Comments on: From The Trenches: Dealing with Limbo… http://newarchivist.com/2010/03/09/dealing-with-limbo/ The MSI Diaries Fri, 18 May 2012 13:15:06 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Megan H. http://newarchivist.com/2010/03/09/dealing-with-limbo/comment-page-1/#comment-998 Megan H. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 23:15:11 +0000 http://newarchivist.com/?p=753#comment-998 I got my MLS back in 2005 and worked as a paid professional until my last project ended in 2008. I had to take a year off due to medical problems (which have been resolved). I have been looking for a job on and off since July. Due to the gap in my resume and lack of job opportunities, I had to almost start over again by taking two volunteer jobs and doing unpaid contract work. I am also working on grad school applications and spending a lot of time looking for that elusive archives job. In other words, I work full time and do not make a single dime. Am I happy doing all this work and not getting paid? Of course not. However, I absolutely love being an archivist and can't imagine doing anything else in my life. That means doing volunteer work, being active in the professional organizations, taking professional development courses. In other words, doing anything possible to remain active in the field and, therefore, increasing my chances towards landing a job. it has also been my experience that you really don't learn how to be an archivist in grad school. Even though I attended a very good grad school program, I did not learn how to be an archivist until I completed my internship and my first project job. It is very much like an apprenticeship. I got my MLS back in 2005 and worked as a paid professional until my last project ended in 2008. I had to take a year off due to medical problems (which have been resolved). I have been looking for a job on and off since July. Due to the gap in my resume and lack of job opportunities, I had to almost start over again by taking two volunteer jobs and doing unpaid contract work. I am also working on grad school applications and spending a lot of time looking for that elusive archives job. In other words, I work full time and do not make a single dime. Am I happy doing all this work and not getting paid? Of course not. However, I absolutely love being an archivist and can’t imagine doing anything else in my life. That means doing volunteer work, being active in the professional organizations, taking professional development courses. In other words, doing anything possible to remain active in the field and, therefore, increasing my chances towards landing a job.

it has also been my experience that you really don’t learn how to be an archivist in grad school. Even though I attended a very good grad school program, I did not learn how to be an archivist until I completed my internship and my first project job. It is very much like an apprenticeship.

]]> By: Carrie http://newarchivist.com/2010/03/09/dealing-with-limbo/comment-page-1/#comment-997 Carrie Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:44:43 +0000 http://newarchivist.com/?p=753#comment-997 I think it is fantastic that volunteering is inspiring for you. Volunteering has actually made me rather bitter, especially when "forced" to volunteer after working as a professional archivist for a few years. It's hard, humbling, and incredibly discouraging to go back to volunteering just to make contacts when I would rather be earning money to pay down those omnipresent student loans. Also, as a volunteer, one doesn't really get to show off too much, as the really cool projects require a huge time commitment that a job-hunter can't afford to give. I think it is fantastic that volunteering is inspiring for you.

Volunteering has actually made me rather bitter, especially when “forced” to volunteer after working as a professional archivist for a few years. It’s hard, humbling, and incredibly discouraging to go back to volunteering just to make contacts when I would rather be earning money to pay down those omnipresent student loans. Also, as a volunteer, one doesn’t really get to show off too much, as the really cool projects require a huge time commitment that a job-hunter can’t afford to give.

]]> By: Matt http://newarchivist.com/2010/03/09/dealing-with-limbo/comment-page-1/#comment-994 Matt Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:55:09 +0000 http://newarchivist.com/?p=753#comment-994 "Doing something in my chosen field, even if it’s not paying, helps give a purpose." This is something that has always bothered me about the library and archives profession. Not that you do volunteer work, which I think is a good thing, but the fact that many young archivists settle for volunteer or part-time employment because real professional jobs just aren't available. I can't think of another profession that requires a Masters degree where graduates, in many cases, have to settle for part time jobs or volunteer work. I would personally be insulted. “Doing something in my chosen field, even if it’s not paying, helps give a purpose.”

This is something that has always bothered me about the library and archives profession. Not that you do volunteer work, which I think is a good thing, but the fact that many young archivists settle for volunteer or part-time employment because real professional jobs just aren’t available. I can’t think of another profession that requires a Masters degree where graduates, in many cases, have to settle for part time jobs or volunteer work. I would personally be insulted.

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