religious organizations or government agencies. They may specialize in managing rare books, legal precedents, clinical trials or in creating abstracts for professional journals.

Other work may involve developing computer programs and databases to organize information, as well as designing methods for acquiring and classifying materials from a broad variety of sources; information management and information technology make up a large part of a librarian's skills.

A master's degree in library science typically takes one to two years to complete, and can be preceded by a bachelor's degree in almost any field. A degree in an apparently unrelated field could help qualify a librarian to work with specialized collections. Teaching licenses are often required for school librarians, with some states requiring either a particular field of study, a comprehensive test or both. Taking an aptitude test can help individuals determine if they are well-suited for a career as a modern librarian.