2009 unc chapel hill federal librarianship
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Federal Librarianship
More than one Path.
Best Advice – if you want a Federal Library Position, think outside of the DC Metro Area. 2 library schools and one heck of a lot of librarians. Look west, mid-west, south, overseas. You have to pay your dues.
In the past 20 years, I’ve moved to
SC, TX, OH, TX, Germany, FL, TN, DC
Each move was for a promotion. Do not expect to get one job and move up the ladder. You will have to move unless you work at one of the major libraries.
Federal Civil ServiceAll Executive Branch AgenciesAfter 3 Years – you get
“Status”
Excepted Service-- you do not get “status”-- you can not apply for any Exec Branch job that
requires “status”Legislative BranchJudicial BranchAll Intelligence AgenciesMost Commissions, etc.
Non- Appropriated Fund PositionsDoD Library Positions
First 90 days can be fired at will, no explanation necessary.
First 91-365 can be fired but an explanation must be given.
Second – third years – it is still possible to be fired but takes a lot of work.
After 3rd year in Federal Civil Service, when you have “status” – it takes an atom bomb or some serious malfeasance to get you fired.
Various hiring authorities may interfere with getting a Federal library job:
Veterans preference – 5 point vet has served during conflict; 10 point vet is disabled – if they qualify for the position, then they will likely be selected.
Spouse preference – begins Jan 2010 for all Executive Branch agencies – not sure if the legislative, judicial & intelligence agencies will implement it or not.
Re-instatement eligible: has prior federal service.
Read the announcements thoroughly to see who may and may not apply.
Contractors: Many Federal Libraries are run by contractors not Federal employees.
(Search normal job sites)
Most openings require US Citizenship but.. Occasionally there are openings that do not require it.
Federal Job Classification & Qualificationswww.opm.gov
1410 – Librarian1412 – Technical Info Spec
1420 -- Archivist1421– Archives Technician
2210 – Web Developer, Digitization
other IT related library jobs.
Think outside the 1410 box. The Library of Congress hires a lot of people to do a variety
of things in many series. Financial, etc.
Federal Salary & Locality Pay Charts are on
www.opm.gov
Overseas appointments get “Rest of World” pay.
Types of Federal LibrariesAcademicMedicalFinancialIntelligenceLegalSci/TechSchoolBase / Public LibrariesSpecial
www.usajobs.gov -- set up a profile and get announcements sent to you automatically.www.mwr.navy.mil NAF positions www.afpc.randolph.af.mil/afcivilianjobs www.chart.navy.milwww.usmc-mccs.org/employ/-- NAF positionswww.lisjobs.com( I post all jobs outside of DC on this listserv)
Army advertises all jobs on USAJOBS
AF does not have a centralized site for NAF
positions. All AF APF jobs are on USAJOBS.
Most Base Library Positions are moving to NAF.
www.dodea.edu they have their own special way of hiring librarians / media specialists
www.state.gov – do not hire librarians – they hire foreign service employees-- you may have to take the Foreign Service Test-- these libraries educate foreign nationals about the US – how to do business, etc.
www.nsa.gov – do not hire libraries they hire Intelligence Analysts (GS-0132)
Other Intelligence agencies may do the same thing There are 16 Intelligence Agencies in the US Government. ftp.fas.org/irp/official.html
US Courts http://www.uscourts.gov/employment.html-- Librarians for the District Courts
Administrative Office of the US Courtsadvertises all jobs on www.usajobs.gov
Presidential Libraries – rarely hire librarians – they hire Archivists & Archives Technicians (1420 & 1421) – have to go to each library.
Read Announcements Carefully
new resume for every job
Tailor it to the specific opening – look at the words they use in the opening and make sure you use
them in your resume.
Make sure you address the Knowledge, Skills & Abilities
(KSAs)
Many applications are being run through resume screening
software
We may not interview. We may hire off paper or go behind the
applicant and call all the references to get more
references
Incentives-- always ask for them
Signing BonusStudent Loan Repayment
Relocation Expensescheck www.opm.gov for more
information
Overseas Appointments-- usually 3 years and you might be able to extend
your appointment.
In addition to Salary you get:
Household goods packed & shippedCar shipped
Housing allowance(can be as much as $25K per year depending on
where you are assigned)
If you don’t stay the 3 years, you’ll have to ship it
back on your dime.
Clearances
All Federal positions – Career, Excepted, NAF, Contractor – require at least a Secret Clearance.
Keep a listing of all your prior addresses for 7-15 years.
If the position requires a Top Secret Clearance – don’t quit your job. It can take up to 18 months to get
it.
http://www.rotc.pitt.edu/sf86work.doc-- start filling it out now
Listservs
www.loc.gov/flicc/about/listservs.html
Army Library ListservNavy Library Listserv (send
requests to me and we’ll add)
National Librarieswww.loc.gov
(LC does not require a Masters for any of their 1410 openings – may need languages or other
expertise) www.nlm.nih.gov
www.nal.govies.ed.gov/ncee/projects/nat_ed_library.asp
At these libraries the positions at the top are very narrow. Directing the ISSN program, etc.
Large Library Systems:http://www.epa.gov/libraries/libraries.htm
http://www.lib.noaa.gov/
US Army; US Air Force; US Navy; US Coast Guard, US Army Corps of Engineers
Large Library Systems:
http://library.usgs.gov/www.nara.gov
A bit of advice:
“Dig your well before you need it”
Read the book – it’s about networking.
Another tidbit:
Start learning to be an extravert – even if you aren’t one.
You’ll be advocating for your library or libraries.
One INTJ to others.
