Hi Christine,

I just got my first professional appointment after being out of library 
school for 18 months (exactly how long I was warned it would take). My 
title is Systems and Educational Technology Liaison. While I was in grad 
school, I was very much on the research and instruction track but, 
towards the end, I had a really great instructor in a basic web 
development course, and I finally saw how useful those skills can be. I 
suppose I always knew it in the back of my mind but dismissed web 
development as not one of my strengths.

The job description I applied to was very kitchen sinky, and I 
introduced myself during my remote interview as a "noob." I was a 
humanities major as an undergrad, and though I've been using HTML since 
MySpace days, that was pretty much the extent of my hands-on experience 
until halfway through grad school. Since graduation, I've learned 
command line Linux and I'm working on Python, but my lack of experience 
does keep me up at night. I do not feel as well-prepared from my 
Masters' program as I would with a BS in CS. With your IT background, I 
see no reason why you should hesitate to apply to a systems job.

Though I do feel significant impostor syndrome during these early months 
at my new job, nobody here seems to think that I'm not up to the task 
or, if they do, they are being very nice about keeping it to themselves. 
I think what a lot of libraries are looking for is that application of 
LIS principles to the techie work that needs to get done, and it might 
be more about attitude than aptitude.

Best,


*Thomas San Filippo*
/Systems and Educational Technology Liaison/

Pronouns: he/him/his; they/them/their(s)

Madeleine Clark Wallace Library 
<https://wheatoncollege.edu/academics/library/>, G34
Wheaton College <https://wheatoncollege.edu>
26 E. Main Street, Norton, MA 02766 <https://goo.gl/maps/d5JvoKZUEXy>
(508) 286-5601 <tel:+15082865601>
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On 9/26/18 7:56 PM, Christine Schultz-Richert wrote:
> Hi!
>
> I am a MLIS student and this question is something that is very interesting
> to me! I am currently researching how well we prepare current and future
> librarians and library workers for data-intensive or techie roles and
> responsibilities. It seems like much of the current research points to
> difficulty in evaluating this question due to the lack of clear definition
> of what these roles look like in libraries and other information centers.
> In other words, it is challenging to determine how to prepare or evaluate
> librarian preparedness because we don't have a good understanding of what
> the actual competencies for these jobs are - which sounds like what you're
> referencing here, Christina, that job postings tend to reflect this
> "unicorn" candidate or kitchen sink of skill sets. Its really helpful for
> me to learn about all of your experiences - so thank you so much for
> sharing!
>
> Admittedly, as an IT Data Analyst in an MLIS program, I have a bit of a
> self-serving interest in understanding the overlap in these fields; I'm
> fascinated by the application of LIS principles in other disciplines and
> sectors. And Gem - I am perpetually trying to convince myself to apply for
> jobs I'm exciting about whether or not I fit 100% of the requirements! I
> agree!
>
> Thanks everyone for providing so much color to these topics!
>
> Christine
>
>
>
> On Wed, Sep 26, 2018 at 6:02 PM Salazar, Christina <
> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> I think a part of why I'm asking is it seems sometimes (oftentimes?) the
>> folks who are doing the hiring or job postings don't really KNOW what all
>> is involved in many of the techie type librarian positions and so I often
>> see job postings that seem to throw in all kinds of stuff and it's hard to
>> tell how much emphasis would be placed on say writing code or maintaining
>> systems.
>>
>> - Christina
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Code for Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
>> Gem Stone-Logan
>> Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2018 3:52 PM
>> To: [log in to unmask]
>> Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] Are you a coder/programmer or a systems analyst or?
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> Long-time lurker appearing . . .
>>
>> This is an interesting question to me because I considered systems
>> librarian to be its own thing.  My official job titles have been IT
>> Application Engineer, Technology Librarian, and Systems Librarian but I
>> always introduced myself in the library world as a systems librarian
>> because it seemed to cover what I do more than anything else.
>> Broadly, I consider a systems librarian anyone who is primarily
>> responsible in a library for making library-related software work better
>> (either at the application level or the code level).  Exactly how you do
>> that depends on your organization's resources and focus.
>>
>> One of my favorite parts of the job is tracking down system quirks. I love
>> a good mystery. Most of the coding I do is either to supplement things the
>> ILS can't do or can't do efficiently.
>>
>> (As an aside, I vote for applying to any job you think looks interesting
>> regardless of whether or not you fit the exact requirements. Sometimes it's
>> hard to tell in job descriptions what the organization really needs.)
>>
>> Gem
>> Systems Librarian (Actual job title at the moment ;) )
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Sep 26, 2018 at 2:23 PM Salazar, Christina <
>> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>> Hey Everyone,
>>>
>>> I'm going to be so old skool about this and ask this question on the
>>> mailing list, but I'm curious to know if you believe your work is more
>>> coder/programmer or systems/applications analyst or project management
>>> type work? I'm also curious about what types of job titles you have
>>> that do/do not correlate to the work you do on a day to day. (I'm
>>> painting with broad strokes I guess.)
>>>
>>> My job title has pretty much been systems librarian since 2001 and in
>> that time have more closely identified with systems analyst type tasks. I
>> can code but it's mostly in aid of fixing broken things, not creating new
>> applications. I guess I also LIKE fixing broken things MORE than making new
>> ones. I'm also sort of kind of a project manager since I've now assisted
>> with implementation of perhaps a dozen or more library applications
>> (including I think 4 ILSs).
>>> I'm trying NOT to reignite that whole "imposter syndrome" conversation
>>> but focus more on our actual skills and experience (believe me, that
>>> previous paragraph, while empirically true makes me feel all wormy
>>> inside.) I'm contemplating all this in hopes of better marketing
>>> myself for future and current job possibilities (as in, maybe I should
>>> not apply for systems librarian jobs any more since I am not really a
>>> full time coder but more of a "fixer.")
>>>
>>> Thoughts anyone?
>>>
>>> Christina Salazar
>>> Librarian About Town
>>> California State University, Channel Islands John Spoor Broome Library
>>> 805-437-3198