Library Media Clerk 

(Female, Age 55) from Turlock, CA

This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 55 who works as a Library Media Clerk in Turlock, CA. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.

At a Glance

Current Job

Basic data on your current job

Job Title Library Media Clerk
Salary $19,262
Other Compensation None Set
Hours/Week
Company Size (not answered)
Location Turlock, CA
Years Experience 4 years

Career Ratings

Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)

Years in Career 0
Education (not answered)
Income Rating 0 / 10
Interest Rating 0 / 10
Work-Life Rating 0 / 10
Fulfilment Rating 0 / 10

Current job Q&A

Describe the type of organization you work for.
I work for the Empire Union School District at Glick Middle School. EUSD is a public school in Stanislaus county. We have 2 middle schools, with Glick being the newest school in the district. Our site is 4 years old.

Describe your job role and responsibilities.
I maintain the middle school library and handle textbooks for both students and staff. This includes keeping track of library media materials, i.e. books (fiction, non-fiction and paperback), videos, reference materials, maps, audio materials, and textbooks. It also requires that I assist students in logging onto the computer for internet searches, word processing, on-line testing, and general computer skills. The biggest part of this is monitoring what the students are doing. This is a 10 month position with summers and holidays coinciding with students schedules.

Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
I have health insurance benefits that are partially paid by the district, sick leave is 1 day per month or 10 days per year. We pay into PERS (Public Employees Retirement System) and the district matches funds paid into that fund. I am off for 1 week in spring, 3 weeks at Christmas and 2 months in the summer. These days are not considered into my pay as I am paid on at total amount per year based on 182 days.

Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
I feel that I am under paid considering the responsibility that I have and in relation to the pay that certificated staff make.

Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
My job is based on working well with others. I have the potential of seeing and interacting with approximately 600 students and the staff of our school on a daily basis. On an average day I think that I see about 200 students and about 15 staff members. The interaction with students is the best part of my job. I love the kids and the staff both, but the kids are what it is all about.

Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes

Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes

Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
I take great pride in “taking care” of the needs of both teachers, administrators, and students. I work hard to make all of them feel that they are welcome and wanted in the library. I make “gourmet” coffee for my teachers every morning and they know that I have an open invitation to all policy.

Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 7
Benefits: 4
Hours: 5
Co-Workers: 2
Supervisors: 3
Job Title: 8
Level of Responsibility: 6
The Actual Work: 1

A day in the life of…

Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:

5am to 6am
6am to 7am
7am to 8am Arrive at library and prepare for student patrons. Turn on all computers, log-in on both circulation desk computers (2) and student computers (10). Check-in any books left in book drop, check books for damage and put on counter for student aides to put away. Open doors to students at 7:45. Have textbooks ready for those needing them for short term use in the library. Check out to patron as needed.
8am to 9am Work with students on computers, finding books, answering questions on how to locate items and supervising students until bell at 8:25 a.m. First period student aides arrive. Supervise and lead them in returning books to their sections. Teach each individual student as necessary to assure they have a good understanding of how to maintain their section of the library in a neat and orderly way as well as accurately placing items on the shelf where they belong.
9am to 10am English/Literature teachers bring their class to the library for checking out a book for a book report. Students need instruction on how to find a mystery novel. After giving specific instruction on how to locate mysteries in Athena, I give individual help to students in identifying a title that they will enjoy. Students read for 20-25 minutes then I help my library aides check books out to each student.
10am to 11am A quadrapalegic student, who is confined to a wheelchair comes to the library every day assisted by her nurse and one-on-one aid for more intense instruction. I spend time with this student to get to know what she likes so that I can help find books that will interest her. Assist my student aid in organizing books that were left out of place by the prior class.
11am to 12pm Lunch from 11-11:30 (Fourth period) 5th period lunch time-students come into the library for browsing, computer work, and social time. I monitor students on computers, help find materials, let students play chess, checkers and scrabble. There are about 25 students consistently in the library during this time. They all need something from me…even if it is only to be reminded to use their library voice.
12pm to 1pm 6th period lunch time- same as above but this is when the 8th grade students all have lunch so more of them are needing to use the computers for tests and assignments. I assist several students in editing their assignment for literature. I have no student library aides this period so I check out materials to all who need to check out or renew items.
1pm to 2pm Finish up lunch period then help 7th period aides check-in items that were returned during lunch. Check books for damage and prepare for another class to visit. Another class of 31 students come to check out books for their book reports. Same routine as earlier, checking out, locating, teaching how to find, monitor students.
2pm to 3pm 8th period…the Severely Handicapped class comes in to return their books. I read a story aloud to them, then assist them in finding a book that they would like to check out. There are only 11 students in this class but all are quite challenging. They require one-on-one assistance.
3pm to 4pm After school program holds homework room in the library. Approximately 45 students are in the library doing homework, reading, working on computers etc. My job requires me to be there to help supervise students but most importantly to supervise and direct handling of library/media materials. During this hour I spend most of my time monitoring students on the computer or checking out textbooks and library materials to students.
4pm to 5pm Work day ends at 4:00 p.m. but it is usually at least 4:15 before I get out of here.
5pm to 6pm
6pm to 7pm
7pm to 8pm
8pm to 9pm
9pm to 10pm
10pm to 11pm
11pm to 12am

Table of Contents

How you got your job

How did you get your current job?
I was applying for a different position and the receptionist asked me if I would like to apply for both. I originally heard about this position in the newspaper.

What was the application process?
I first submitted a resume along with a paper application.

Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
Yes, I was interviewed by a panel consisting of the district library clerk, the site principal, the site assistant principal, a certificated teacher/librarian, and another teacher. In addition to the interview, the district conducted a very thorough reference check. Every person that I listed as a reference was contacted more than once-which I found interesting.

If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
Typical questions regarding my experience with children, how I would handle specific situations, what my favorite children’s literature or book title was, etc. I also remember one question that stood out from the others and that was if I was afraid to tackle any computer issue when it comes up.

Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes. I had very good instructions written out for most of the reports, procedures, and general information on running the library. After the initial training, my district office and other district librarians continued to give assistance any time it was and is needed. All training aside, the most valuable thing that has helped me with my job is getting to know my collection.

Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
I was given two weeks of supervised training. After that, I was given help as needed and there was always someone to call if I had questions or situations come up that I needed help with. The training was very basic in procedures for our library. Most of the training was centered around very specific procedures for our students and staff. How to open, close, log-in, use the computer cataloging system, rules of the campus, familiarizing myself with students, teachers, and administrators.

Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
My educational background helped prepare me for this job but I was also familiar with the workings of schools. The education helped me because of my interest in literature and english related subjects while in college. I was also fortunate enough to have very extensive training in dealing with students of all ages.

If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
N/A

If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Become familiar with the current literature for children as well as have a good understanding of age appropriateness and reading levels. I would also recommend that you familiarize yourself with library media centers and the “how-to’s” of managing the books/materials in any library. Another important thing to know or understand is the Dewey Decimal System and the different genres covered in the curriculum at middle school.

What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
Most important is patience and love of children. Organization is a must–you need to be somewhat OCD about things being in their place! I would also think that excellent communication skills are a plus in this position because if you cannot get your message across in one way, you will have to find another way of explaining yourself to a student to assure understanding. Technical skills include not only computer literacy, but the ability to set-up all types of media materials. Overhead projectors, computer over-heads, DVD/VHS players, sound systems, and nearly any other types of typical classroom or educational technology are a must. The other thing you might want to develop is the ability to be very flexible-it will help you keep your sanity on last minute requests that somehow become priority!

Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Yes, anytime you work in the education field you need to not only have a certain level of education but it is essential that you continue to educate yourself in the latest upcoming trends and skills.

What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Learn patience and be aware that you cannot truly “know” your job in a library until you have been there for a couple of years. As you become more familiar with your collection, you will know what titles are available and where to find them. You also become more adept at recommending titles to students who do not know what they want to read. You will learn to listen to what they are describing as their likes and turn it into a title that will hold their interest and fit their needs in fulfilling an assignment.

Long-term career plans

Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
Plan? Not originally but now that I have worked in this position, I cannot see me doing anything else. I love it!!

What are your current career goals?
I would like to become a credentialed librarian. I especially would like to learn more about cataloging library materials. This will require 2 more years of classes.

Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
If you love books/reading, this is the best career you could possibly ask for. I call my library my haven… In all honesty, there are some sad situations that arise with students but they are far outweighed by the great moments and contact that you have with students of every level. I have the smartest, the most challenging, the most socially inept, the severely handicapped, the most fit, the least fit, and the “average” teen all visit me on a weekly basis. All of them bring something to the overall experience of being a middle school library clerk! It is wonderful!!!

Prior work history

Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:

Title Length Salary Description
Prior Job 1 Secretary 3 yrs 10.50 hr Scheduling, answering phones, filing, payroll, mileage reports, typing, computer work and all phases of front office work
Prior Job 2 Realtor 4 yrs commission only Sales, listing, advertising, showing property, personal time management, diversity training, and ongoing real estate practices education for the state of AZ. I was my own boss but worked many hours showing property which benefited other agents in the end without compensation to myself. I determined that I do better in a position where I am paid for services given.

Educational background

Please list your educational background:

High School GPA:3.5

GPA School Degree
College (Undergraduate)
or Technical/Vocational
3.9 MJC Liberal Arts
Graduate or Professional
(Masters or Doctorate)

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