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Do Librarians Need to Go to School?

The reply is yes. Librarians really are a very well-educated group of professionals. Most employers have the desire to hire librarians who have completed a master's degree program accredited through the ALA (American Library Association). Additionally, a specialization may be required depending on the job opportunity you are searching for.

Undergraduate Degree

An undergraduate degree from a 4-year university stands out as the first thing you'll need to achieve in order to become a librarian. This undergraduate degree is essential for admission into a graduate school which is the following part of your trip towards librarianship.

The appealing thing in regards to the undergraduate degree necessary in order to turn into a librarian is this: there isn't any requirements about your choice of major. Meaning you may study rocket science to social science and anything in the middle yet still be a librarian.

A pair of things to remember when you are choosing your undergraduate major is firstly.. You'll want to pick something which truly interests you therefore you posses the motivation it requires to achieve your degree and secondly.. Graduate schools typically only admit students who achieved their undergraduate degree having a minimum B average or minimum 3.0 GPA.

Graduate Degree

The next step is to receive a graduate degree from an ALA (American Library Association) accredited school. One can find only 63 of such schools so ensure that the school you select possesses this accreditation.

Admittance to a graduate school might demand submission of recommendation letters (so make sure you are in good favor with each of your undergraduate professors because they're the ideal resource for a recommendation letter), multiple interview processes, as well as the issuance of a standardized test.

Employers are mostly seeking librarians which have completed their librarian training Masters in Library and Information Science, or their Masters in Library Science.

These graduate degrees typically take 1-2 years to achieve determined by your selected workload within the school semesters.

Courses you can expect to take while earning your graduate degree might include:

Library Management

Cataloging

Information Science

Research Methods

Reference Resources

Library Collections

There is also a doctorate available (Doctorate of Library Science) for individuals who wish to take their librarian career to the next level. Specialization

Some individuals throughout the librarian career elect to pursue a specialized degree in areas along the lines of school, archival, or art in an effort to better prepare themselves for the specific librarian job they desire.

Specialization may be required for several positions. The school librarian position in many states needs a Masters degree in Education or Library Science along with a specialty in Library Media (This specialty degree must come from a course accredited with the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education or NCATE). Certification

Most states have certification requirements for school librarian and public librarian positions which may include the issuance of a comprehensive assessment. This could be a state-specific certification or a general teachers certification, you should check in case your state requires some of these in order to hold a librarian position.

Whether you decide to start or continue down your path to librarianship we wish you the finest of luck!

If you like any of our articles please check out our site at [http://librariancourses.com] where you can find everything you need related to a career as a librarian. Thanks!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Austin_Gerleman/1269100

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6853452

_(By Austin Gerleman).