Dear sir/madam/supreme overlord,
I am an ignorant freshman who wants to work for the campus libraries as a page {shelver}. I did go to the library jobs site at around the beginning of September and the only positions I found were IT jobs requiring all these kinds of computer languages my eyes just speedread through automatically without further encouragement from my brain. That jobs site was all I had to go about, so I hope {and pray} to hear advice about informal stuff those sites don’t provide, such as:
1) When is the usual library hiring season? Have I missed my chance by now?
2) I heard they prefer raw fresh men, so if I only apply next year when I’m a sop soph, have I missed my destiny in life/ have less chance at getting that job?
3) The lib job site says only some libraries participate, for the rest, do I have to visit them one on one to inquire/drop a resume? (I tried looking at the sites of each non-part. library hoping for a “Student Jobs Press Here” button, but mention about the extent of my computer skills has been already made in the top paragraph.)
Thank you so much and I am so sorry to bother you and I do hope when I get a job there I could buy you lunch and stuffs,
s
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Dear freshman underling,
Are you a fan of purple prose and old book smell? Do you daydream about the ancient art of bookbinding? Well, Aska sure does! And if you do too, then I bet working at one of the University’s libraries sounds like a dreamboat job.
Here’s the skinny: each and every faculty, departmental and collegiate library has its own internal hiring policy. Last time I checked, UofT has more than 30 libraries and that’s a whole lotta applying. So, I’ve put together a game plan for you:
To simplify matters, start with the jobs listed on the Library Student Jobs website. These are the positions available at the biggest central libraries on campus, like Gerstein, EngSci, and Fort Book. If compiling data inside UofT’s peacock isn’t exactly your thing, try one of the friendlier college libraries. Many of these libraries, like E.J. Pratt and Graham, do their hiring in late April and early May. Sadly, those dreamboats have already sailed.
But never fear – potentially false hope is here! Several of the libraries still have openings; for example, the Innis College library hires work-study students. So if you’re lucky enough to be drowning in debt, you may be able to hop aboard that dreamboat afterall. Make a few friendly phone calls and see what’s out there, Aska believes in you!
Your supreme overload,
Aska
p.s. lunch sounds lovely, I like pie.