From the blog Letters to a Young Librarian, comes a frank and funny blog post Ten Things I Didn’t Learn in Library School, Academic Edition about the top ten things that library school didn’t prepare the author for. This particular blog post is focused on academic libraries, while a similar post by Eric Riley focuses on public library work and “interesting” experiences he wasn’t exactly prepared for. You’ll laugh as they recount stories about dealing with difficult patrons, “janitorial work”, and the balancing act when it comes to working with and supporting faculty.

In particular, I appreciated the statement that, whether we like it or not, “the library (the department) is not always in charge of how the library (the space) is used”. I often struggled with this exact concept at the last library I worked at — the library was a prime spot for many events, with at least 80% of all campus events occurring in the library — even events seemingly unrelated to the library and its mission. Overtime, I had to find ways of managing this and still supporting the students with our resources even when the library (space) was otherwise occupied. Additionally, if the library got to take credit for the event and awesome free food — all the better!

So, take a look at the blog posts! What are some statements you agree with? Are there others that the authors missed? Check it out!!