Life decisions

[mseymou1]

So I've been accepted at the University of Maryland, and I just petitioned and got my residency changed to in-state, and I'm planning to start school there in June. But now I need to start making some more specific decisions about what courses I'm taking, and about how many hours I'm going to work, and how fast I'm going to try to finish my program

Comments

[sallyanna3]

Hi Mary! I'm very excited that you're going to library school. I love it. I know your situation is very different from mine, but I thought I'd give you some of my perspective on some of your points, even though you didn't ask for it. I have opinions, and I like to share them. :)

2) I take 9 hours/semester and I have two kids and a 10 hr/week job. I'm insane and don't sleep or eat or talk to my husband much, but clearly I do have time for stumbling onto blogs, so it works out ok. You can totally handle 12. After Swat (not to sound like a Swat-snob, but for real) you will probably be bored if you only do 9.

4/5/6) My school has a lot of jobs on-campus at various libraries for students, most of which provide much more exciting experience than you'd be able to get elsewhere without the degree. I doubt this is all that rare. A lot of them come with a stipend, tuition assistance, and health benefits. And I didn't know about most of them in time to apply last year. Ask around. Find current students and see if there is a listserv for these things. I don't know how I missed the boat on this last year, but I'm applying for several this year.

Finally - good luck and enjoy! Library science is fun! If anyone tries to make you read The Intellectual Foundations of Information Organization by Elaine Svenonius, run away!

[mseymou1]

Thanks Sally! I'm glad to hear you're enjoying library school - I'm really looking forward to it! And it helps to have a Swattie's perspective on things. I figured I'd be able to handle 12 credits after Swat - I'm more concerned about whether all my required courses will be offered in time and in sequence, and nobody seems to be able to tell me if they will or not. So we'll see what happens with that. And thanks for the tip for looking for library-related jobs - so far, they haven't shown up in my graduate assistant position searches, but I'll look harder and hopefully I'll be able to find one!