Academic librarian : Job description

Academic librarians provide support to members of an academic community including students, researchers and lecturing staff. Typically, an academic librarian will manage, organise, evaluate and disseminate information. They will often be responsible for a specific academic subject area or a particular function such as resource ordering, loans, special collections or ICT systems. They may also undertake project work for the library as a whole. A key aspect of their work is facilitating and supporting learning by teaching information retrieval skills to students and staff. Academic librarians spend a considerable amount of time working with electronic resources and are increasingly involved with database management and web page development. This role has little to do with reading books and is very much a people-focused occupation.

Typical work activities

For academic librarians, specialist responsibility for an academic subject or function is common even at basic-level posts. The following is a list of tasks typically undertaken within the role:

• managing and developing collections of books, journals and websites;
• managing buildings, furniture and equipment;
• managing staff, which may involve recruitment and selection, appraisals, disciplinary action, staff rotas and training, as well as day-to-day management of staff;
• managing budgets and, in some cases, purchasing resources;
• maintaining relationships with external bodies such as suppliers;
• contributing to academic course development and liaising with academic departments;
• managing books for reading lists and allocating length of loans;
• creating, updating and managing information resources - both electronic and printed; selecting, acquiring and cataloguing information using library and information software;
• assisting researchers with literature searches using databases, printed resources and the internet;
• delivering information and learning skills courses for students and staff;
• dealing with user enquiries which may involve one-on-one advice sessions;
• keeping up to date with relevant debates in the library sector;
• participation in professional groups or networks.