"It's a recession, baby!" was the common refrain among the Library and Information Science (LIS) graduates of the class of 2008. This was a record year for the number of graduates participating in "Library Journal"'s annual Placements & Salaries survey, and they had stories to tell, providing evidence of both hard times in the job market, and some…

Jerome Myers originally dreamt he would be a cultural anthropologist, but instead he ended up negotiating contracts for major publishers. When his librarian sister suggested that academic librarianship might be more satisfying, he signed up for Brooklyn Public Library's (BPL) librarian trainee program and enrolled in the library and information…

In this article, the author discusses teaching library and information science (LIS) students about online searching. She discusses the many changes that have taken place over the years in terms of searching and also in terms of the role of the librarian in helping with searches. The author also mentions that although searching now has become a…

A traditional librarian argues that there is no "science of information" and that librarianship belongs to the humanities not the sciences. Traces the replacement of librarians with "machine people,""digital theorists," and other "off-the-wall types" from the 1960s to the present. Proposes a course of…

The concept of information utility'' (an extensive super information system) presents a challenge to librarians. Philosophies and operations must evolve to insure the librarians' position as the information specialist capable of bringing order to the chaos of the information explosion. (Author/DH)

Discusses the commitment of universities to developing and using knowledge for the improvement of society, highlighting efforts in library and information science. Describes service learning that includes community service; community-building initiatives by librarians; and four examples of service learning in programs of library and information…

Discusses the lack of minorities in the library profession and suggests steps to help increase the number of minorities in higher education and librarianship, in the areas of hiring practices, monetary incentives, recruitment, and academic and social environment. A sidebar reports statistics on degrees awarded and students enrolled in library and…

Considers gender equity in libraries and library education, particularly the identification of men with information science experience involving computers. Discusses the history of gender imbalance in library education; computers and gender; changes in library education; demographic implications of curriculum changes; the use of adjuncts; library…

Discusses an alternative to abandoning the word "library" for "information" in graduate education. Recommends patient, consistent effort by library- and information-science educators to convince academic librarians that if they accept the standards of the teaching/research faculty, including the need to earn a Ph.D., it will raise the prestige of…

Discusses 7 interrelated issues critical to education for librarianship and argues that each issue is amenable to resolution. Areas discussed include professional versus academic expectations, library science and information science, undergraduate programs, minority recruitment, international librarianship, size and organization of library…

Presents results from the 48th annual "Library Journal" Placements and Salaries Survey (1998). Discusses job trends; increasing salaries; decrease in placements; and graduate responses. Eight tables provide results. A sidebar by Norman Oder profiles a 1998 graduate from the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of…