Yesterday was my official last day working at the University of Michigan Hatcher Graduate Library. I first started working there in 2004, as an undergraduate student. It was a place I loved going and from where I couldn't stay away. My student position led to my first job out of college, before I left Ann Arbor and tried other fields and professions. I couldn't stay away. In 2009, I moved back to my favorite city and had the chance to take on another role at the library (to spare you all of these details in this post, I'll simply post a link to my website http://alissatalleypixley.com in case you're interested). This led to my interest in obtaining a Master of Science in Information, and to my position as a University Library Associate (ULA). It's been an amazing journey these past eight years, and I'm incredibly grateful and feel extremely lucky to have worked with so many professional, intelligent, and thoughtful colleagues.
My previous positions in the library and in academia peaked my interest in higher education more generally, so, as I wrote in November 2011, I applied and was accepted to the Higher Education program at UM. So when I started thinking about my future careers after my two year ULA appointment was up, I knew I wanted to intersect my master's degrees. And it just so happened that the School of Information, from where I graduated in April, recently opened a position for a Recruiting and Admissions Coordinator. I immediately applied and was hired a couple of weeks ago.
It will be a busy and exciting time in my professional life. This position will allow me to use the skills that I learned at UMSI such as customer service (in my reference classes), information literacy, and non-profit management, with those I practiced in my last position including instruction (speaking in front of people, knowing how to put together meaningful information in an allotted amount of time) and supervision of students, with my knowledge of higher education gained in that particular master's program. I'm thrilled to be able to combine all of my previous work experiences and use the transferable skills from each position to advise prospective students, plan events, manage online communities, and everything else that will crop up as I grow into this job.
Thanks to everyone for your support in whichever way it was provided in helping me get to where I am today. It will be fun to explore this new role and I hope you'll enjoy following me as I learn and develop in a new environment.
Showing posts with label jobs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label jobs. Show all posts
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Friday, August 3, 2012
Everything I want to write, I can't
I'll use the rain analogy again for this week, even though we've had another dry spell. When it rains, it pours. And unfortunately, at this time, I can't share any details about the weather.
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Ok.. enough of the vague comparisons to precipitation. But seriously, when life happens, it happens. It's weird that way. And right now, it is happening. Like, everything. Personal, professional, future... lots of it is on the move right now. And I can't say a word about it.
It's weird how life happens. Everything I want to write about, I can't. Until probably next week. Maybe.
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All I really know is that I am cleaning out my office of two years today. One more step in this crazy transition. Question is... what to keep and what to throw away (recycle)? What notes do I need from the last 24 months? What will be useful in the future? More inquisitions lead to fewer answers.
And that's ok. That's my my life right now, as it's happening - and it certainty is...
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P.S. I promise in a few weeks this blog will become more substantive again :)
---------------------------------------------------------------
Ok.. enough of the vague comparisons to precipitation. But seriously, when life happens, it happens. It's weird that way. And right now, it is happening. Like, everything. Personal, professional, future... lots of it is on the move right now. And I can't say a word about it.
It's weird how life happens. Everything I want to write about, I can't. Until probably next week. Maybe.
---------------------------------------------------------------
All I really know is that I am cleaning out my office of two years today. One more step in this crazy transition. Question is... what to keep and what to throw away (recycle)? What notes do I need from the last 24 months? What will be useful in the future? More inquisitions lead to fewer answers.
And that's ok. That's my my life right now, as it's happening - and it certainty is...
---------------------------------------------------------------
P.S. I promise in a few weeks this blog will become more substantive again :)
Thursday, December 8, 2011
The Changing World of Academia
Last Thursday, I attended the HASTAC pre-conference on alternative jobs in academia. I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into, but the workshop was definitely a learning experience. It turns out, the pre-conference workshop was primarily populated by Ph.D. students in the humanities, arts, and sciences fields who were considering professional jobs in academia because they either did not want, or were not sure they could get, tenure-track positions. Now, I am not a Ph.D. student, nor do I have plans to become one, so the tone of the conference initially threw me off.
Then I started thinking about how this workshop would end up affecting higher education in general. What I deducted was that jobs in administration, and actually all over academia, could become more competitive with more Ph.D's applying for non-tenure-track jobs. At first, it seemed having a bachelor's degree would allow one to get jobs in higher education. Then I realized to do what I wanted to do (become a librarian, or obtain another position in higher education) would require a Master's degree. Having found two master's programs by which I was enthused (Information and Higher Education), I thought I would have a very good chance at contending for jobs in my areas of interest. Now it's occurring to me that those jobs may increasingly become more competitive due to people with even higher degrees applying.
It's just something to ponder - and not something I'm necessarily worried about. I still believe that my degrees are valuable - and those degrees do not even display my work experience or service to the community. But, it was eye-opening to realize that higher education is rapidly changing (at the conference I heard there were something like 600 jobs for every 1000 Ph.D's). It just reminded me that it's important to stay on top of what's going on in my fields and that it's important to continue to think to the future - the future that is evolving very quickly.
Then I started thinking about how this workshop would end up affecting higher education in general. What I deducted was that jobs in administration, and actually all over academia, could become more competitive with more Ph.D's applying for non-tenure-track jobs. At first, it seemed having a bachelor's degree would allow one to get jobs in higher education. Then I realized to do what I wanted to do (become a librarian, or obtain another position in higher education) would require a Master's degree. Having found two master's programs by which I was enthused (Information and Higher Education), I thought I would have a very good chance at contending for jobs in my areas of interest. Now it's occurring to me that those jobs may increasingly become more competitive due to people with even higher degrees applying.
It's just something to ponder - and not something I'm necessarily worried about. I still believe that my degrees are valuable - and those degrees do not even display my work experience or service to the community. But, it was eye-opening to realize that higher education is rapidly changing (at the conference I heard there were something like 600 jobs for every 1000 Ph.D's). It just reminded me that it's important to stay on top of what's going on in my fields and that it's important to continue to think to the future - the future that is evolving very quickly.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
New Future Developments
Well, life keeps changing at warp speed. Lots of changes happen from one day to the next, not to mention how much happens in a week!
Part of the change this week is that part of my next endeavor is set. Nope, not a job - another degree. As I began my MSI, and started thinking about what it is I wanted to do long-term, I realized I wanted to be involved in budgeting, managing people, facilitating, project management...and so, I decided I wanted to give myself the best chance I could to go into administration in higher education. With a little investigation, I discovered that I could most likely complete the 30 credit Masters of Arts in Higher Education in one extra semester. One extra semester! I consulted with some professors and colleagues, and decided I had to do this. So, I applied over the summer and was accepted just last week.
I'm excited to start pairing my knowledge of information with new knowledge I'll gain of higher education. When writing my essay to the School of Education, I started actualizing how the two degrees really complement one another and also will provide me with a wealth of job opportunities when I start looking. My heart is in the library, but there are so many ways that the library could collaborate with other departments - I could help facilitate that.
My real goal for my career is to create partnerships between the community and higher education, and the library is one place this can happen. But there are other places as well, that I'll be excited to start exploring in my new coursework.
I'm still going to be looking for jobs. Ideally, I would like a part-time position or a full-time position with fairly negotiable hours (say 35 hrs/week over the fall semester while I finish the ED degree?). Not a lot to ask in this tough market, I know. But as I wrote a few weeks ago, it never hurts to ask, so I'm throwing this idea/request to my readers in case they hear of anything to pass along.
Until next time...thanks for reading!
Part of the change this week is that part of my next endeavor is set. Nope, not a job - another degree. As I began my MSI, and started thinking about what it is I wanted to do long-term, I realized I wanted to be involved in budgeting, managing people, facilitating, project management...and so, I decided I wanted to give myself the best chance I could to go into administration in higher education. With a little investigation, I discovered that I could most likely complete the 30 credit Masters of Arts in Higher Education in one extra semester. One extra semester! I consulted with some professors and colleagues, and decided I had to do this. So, I applied over the summer and was accepted just last week.
I'm excited to start pairing my knowledge of information with new knowledge I'll gain of higher education. When writing my essay to the School of Education, I started actualizing how the two degrees really complement one another and also will provide me with a wealth of job opportunities when I start looking. My heart is in the library, but there are so many ways that the library could collaborate with other departments - I could help facilitate that.
My real goal for my career is to create partnerships between the community and higher education, and the library is one place this can happen. But there are other places as well, that I'll be excited to start exploring in my new coursework.
I'm still going to be looking for jobs. Ideally, I would like a part-time position or a full-time position with fairly negotiable hours (say 35 hrs/week over the fall semester while I finish the ED degree?). Not a lot to ask in this tough market, I know. But as I wrote a few weeks ago, it never hurts to ask, so I'm throwing this idea/request to my readers in case they hear of anything to pass along.
Until next time...thanks for reading!
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Starting the search
As November is upon us, April seems far away. That is, until I remember that that is the month in which I will graduate with an MSI, and will want to be employed by then or soon thereafter.
So the job search is upon me, and the idea of it is looming heavier week by week. Of course, I've already set aside time to look for and apply to jobs but, of course, somehow those hours get pushed away by homework, work, instruction prep time, or any other number of things that come up.
But it's time to focus - and focus, for me, happens with motivation. Motivation for the job search happens when I see positions that I want, and want badly. This week, there happen to be three jobs - in the Ann Arbor area - that would be great. There's one that I'm pretty excited about, and the other two are jobs that I could see being extremely fulfilling. I can't be picky as I want to stay in this wonderful state of Michigan and, preferably, in this area, but I don't want to "waste" my investment from graduate school by taking a position with which I won't be satisfied.
That's the balance - wanting (needing) a job but not wanting to settle. Any tips for finding this balance, applying to jobs, (or any leads on job openings!) would be more than welcome....
So the job search is upon me, and the idea of it is looming heavier week by week. Of course, I've already set aside time to look for and apply to jobs but, of course, somehow those hours get pushed away by homework, work, instruction prep time, or any other number of things that come up.
But it's time to focus - and focus, for me, happens with motivation. Motivation for the job search happens when I see positions that I want, and want badly. This week, there happen to be three jobs - in the Ann Arbor area - that would be great. There's one that I'm pretty excited about, and the other two are jobs that I could see being extremely fulfilling. I can't be picky as I want to stay in this wonderful state of Michigan and, preferably, in this area, but I don't want to "waste" my investment from graduate school by taking a position with which I won't be satisfied.
That's the balance - wanting (needing) a job but not wanting to settle. Any tips for finding this balance, applying to jobs, (or any leads on job openings!) would be more than welcome....
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