Tag Archives: statistics

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Librarian Salaries and Job Placement Data

Image by Photologue_NP. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by Photologue_NP. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

A variety of reports, studies, and survey results are now in, and open for your review. The good news or bad news depends on where your heart lies in the library field. Our biggest challenge is finding data that works equally well for academic, public, school, and special libraries. A number of links are provided here to help you hone in on what matters most to you. If you want to review the entire landscape of library types, consider reviewing all of the following links.

Most notable in placement rate was in school libraries. National school library placements dropped from 13.5 percent of the reported jobs in 2011 to 8.9 percent in 2012.  And, in the Midwest, the placement rate dropped from 40 percent of the reported school library positions in 2011 to 21.7 percent in 2012! However,  on a positive note, school media salaries improved by nearly two percent, rising from $44,515 in 2011 to $45,376 in 2012. Also of interest is that about 21 percent of job placements are in organizations other than library or information agencies. This encompasses state and federal governmental agencies, nonprofits, and corporate environments.

So, whether you are ready to celebrate good news or wallow in defeat, there is one last link to consider if you want to hear how others in the library field respond to their investment in their Masters in Library science and/or this data and/or the outlook and advice for the future. Go to the Beer Brarian blog to read and comment on the library landscape. Tip: Working on your degree right now? Read sage advice from those who hire!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

A Snapshot of Illiteracy Rates in the U.S.

Blog post suggestion submitted by CMLE Member Representative                                                                        –  Wanda Erickson, Media Specialist, Upsala Area Schools

In February, Online Courses posted a blog regarding literacy rates (rather illiteracy rates) in the United States. You may be surprised to see which city has the lowest and/or highest literacy? Click here for a snapshot of these findings.

Illiterate-America-8002

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

ALA Releases ‘2011 Academic Library Trends and Statistics’

Today’s Press Release from ALA announced that the 2011 Academic Library Trends and Statistics annual publication is now available. The three-volume publication highlights key data from 1,514 academic institutions regarding collections, available services, staffing trends, and overall expenditures. The press release reveals that library expenditures for e-books has increased dramatically from 2010 to 2011 — with baccalaureate colleges increasing their e-book spending by some 109%! Of course with e-book expenditures increasing, money has to come from somewhere, and the majority of institutions report a small decrease in serials spending.

Other interesting data… Salaries/wages have increased by just over .90% for most institutions. Additionally, in the next five years, 15.9% of academic libraries believe they will lose space, 20.4% expect to gain space, and 58.4% expect no change.

To learn more, check out the Press Release.

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Minnesota Broadband Statistics

A recent study conducted by the non-profit organization, Connect Minnesota, found that more than a quarter of Minnesotans still do not have broadband in their homes. One of the top two reasons cited for not having broadband in the home is fairly obvious – cost. Of those without broadband in their homes, 18% reported that they do not have broadband due to cost. However, the most popular reason reported by 29% of those without broadband in their homes is that “…there isn’t content relevant to them on the Internet”.  

Wow, that statistic really shocked me! I can’t imagine someone believing that the Internet contains nothing relevant to them! If you’re surprised by this too, and want to learn more, start by checking out today’s article from MPR, then be sure to follow the article’s links!

Image by: Sean MacEntee

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Smartphones Outselling PCs

According to research firm International Data Corp (IDC), smartphones outsold PCs in the final quarter of 2010 on a global level. Researchers indicate that the smartphone industry has seen a year-over -year increase of 87 percent in the fourth quarter. This is faster than most experts predicted, with many thinking that smartphones wouldn’t outsell PCs until 2012. So, how can we account for the success of smartphones? Mainly, PCs have market saturation, so it’s natural to see some growth in the “latest and greatest” product. Additionally, there’s something to be said for the convenience of smartphones and their ability to connect to information, people, or data sources almost instantaneously. Who can resist having an app for that?!!

Want to know more? Check out the following articles http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/d96e3bd8-33ca-11e0-b1ed-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1DTdKFg99 and http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2011/02/07/idc-smartphone-shipment-numbers-passed-pc-in-q4-2010/.

Image from: Osde8info http://www.flickr.com/photos/osde-info/4623612094/