Sometimes 'buzz' words and phrases get so overused they lose their meaning. I'm beginning to feel this way about the "current climate" of libraries and the library job market. Of course - this "current climate" is far from desirable and so the description of the situation is quite apt. That doesn't make it any easier to deal with as a new graduate or an early career professional.
While I appreciate all my new library acquaintances asking when I'll be done with school (37 days, not that anyone is counting) and what I'd like to do once I have my degree (work in a more public-service oriented position, preferably in a public library) - the last thing I want to hear from them is how 'easy' it was for them to get a job in the late 90's and early 2000's when they graduated, and how unfortunate it is that now with such a saturated job market, there aren't more jobs available for "good up and coming young librarians like yourself." Unless you're going to offer me a job, that's not helpful! Instead, please tell me what you like to see on resumes, what I can do to make myself stand out from the masses, and other useful things like that.
It's not like I went into this profession with the delusion that getting a (good) professional job would be easy - I knew the stakes. But, I feel that people often think they have to say *something* and usually it's not what I want to hear at this point in my life.
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