biblio+chic » slis http://www.bibliochic.com Wed, 21 Dec 2011 20:21:33 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 Me, Myself, and I http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/07/05/me-myself-and-i/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/07/05/me-myself-and-i/#comments Tue, 05 Jul 2011 23:56:14 +0000 Melissa http://www.bibliochic.com/?p=762 Whoa! It’s been way too long since I’ve last posted here, and that is a huge testament to how busy my life has been these past few months. Here’s a quick update:

  • Back in May, I graduated with my Master’s in Library and Information Science from Kent State University with a 3.98 GPA. It was exhilarating and yet also very scary, as I spent most of April and May searching for a job! (And they are few and far between in the library world!)
  • On the day before graduation, I was offered a position at OverDrive, a digital distributor of eBooks and audiobooks, working with libraries (specifically, school and college libraries).
  • I started working at OverDrive in late May, and ever since it’s been a whirlwind, learning new things, meeting new people, actually having to get up every day and go to work – ahh!
  • I’ve only just now been able to get back into reading!

And there is the brief update on my life, and other wonderful things. I’m very fortunate to be employed right now, and I’m really enjoying my job and all I’m learning! I’m finally also reading like crazy again. I’m currently working my way through Fallen by Lauren Kate, and a reread of The Hunger Games. I’m working on a program with my YALSA mentor for THG, so I need freshen up on the story!

I also recently purchased a Nook, which is my new best friend, and I am crazily downloading books from my local library, through, who else, OverDrive! So, please, keep reading, and look for some new, fresh reviews soon. Can’t wait to get back into blogging!

]]> http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/07/05/me-myself-and-i/feed/ 2 Busy, Busy Bee http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/01/25/busy-busy-bee/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/01/25/busy-busy-bee/#comments Tue, 25 Jan 2011 13:38:44 +0000 Melissa http://www.bibliochic.com/?p=734 This post from Abby the Librarian regarding going to library school inspired me to finally take a minute to update my own blog, and you, awesome readers, on my life as a library school student. As you can see, for the past few months this blog has been quite slow. I promised an update earlier this month, and I’ve just been SO busy.

It’s been a couple of weeks into my last semester now, and everything is going so smoothly. My class in museum studies is definitely interesting, and I’m going to be able to visit a few museums during the semester. I’ll try to write about them here. On Saturday, I’m going to visit the COSI museum in Columbus, which is one of my favorites!

I’ve also started my practicum, and I can’t even describe how much I am loving it so far. A little part of me was worried. Having never actually worked in a library, I had this little seed of doubt in my heart, that when I would finally get the chance to work with teens in a library, I wouldn’t actually like it! I should have known better. I’ve known that this is the path for me for quite some time, and every day at my practicum I see that justified. I’m not saying that every day will be perfect, when I’m a librarian. But to enjoy work, and find it satisfying, and know that what you do may affect someone’s life in a positive way–that’s why I’m doing this.

So yes, school is great. My practicum is excellent. I’ve participated in a few programs, and am coming up with ideas right now for a display case in the library, as well as for some program ideas. I have so many ideas! I can’t wait to see them through to implementation.

And as for other things, I’ve finally had some time to read. I’m still catching up on a lot of the great books from last year, but I’m getting there. I also have a few books to review, which I will hopefully take care of in February. I’m feeling a second (third? fourth?) wind coming on with this blog, and I hope to get back to doing some more reviewing soon!

]]> http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/01/25/busy-busy-bee/feed/ 4 Toward the Finish Line http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/01/03/toward-the-finish-line/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/01/03/toward-the-finish-line/#comments Tue, 04 Jan 2011 04:30:21 +0000 Melissa http://www.bibliochic.com/?p=731 I can’t believe it, but I’m beginning my last semester of library school next week! It’s been an absolutely, fantastic, amazing, experience-filled ride, and the best is yet to come. This semester I’ll be working at a local library for a practicum experience, where I get to work with teens in a library, work on and create projects, and basically learn all I can about being a teen librarian.

I’m super excited about it and can’t wait to begin! I’ll also be taking one class this semester, Museum Studies for Librarians, and two workshops, one on video games in libraries (awesome, right?) and another on young adult literature. STOKED! Can you believe I get to go to school for this kind of thing?

This semester I’m really going to focus on building my professional credentials, skills, and experiences, in the hopes that I can find and obtain a job when I graduate. I’m participating in a lot of cool programs, volunteering, and working my butt off to make this happen. Since I’ll be in a library setting much more often than usual, I’m hoping to really amp up my posts here with insights and anecdotes about my experiences in the library.

Wish me luck, and look forward to reading about my first week of my marathon toward the finish line next week!

]]> http://www.bibliochic.com/2011/01/03/toward-the-finish-line/feed/ 0 Library School, Year Two http://www.bibliochic.com/2010/09/06/library-school-year-two/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2010/09/06/library-school-year-two/#comments Tue, 07 Sep 2010 02:28:39 +0000 Melissa http://www.bibliochic.com/?p=648 So I’ve begun my second year of my master’s program–my last year! I can hardly believe it. The summer FLEW by, so quickly, and now it is practically fall. This semester I’m taking 3 courses, library services for school-age children, cataloging and classification, and social sciences information services. It’s fun, this semester, finally being finished with my main required courses, being able to take more specialized courses. After this semester I’ll only need to finish my practical experience, and then I’m done! Most likely I’ll also take a few courses, but the main focus of spring semester will be my practical experience.

I still definitely want to work with teens. Still love reading teen books. I have SO many books to read, SO many books to write about. I’ll be trying over the next month to post some reviews, thoughts, etc. I may even share some of the books for children I’m reading (currently: many, many picture books–a whole new area for me!).

I’m a GA again this year, working on projects related to library catalogs and FRBR. Really interesting work, completely out of my desired career path, but I do a lot of work with data, which I’m becoming more and more an expert on! I’m also hoping to serve on a few committees at my school, as well as get involved more on campus when possible.

Anyways, there’s an update on my school life–back to regularly scheduled blogging asap!

]]> http://www.bibliochic.com/2010/09/06/library-school-year-two/feed/ 3 Serving Teens http://www.bibliochic.com/2010/02/09/serving-teens/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2010/02/09/serving-teens/#comments Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:22:22 +0000 Melissa http://www.bibliochic.com/?p=393 Why do I want to work with teenagers? This is the question I ask myself every so often as I continue to pursue my MLIS degree. At what point in my life did I decide I wanted to become a teen librarian? Is it only because I love to read YA lit? Is there more to it? As I participate in a young adult library services class this semester, I continue to examine the path that brought me to this program, and to my chosen career.

Of course, I love YA lit. I love all genres within YA lit, I enjoy the YA blogosphere, and I’ll read whatever I can get my hands on. But as I am slowly beginning to realize, that isn’t enough to be a teen librarian. Of course, I knew this, but as I learn about the developmental paths of teenagers, the programs and services that libraries offer them, and their general information wants and needs, I know that I have a lot to learn, and a lot of experiences to create, before I’ll be a great teen librarian.

I’m not worried about the future. I know working with teens won’t be easy, but I anticipate it will be rewarding. I’m learning what I need to know to build the foundation, and time and trial and hopefully few errors will get me to where I want to be. And I look forward to the teens I will work with, interact with, communicate with, and hopefully have an effect on in the future.

]]> http://www.bibliochic.com/2010/02/09/serving-teens/feed/ 0 Been A While! http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/12/27/been-a-while/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/12/27/been-a-while/#comments Sun, 27 Dec 2009 22:04:26 +0000 Melissa http://www.bibliochic.com/?p=356 It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged. My life has been a crazy whirlwind this past month. I don’t even know where to begin! Work has been crazy, crazy, crazy. And I recently accepted a position as a graduate assistant for my school. So, I’ll be leaving my current place of employment in early January and embarking on this new, exciting journey. I can’t even describe how excited I am about this. I’ll be able to attend school full time, which means I will graduate sooner than expected, and be in my chosen career field sooner as well!

Next semester I’m taking a course in young adult library services, so you can be sure that I’ll be posting quite a few reviews/discussions on here. I should be beginning some of my books to read this week, so look for updates soon!

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday! I am definitely looking forward to 2010!

]]> http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/12/27/been-a-while/feed/ 0 Semester 1 – DONE! http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/11/21/semester-1-done/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/11/21/semester-1-done/#comments Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:01:06 +0000 Melissa http://www.bibliochic.com/?p=348 I’ve finished my first semester of graduate school with great grades and awesome learning experiences. I’m very satisfied with the classes I took and what I’ve learned. I’m very happy to have succeeded in both despite time constraints with work and other stresses. I have a really good feel on the basics of this profession I’ve chosen to enter and can’t wait to take more courses that are further specialized for my specific interests. A few things I’ve learned thus far:

  • Online courses are very different than what I thought and I feel that they take more time on the part of the student than an onsite class might, because of the online discussions and online lectures.
  • I had no clue what was involved in cataloging, and now I realize just how complicated it is. Everything is very standardized–kudos to all cataloging librarians! This has given me some good insight into why you need a professional degree to be a librarian. It’s not easy!
  • There are many different fields and organizations that a person with an MLIS can work in after graduation, including nontraditional library settings.
  • The profession of library and information science is a passionate, dedicated group with people out there willing to share their knowledge and also gain more.

Can’t wait for my next semester next year!

]]> http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/11/21/semester-1-done/feed/ 0 Library School, Weeks 2 and 3 http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/09/21/library-school-weeks-2-and-3/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/09/21/library-school-weeks-2-and-3/#comments Tue, 22 Sep 2009 01:40:29 +0000 Melissa http://www.bibliochic.com/?p=314 I am approaching my 4th week of grad school and I can’t even believe it! I am still feeling just as excited about it as I was the first week. The past 2 weeks were very busy–I had a lot of reading and a lot of lectures to listen to. Now that the classes have begun, we’re now working on assignments and exercises, and of course, tons of discussions. I finally feel like I am beginning to grasp some of the more difficult concepts I have come across. It seems like in both my classes it is divided between those who work in libraries right now and those who do not. I don’t, and I do see a difference when others talk about their experiences in libraries.

I can’t say that the difference is causing me to suffer. I appreciate that the professors of all my classes understand that there are a lot of students that don’t work in libraries, and that these concepts are extremely new to us. The topics in my classes are explained well, and the exercises and lectures are relevant and fun.

So far, everything is going great and I’m loving it!

]]> http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/09/21/library-school-weeks-2-and-3/feed/ 0 My First Week of Library School http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/09/07/my-first-week-of-library-school/ http://www.bibliochic.com/2009/09/07/my-first-week-of-library-school/#comments Tue, 08 Sep 2009 02:34:21 +0000 Melissa http://www.melissahigey.com/blog/?p=295 This past week was my first week as a graduate student of library and information science. I’m not exactly sure what to say about it just yet, as I am just getting my feet wet, but first I’d like to say I am SO EXCITED! I have been waiting for this all year and am so glad to finally be moving towards earning this professional degree.

Several weeks ago I attended new student orientation for my program with my friend and I was very pleased with everything that I heard. I am very thrilled to be beginning in this profession, and know that I will be learning a lot.

I am taking 2 courses this semester, both online. My first course is the introductory course for the program and the other is a course on the organization of information. I have to say, what I thought I knew about library science, and how much I thought I knew, will definitely be challenged this semester. Even after a week I am beginning to realize I know very little about what a librarian actually does. I am glad that I am taking it slowly with only 2 courses–I didn’t want to overwhelm myself right off the bat, especially with having been out of school for a few years.

Mainly, in these online courses, we do our readings from the textbooks and other sources, we listen to lectures that the professors post on the website, and then we discuss the topics on the online discussion boards. I’m glad I’m technologically-savvy, some of this has been quite complicated to figure out, but I have been doing well so far. I can’t wait to go into more depth in the classes–I haven’t felt this way about school in a long time!

Well, friends, I will keep you updated on that. Keep reading!

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