Motivations for choosing librarianship as a second career among students at the University of British Columbia and the University of Hong Kong

The pathway to a career in the Library and Information Science field is rarely straightforward and unidirectional, but is often multi-faceted, with many circuitous detours along the way. There has been an increasing number of second-career in LIS emerging from many other non-LIS-related professions over the years. Many of these newcomers have made significant contributions to the LIS profession as they transfer their years of professional experiences, expertise, knowledge and skills from their former careers into the field. The purpose of this paper is to understand the perceptions and perspectives of the LIS students, and the various factors that influenced these midlife graduate students to consider switching from their current occupations to LIS as a second career.preprin

So what made you choose librarianship? Reasons teachers give for their career switch.

This paper explores the reason teachers choose to go into librarianship when leaving the teaching profession from Sub-Saharan Africa. Snowball sampling method was used to locate seventeen (17) participants for this study in Ghana. Mixed methods were used for data collection; questionnaire (open-ended questions) and interview. The data was analyzed using the thematic analysis technique. The study found the following as reasons teacher choose librarianship when leaving the teaching profession: Better Salaries and Remunerations, Relatedness of librarianship to teaching, Love for books, Employment Space and scope of opportunities for librarians. By the findings, this study corroborates researches on second-career librarianship especially from the teaching background. It throws more light on the push factors why teachers practise librarianship

Intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivations of Master of Library and Information Science students: A cross-cultural comparative study

This study examined the career and learning motivation of students studying a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) degree programs at universities located in four different countries, namely the University of Hong Kong, National Taiwan Normal University, Peking University, and the University of Copenhagen. The MLIS students from these four universities were invited to take part in a self-completion online questionnaire survey, and 200 responses were collected in total. We discovered that their prior working experience in the library had an impact on their decision to pursue the MLIS program. We also categorized the career and learning motivation factors of MLIS learners into intrinsic and extrinsic factors, and discovered that the participants were motivated by both intrinsic and extrinsic factors to pursue their graduate studies in the Library and Information Science (LIS) field. We found that intrinsic factors influenced the students of University of Copenhagen significantly more than the other student groups, and this could be explained by Hofstede’s cultural dimensions. Our findings can assist with the formulation of development strategies for MLIS programs through a review of the LIS curriculum and help MLIS programs in different countries attract more people to pursue a career in LIS.preprin

Factors Influencing the Choice of Librarianship as a Career Among Students in Tanzania

This study examined factors influencing the choice of librarianship as a career among students in Tanzania. A quantitative research approach, the descriptive survey study design, was adopted for this study. Data was collected using online questionnaires. Microsoft Office Excel 2010 was used in analyzing quantitative data. The findings of this study showed that the majority of the students were not aware of the librarianship career path until they joined the library and information science program. The findings of the study further revealed job opportunities, personal interest, and desire for helping people among the factors influencing students to join librarianship. Moreover, the study findings showed that negative perceptions towards librarianship, nature of its work, and lack of appreciation from the employers and clients were the factors that discouraged many of the students from joining librarianship. In general, the study concluded that the majority of the students chose librarianship as the last option after being denied from other professions. Accordingly, the study recommends more means of making students aware of librarianship as a career path; for example, mentors and teachers are trusted by students and can help promote awareness about librarianship careers. Additionally, employers and clients are advised to better appreciate the efforts devoted by librarians as a whole

Attracting Prospective Students to Master’s Program: A Dilemma for Library and Information Science Education

This paper examines the issue and challenges of enticing promising students in library and information science (LIS) education in Pakistan. It also identifies the practical strategies in this regard by exploring the perceptions of faculty members. A questionnaire sent to heads of departments and semi-structured interviews with faculty were employed to collect data. The findings of the study identify social, physical, procedural, and behavioral hindrances to attracting brilliant students. The study revealed a need for fundamental changes by expanding intellectual jurisdiction, restructuring academic offerings, redesigning curriculum contents and revamping social image of the profession and professionals. The findings of the study may lead to better understanding of the phenomenon in Pakistan and other countries with a similar context

Progressive Trends in Electronic Resources Management Among Academic Libraries in Hong Kong

Due to recent technology advancement and particularly ubiquity of smart devices, user needs and habits of using library materials are also changed towards electronic resources, which facilitate anytime anyplace access as well as easier information search. For library management, digital resources facilitate long-term preservation together with savings of space and human costs. This lead to a trend of rapid development of digitization and electronic resources, leading to lots of changes in academic libraries. However, there are few studies providing a holistic view of this important trend, especially in metropolis of the East. To explore this trend, we interviewed four librarians in different departments from different universities in Hong Kong for a qualitative analysis on various aspects such as digital versus print, user expectation changes, and new management problems. Emerging issues of e-resources highlighted by the libraries includes acquisitions policies, budget implication, copyright, and access restrictions, consortium collaboration, manpower issues, workflow, and library system changes. We further discuss the practical implications of our findings, which are supportive to those disparate in other literature.postprin

THE MOTIVATION OF WORKING PRACTITIONERS SEEKING A DOCTORAL EDUCATION: FROM THE PERSPECTIVES OF CONFUCIAN LEARNING PHILOSOPHY

This doctoral study explores the motivational orientations of working practitioners pursuing a professional doctoral program who are former and current DPS-IM program students at Syracuse University, School of Information Studies. The found motivational orientations are compared to Confucian philosophy principles of self-cultivation illustrated in The Great Learning (DaXues`å\u3e{t) which is considered the first of a set of Four Books (Sishusl`t). The manuscript\u27s structure consists of a brief of three principles, followed by eight steps that promote individual self-cultivation. Researchers frequently utilize these steps as a connection between civil conduct applied to social and political order (e.g. Keenan, 2011, p. 37). This study uses this Confucian philosophical framework to reveal self-cultivation components related to the motives and aspirations of this select group; Western older adult learners. This study also aims to bridge Eastern motivation theory with Western approaches, making a contribution to both motivational theory and adult education fields of study. This research utilized semi-structured interviews of twenty one DPS-IM students (80.77% participation). Collected data revealed that the majority of the participants were working professionals who have been in their field for at least 10 years. The interview data revealed that self-cultivation was found to be the greatest motivational factor for this study group followed by self-improvement, self-transformation, and sense of responsibility; which are all supported by Confucian learning philosophy found in The Great Learning. This study suggests that even though in modern times, a 2000 year-old Eastern philosophy of learning is synonymous with the motives of adults seeking further education regardless of their cultural background

Well-Behaved Librarians Rarely Make History: Juliette Hampton Morgan and Alabama Librarianship in the 1950s

Juliette Hampton Morgan was the first white Alabama librarian to publicly support racial equality and desegregation initiatives, yet she remains largely unknown amongst library professionals, including those in her home state of Alabama. Outside of Montgomery, Alabama, where the central library in which she worked was renamed in her memory, little is known of her. This is evidenced by the scant information about her in the Alabama Library Association’s archives at the University of Alabama, the lack of recognition by the Alabama Library Association, and the slight understanding of Alabama librarians regarding her role in Alabama library history. (Knowledge gained from author’s work with the Alabama Library Association, extensive research in the Alabama Library Association archival collection – University of Alabama, and author’s interactions with highly involved library professionals from across the state). The story of this “sensitive” librarian who challenged the southern status quo through her vocal encouragement of desegregation, including in public libraries, is vital for a comprehensive knowledge regarding the history of southern public libraries (Dobbins, 1957). While non-southern public libraries had their own racial issues to address, many public librarians in the South, and especially in Alabama, experienced a private “conflict” between their professional values to provide the “highest level of service…[and] equitable access” to all library users, and their segregated societies that legally separated users, making it nearly impossible to achieve their profession’s goals (Graham, 2001, 1-2; American Library Association, 1939). Most librarians kept their struggle quiet, limiting it to private communications or confidential professional records. In contrast, Morgan documented her experience publicly, revealing how she gave voice to a “silent majority” of Alabama librarians who supported desegregation and prepared “the way for a happier and more equitable future” in Alabama libraries (Morgan, 1957). Currently, little scholarship on her professional life, influences, and impact is available. While Mary Stanton’s biographical work is significant to understanding the life of Morgan, Stanton stated in an interview with this article’s author that, as she was not a librarian and she did not focus on Morgan’s librarianship, encouraging further research on her professional life (Mary Stanton, personal communication, March 1, 2019). This article attempts to do that and add to the library literature on this topic

Career Motivation of NGO Professionals in Songkhla Province of Thailand: A Qualitative Study

The aim of this study was to investigate the career motivation of professionals in non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Songkhla province of Thailand. Professionals were defined as the university graduates. The research questions were: What factors motivate the NGO professionals to choose NGOs as the workplace? Why did the professionals choose the NGO over the other alternative career options? Later when they were more experienced, why did they choose to continue to remain in the NGO profession? A mixed method within qualitative approach using in-depth interviews, non-participant observation and secondary document analysis was utilized to conduct the study. There were 16 respondents who came from 5 NGOs in Songkhla province. All 5 NGOs that were chosen to conduct the research were the members of the NGO Coordinating Committee on Rural Development in the South of Thailand (NGO-COD South). Hahn’s (2008) data analysis model was used as the basis of qualitative data analysis. The level 1, level 2, and level 3 coding of Hahn’s (2008) data analysis model was adopted for reducing the qualitative data, category development, and refining the themes respectively. This study had reached the level 3 coding of Hahn’s (2008) data analysis model. Then, the refined themes were used for writing the thesis. This study found that the NGO professionals in Songkhla province seemed to be motivated by non-financial factors (social goals, job characteristics, commitment, and happiness at work) rather than financial factors (salary and benefits). Since this study purposely chose the NGOs in Songkhla province of Thailand for qualitative investigation, the results of this study may not be generalizable to other regions or other sectors. Therefore, the future researchers should explore further on the issue of career motivation in NGOs in other regions as well as the issue of career motivation in other sectors (i.e. public sector and private sector) in order to fill up the gap of knowledge in this area

The Southeastern Librarian v 67 no 3 (Fall 2019)

Full issue of The Southeastern Librarian v 67 no 3 (Fall 2019)