I had a meeting with my advisor on Wednesday morning. I was feeling a little overwhelmed trying to plan out what classes to take since I'm on an accelerated track, trying to graduate with my Master of Science in one year. I only get one chance to do everything. I'm trying to do a general course of study with a certificate in Rare Books and Special Collections. The plan is that going this route will allow me to work in an academic or public library, but I could also get into something more specialized with my background in Art History and French, like working in Archives, Special Collections or Museums.
The financial climate on the U of I's campus right now is incredibly tense. Students and faculty alike are hunkering down and preparing for the worst. The campus is on a hiring freeze, faculty and staff are required to furlough, and competition for Graduate Assistantships and funding is fierce. I'm hoping everything will work out and I will find a good library job on campus at least for the fall semester if not before.
I feel really lucky that I have such a solid academic background and some unique professional experiences like my internship with Leslie Hindman Auctioneers that will set me apart from other people applying for jobs in both the short and long term. I've also been volunteering quite a bit down here in Champaign-Urbana, volunteering in the Circulation and InterLibrary Loan departments at Champaign Public Library and at the Center for Children's Books at GSLIS (my department, the Graduate School of Library and Information Science).
It's hard to focus on the present with all the scary realities out there, but I'm trying to focus on my school work, the opportunities I'm having to give back to the community through my volunteer work and learn more about the LIS field, and Nick and the wonderful friends and interesting people I've met down here so far!
