Librarian Work

A librarian plays a significant role in maintenance of library such as providing book and related services to the people, proper maintenance of library area in terms of arranging books in well organized manner, collect all books as demanded by the customers, research ability and many more. Following are some essential features associated with librarian work are described below:

Work profile

The librarian work is highly important in places like academic institution such asschool and colleges, government libraries, public service library, research libraries etc. The main function associated with librarian work is to provide quality library services to all visitors and updateinformation with all latest changes in the world of books and information. On the other side, they are also responsible to maintain definite database regarding book collection and future demands of readers.

Educational qualification

If you want to work in public library, then you must do your master course in library science or information science. Normally, this master course is of two-year duration. However, you need to acquire a certified permission to work as a librarian at school level. At the same time, a public school librarian does not require any specific master's degree in library science. Rather an academic degree holds more importance than library science degree.

Essential skills required for librarian work

• Good leadership quality: For ensuring smooth flow of work in the organization, you must develop a refined leadership quality for directing and supervising other staff members'work.
• Team working ability: The team working ability is considered as a beneficial skill for effective completion of work in places like library.
• Organized behavior: The librarian work entirely focuses on maintenance of library properties and data in well organized manner. Therefore, an organized behavior is the great help while conducting this role.
• Technical skills: Your expertise in technical knowledge especially in computer handling is the additional advantage for the librarian work. Your knowledge in Microsoft Word and Excel can majorly help you for doing database management.
• Detail-oriented skills: The librarian must possess detail oriented quality in order to provide correct and detailed information regarding each and every book present in the library.

Duties of librarian work

Duties and responsibilities of every professional related to library vary in accordance with the position. For example, library head or administrator usually has more responsibilities than others like library manager or library assistant. Following are some general duties:

• Proper research regarding availability of each and every book
• Fulfill customer's requirements in terms of providing information or any specific book
• Maintain entire data in computer database regarding overall collection of the library
• Supervise rest of staff members for quality flow of work
• Ensure that all activities are being done under the assigned budget to the library
• Implement all functions in accordance with the policies and standards set by the governing body of library

Work environment

Work hours: The librarian work is normally performed either as part time job or as a full time service. A fixed working hour is generally assigned to public school librarian work. On the other side, if any librarian is engaged with private organizations such as corporate libraries or advertising organizations, then flexible working shifts is applied to such positions.

Work environment: A librarian is meant to maintain the silence in library areas. As a result, a librarian experiences a quiet environment around him. However, it also depends upon the work place. For example; a corporate librarian is expected to face corporate office atmosphere, whereas a public school librarian may deal with some extra responsibilities through finding information or research work along with the students.

Career prospects

Nowadays, librarian work can be found in varied places. As a result, librarian work is categorized into many types like corporate librarian, public school librarian, research librarian and many more. At the same time, many places like medical institutes, museums and advertising organizations are also empowering librarians.

Hence, we can state that librarian work deals with varied functions and responsibilities. At the same time, some specific set of skills are also required for showcasing a justifiable role in this profession.