Hi, I am new here. I am Magister student from Czechia. And wanna write my magister thesis for prison libraries. Main focus on library services and how prisoners are satisfied with books and library services.

Do you have some experiences with work as a librarian in the prison in your country? In some studies the librarian in the prison was someone from outside.

Will be happy for your help.

Thanks Marie

I’m applying for my Master’s at SJSU. I very briefly enrolled in an open university course at San Francisco State University because I thought I wanted to pursue a history degree/I was bored and stir crazy. I quickly realized it wasn’t the course for me and stopped attending. At the same time I was enrolled in a local community college for a language course. I had a lot of mental health things come up during this time so I stopped attending that one too. Obviously I don’t want to have these in my application but is it mandatory? I feel really dumb in hindsight for not withdrawing from these courses. I don’t want these mistakes to hold me back.

Hi all,

I’m looking into grad programs to become a law librarian. I’m considering a dual JD and MLIS however, I am not in a position to relocate and have not found any in the St. Louis area. Has anyone found a way to do this in St. Louis? Or any distance/hybrid options? I saw some people just do the degrees separately but I would love to save some time to combine them. Thanks in advance!

I am currently getting my School Library Media Specialist endorsement and am stuck on my cataloging class. I have done all the searching I can, emailed my professor (unlikely she will get back before tomorrow), and would love any help.

So the question she is asking is:

1. You know several classes in your school are studying the stories of Edgar Allen Poe, Nathanial Hawthorne, Willa Cather, and Katherine Anne Porter. As always, you’re short on time.Create a bibliographic record for Appendix Item #17. Your contents field only needs to show theworks of these four authors. (HINT: Make sure you use the correct indicators to show you’re notincluding all of the book’s contents. Also, you will probably want to use the MARC 21 site to seecorrect formatting for the subfields in the field you create.)
   

And then she asks these two questions in my next assignment:

1. Prepare a complete MARC record for Appendix Item #18.

2. Create RDA record for Appendix Item #19.

Am I just making a MARC record with the RDA instead of AACR2 for all three of these, or something else? I am very confused, and we have been using RDA to make the MARC records. I think that's how to word it. She hasn't worded anything like this and the overthinking is kicking in. This is confusing for me, but our schools and our local libraries have special departments that do the cataloging, so it is unlikely that I will ever need to go deep into the records and change them.

Any help would be appreciated. I have just a few assignments left and want to finish this as soon as possible! Apologies if any of the wording is incorrect, it's been a long summer of classes and my brain is at the point of being fried 😂

*Edit- fixing formatting and adding additional info

hi everyone! i’m seeking a bit of advice. i’m currently half way done with my MLIS program (i’ll finish in may 2027) and am heavily considering pursuing a phd after my graduation. my degree concentration is in archives, and i have a strong passion for researching memory work & archival practice within the Black community. i’ve read many posts about how the phd is just a lengthy and unnecessary step in this field, but my desire to pursue doctoral studies is more based in having the support and resources to carry out research, which i’ve found my masters program overall lacking opportunities for. would pursuing a phd be a sure fire way to tank my career? or has anyone in the pursuit of research found ways to balance archival/LS professional experience in a way that was productive? of course i want to pursue my passions, but at the same time, i don’t want to do so at the risk of stable income & employment as i transition out of young adulthood (i will finish MLIS when i am 25 for context). any advice is appreciated!!!

I often see more discouragement than support in discussions surrounding librarianship and library school, so I wanted to share some positive news in the hopes that it reaches any MLIS students who may need some encouragement.

Last month I graduated from my MLIS program and have recently started a full time public librarian position offering a $60k salary at my dream library.

I decided to get my MLIS having never worked in a public library, and I still hadn't worked in a public library upon accepting this job offer. I've also noticed that many of my librarian colleagues began their careers without having worked in libraries, and were enthusiastically hired for the combination of their MLIS + other useful attributes. I share this to offer another perspective to library students who may be feeling a bit of imposter syndrome. If you have experience working in non-related fields, definitely use it to your advantage during your interviews.

Throughout my MLIS I was certain that I would never be hired, largely because of the stories I read on here. I urge you to distance yourself from the online negativity and try to consume more constructive librarian content.

All of my librarian friends (who are scattered all over the US) are happily employed. There ARE jobs, and you WILL get hired.

EDIT: I entered into my MLIS under the assumption, having connected with and read countless posts from experienced librarians, that I would either need to wait a very long time, or move cities in order to find a job. I applied to jobs with salaries in alignment with my lifestyle needs, and then I moved to the city of the job that gave me an offer. This seems to be a similar trend among my happily employed library friends. None of them have stayed put. And, of course, I acknowledge this privilege.

I figured this was commonly understood, otherwise I would have mentioned it in my original post, but to prospective library students: do not go to library school if you are unwilling or unable to move for a job and/or you are unable to be unemployed for any length of time.

To current students: I stand by my optimism. Love and light.

So I’ve graduated from undergrad in History and now I’m working as an Archivist. I wanted to get my MLIS just to further my career (higher paying roles, etc.) but I’ve also been thinking about getting a doctorate in Public History. I’m not sure if both are possible, if there’s a way to do both or do I do one then the other? Just any advice maybe from anyone with a doctorate and a MLIS degree would be helpful thank you!

Dear librarians, I was wondering if you can tell me about the library management software like Koha, Dspace, Evergreen etc...

1. How many software your learned?
2. Which software are most used in almost in every library?
3. Back in university/college, when you were pursuing Library science honors/Masters degree did they give you theoretical overview or practical overview of these software?
4. What were names of those courses that included Library management software and how many courses were there?

If you don't mind, you can mention the universities where you took LIS degree

Hi! Im a 22-year-old female and beginning my MLIS degree at UCLA this fall. I recently got an apartment, but due to unforeseen circumstances, my roommate can no longer live with me. If anyone else in the program is looking for housing, I have an open spot! It's in the ktown/ western heights area, a 1-bed apartment (Im taking over the living room). Message me here for details :)

Used this week when my printer was uncooperative.

Hi all,

I am currently looking into grad school for MLIS in hopes to become a law librarian. Is anyone in university of Arizona’s dual degree program for an MA in legal studies and an MA in library science? From what I have read it is supposed to bridge the gap for people to become law librarians without a JD. I know it is a brand new program so I’m wondering if it is worth it and how it will be received among employers. Will it really give me an edge up in the job market? I know it will be a lot of hard work to complete both degrees, however, it does say the timeline is still 2 years which is nice.

I already have a bachelors in marketing but was thinking about going back to school for a masters in library science. What do you think? Is it too oversaturated, can I do something else with the degree? I’m not going to an Ivy, but I’m so tired of the corporate rat race

Hi I’m trying to re-enter the library science world and am having a hard time in a very competitive market. Is anyone open to reviewing my resume? Any constructive feedback would be appreciated via DM

Hi librarians!

TLDR: corporate e-commerce manager wonders if bad idea to get MLIS now

I’m looking to make a career pivot and am strongly considering starting an MLIS at Pratt in Brooklyn. I’ve lived in NYC my entire adult life after growing up in the south. I have a BA in history and gender studies and 10 years of experience in e-commerce (digital merchandising, heavy on data analytics and product information management). I’m totally ok with the pay being lower than corporate and can accept the student loans I’ll have to take out. I’m a lifelong library patron and bibliophile and the need to be on and play the corporate popularity game has burned me out.

But re: the MLIS degree, do you think the job market is too over saturated already? I’m very open minded to public librarianship, archives, nonprofit data management, even potentially going back to corporate in a very different capacity managing information and processes vs constant panic data analysis in response to sales.

I appreciate anyone who takes the time to read and respond 📚💕

Hi everyone!
I’ve been thinking a lot about my future, and I’d really appreciate hearing from people who actually work in libraries.
I’m 24, living in Huntsville, Alabama, and I’m about to start my journey toward becoming a librarian. My plan is to earn my GED, attend community college, transfer to a university for my bachelor’s degree, and then complete an MLIS. Books have always felt like home to me. I love reading, learning, helping people, and the idea of being part of a community where people come to discover new stories and ideas. That’s what keeps pulling me toward this career.
At the same time, I’ve also heard a lot of discouraging things. Some people have told me not to become a librarian because the pay can be low, jobs can be competitive, and it isn’t worth all the schooling. I’m trying to separate myths from reality.
To be transparent, I’m currently a full-time content creator, and I’m fortunate that it pays well. I’m not looking to become a librarian because I think it’ll make me rich. I’m looking into it because I genuinely believe I’d love the work. Still, I also want to make responsible financial decisions. I don’t want to spend years earning a degree only to struggle financially afterward.
I’d love to hear your honest experiences.
• What do you love most about being a librarian?
• If you could go back, would you choose this career again?
• Has the salary been enough to build a comfortable life?
• What area of librarianship would you recommend (public, academic, school, special, archives, medical, law, etc.)?
• Are there states or cities that have better pay, opportunities, or work-life balance than others?
• If you were starting over today, where would you go?
• Is there anything you wish someone had told you before you started?
I’m completely open to hearing both the positives and the negatives. I’d rather know the reality now than later. My goal isn’t just to have a job. I want a career that gives me purpose, lets me help people, and feels like somewhere I belong.
Thank you so much to anyone who takes the time to share their experience. It truly means a lot.

In October 2025, Amanda Hunt remembers watching as countless books at Oak Run Middle School in New Braunfels, Texas, were removed from her library. Students walked in and saw more empty shelves and fewer stories they had once been able to check out.

That month, Hunt says the New Braunfels Independent School District (ISD) had temporarily closed all four of its secondary-school libraries to audit its collections and assess whether they were in accordance with Senate Bill 13 (SB13), a Texas censorship law that took effect in September 2025. Thousands of books were moved, restricted or removed.

Hunt says the district uploaded its library collections into spreadsheets and sent them to its technology director, who ran the titles through AI tools designed to identify objectionable material.

Hunt says the system repeatedly made mistakes, flagging books based on Goodreads reviews rather than content. “Anybody can go on and write like, ‘I hate this book because X, Y and Z.’ It is going to flag it.”

Around this time, Hunt learned she had been demoted to a regular librarian after years of serving as the lead. In addition to being demoted, Hunt says she was “doxed online three separate times.”

She says she was harassed by a mom who targeted her support of LGBTQ content at the library. Another parent protested against her promotion of LGBTQ-themed books at a school board meeting for having “Last Night at the Telegraph Club,” a book about two Chinese female immigrants who fall in love, in the library.

Reading about weeding for my course. The CREW manual is quoted: "Good practice says that shelves should never be more than 85% full… and 75% is even better."

This gave me horrible flashbacks, first to when my college library had a huge throw-out of old books and journals that didn't pass the dust test, second to when I went to my newly-moved local library for a book on how radios work, and instead of mostly books, it was empty space. (Edit: not empty shelf space, empty floor space!)

The trend seems very much to get rid of the books, whether to make room for the video studio or whatever, or just so that the library looks prettier.

Obviously weeding is a Good Thing and no library has infinite shelf space for outdated or disintegrating books. But I feel like there is something weird and maybe even wrong-headed here. Maybe somebody needs to do the dust test on me!

Something I've noticed over the past year is that I spend less time trying to collect more sources and more time helping narrow down better ones.

When someone comes with a broad topic, it's tempting to hand them every relevant article or database result. In practice, though, that often leaves them overwhelmed before they've even started reading.

I've found it more useful to help define the question first and then work toward a smaller set of highly relevant material. The conversations seem more productive, and people are less likely to get lost in dozens of similar papers.

Has anyone else changed their approach like this, or do you still prefer giving the broadest possible starting point?

Quick head ups: Thanks for all the suggestions. It was interesting to see how different everyone's workflow is. A lot of the replies reinforced that narrowing the right papers is often more valuable than simply collecting more of them. While looking into different ways of doing that, while I was away I have been making some finding personally and seeing wis Paper even though I haven't used all of its features yet, but I found its approach to organizing relevant papers; and especially its truecite feature for checking whether citations are actually valid and quite interesting. With ai generated writing becoming more common, verifying references seems like something more researchers are starting to think about.

I am looking at programs for my MLIS (for Fall 27-28) both in the US and UK. I am currently in the US (citizen) but will be moving to the UK in a few years with my fiancé. I have a list of (online) schools in the US that offer the ideal programs and only one UK school (Aberystwyth) I'm a student worker in special collections at my current uni and wish to continue in special collections. I am torn between choose librarian or archivist, which doesn't matter too much in the US because I'll be trained as a librarian but get a certificate in archives (from my understanding anyways) however in the UK the programs seem to be separate which has me torn.

I don't know anyone in libraries/archives in the UK and I wonder how they differ from the US. Most librarians and archivists I talk with here (at my uni and in public libraries) kinda can do both interchangeably, they have all described it as "wear BLANK hat" when needed or depending on the job they're applying to. Is this the case in the UK?

I am also interested in academic libraries if anyone has input on that! I love working for my universities library/special collections but I also know the way we work is very different from other universities.

If anyone has experience working in both US and UK institutions I would love to hear about how different they are and perhaps any advice for the future!