Ebbs and flows...

So far, what I am finding is that progress comes in waves. Since March of this year, I have been recording and reflecting on my role as a library professional and the extra things which I can document as evidence for my chartership portfolio.
What I have learnt so far:

1. It is always a good idea to get stuck in. Whether it be joining a new library related group, attending a workshop or going a library visit, the experience will be useful to you in some way.

2. While the first point is definitely true, it is worth bearing in mind that not all of this experience will be suitable for capturing for your portfolio. On a few occasions I was involved in projects with the thought at the back of my head of 'well this will make a good piece of evidence for my portfolio' only to be proved utterly wrong.

Although these have all been useful for reflecting on and improving my reflective writing, some haven't demonstrated what I wanted to evidence. I now realise that THIS IS OK. For example, I got involved in my first twitter #uklibchat. This was a really useful experience. I got a sense of what it was all about and I contributed to it. However, when I came to reflecting on the event I realised that I hadn't participated as much as I really should have, some of my posts had typos and I had missed some really interesting posted that I could have replied to. Of course this was an excellent moment for reflection, however for my portfolio would I really want that reflection to be: shouldn't make typos!! Instead I was able to absorb this experience. Consider my involvement in the next #uklibchat and think about why I was going to contribute to this particular topic. Why was it relevant to me? Did it relate to my job and the objectives of my employer? What could be the impact of my participation? Could I give help and advice on this topic to others? These questions have helped me to better prepare and I will integrate them into my reflective writing after the event.
3. Reflective writing is HARD, but you get better at it the more you do it. I was lucky enough to attend a workshop on reflective writing to improve information literacy provision at Birmingham Library earlier this year. I have also invested in some books on the topic - these were suggested to me during a twitter #chartership chat (thanks guys!). Also I managed to get hold of an old edition of the CILIP portfolio handbook for a couple of pounds online and I have borrowed the latest edition from my university library. I would highly suggest getting some support in this. I did not find reflective writing to be an easy thing to do. The hardest part (which I still struggle with) is differentiating between descriptive writing and reflective writing.

4. It's a marathon, not a sprint. I have been very busy at work, so a lot of my evidence collected has been around what I am already doing at work and making sure that I am formalising the reflective practice I am required to do in my role, into my evidence building.

5. Have some fun with it. For the wider content aspect (criteria 3) this can really be way out of what you usually do professionally. This is a chance to get involved with larger debates in libraries. If you are particularly passionate about issues in your section, this is an opportunity to do some campaigning, join some groups, other some politicians...
Hopefully some of that is useful. If nothing else it has helped me to focus my thoughts on the progress and think about what I want to do need.

Life beyond #citylis....

As a current - soon to be alumni - student of the library science masters course at City University London (#citylis) I have often been asked why I am choosing to study such an 'endangered' subject. Why would I spend two years on a part-time course for a job that might not exist when I graduate? While I do accept that many libraries are facing heavy threats and many professionals have lost their jobs, I don't agree that the role of librarian is a thing of the past.

At City University London, I was able to receive a grounding in the information architectures that underpin so many library activities. Through practical sessions I got to try my hand at basic coding and was introduced to the world underneath the applications that we take for granting when inputting data in our library roles. I received seminars on digital library systems and received a broad overview to technologies in connection to libraries. Combined with this technology focus I was introduced to theories and framework which are the foundation to best practice within information services.

I am happy to say that I recently accepted a job working at the V&A museum as an assistant librarian and will be starting in this role soon. I firmly believe that #citylis was partly responsibility for equipping me with the right skills and knowledge to take on this role. We were encourages (from the start of the first term) to engage with twitter and to use the #ciylis hashtag to share relevant information. We also spent time considering the future of libraries in relation to new technologies and considered past predictions. This time and reflection can often be hard to find within a busy library service, as can a wider consideration to the academic field of library science.

I will be sad to leave #citylis but I am greatly looking forward to putting into practice what I have learnt during my time at City University London.

First Steps...

What seems clear from all the information I can find, online, through my mentor and through friends, is that a lot of what chartership is about is - capturing. It isn't enough to be working at the appropriate professional level, you have to be documenting this experience. Not only that, you must be reflecting on that experience and using it to inform your progress.


Initially I will evaluate my job descriptions and highlight areas which I can use as evidence, or which I can build on to improve. As I have two jobs in two different academic libraries, I should have lots of duties and responsibilities to document, hopefully!


I will also be attending conferences and workshop to improve my skills. I have already attended a workshop in reflective writing (at Birmingham Library) earlier this year which has help me to think critically about how to document and reflect in a constructive way. We were asked to consider the wider impact of actions taken and how these can be documented. i.e. when writing a report within an organisation about a situation it is important to consider not just the impact to you or your immediate colleagues, but also to the wider organisation and to the service users. This perceptive can help to add a level of professionalism to a reflective piece of writing. What did we do? Why did we do it? What was the outcome to: us, the organisation, our users and wider public....


I intend to add to twitter conversations concerning chartership and share my experiences. I will be looking for and following other people's blogs and social media content that are also working towards chartership. I hope to be part of a collaborate community of people that are progressing within libraries and information services.


I would like to think that both my positive and negative experiences within my professional working career have shaped me for the better as a library professional. Chartership will give me a focus to channel this reflective practice of recording, reflecting and then acting.

In Defence of Chartership

Many of us within the library and information community have mixed feelings about Chartership accreditation. I will details some of the main reservations that I have encountered. I will then outline my own reasons for beginning CILIP chartership. 

Here are some of the reasons for why some people are put off from chartership:

1. Time

I'm currently studying for a master in library science and my hand-in date for my dissertation is 25th September. When telling some of my friends and co-workers (who are involved in LIS related endeavours) about my enrollment on chartership they have expressed that they won't have to time to do it, let alone me. To a certain extent I see there point. This is my schedule for the rest of this month:

2. Lack of respect for the qualification

Some people I have spoken to are pretty anti CILIP registration in general. One person said that when they were chartered (many years ago) all they needed was two years in a professional role and they were automatically a chartered librarian. 

Someone else said that you don't need to be chartered and that many librarians are not chartered and don't see themselves as needing it. I can understand why for some people who have finished a accredited qualification from a library course would be unwilling to start more training to further prove themselves. 

3. Cost

The fact that chartership costs - even when it isn't very expensive - can put some people off. As far as I'm aware employers generally don't paid for this, but perhaps some do. 

Why I am embarking on chartership

I am currently working in a role that includes duties and responsibilities at a professional level. I look after the science and mathematics collection at a sixth form college which includes book purchases and stock reviews, online content management, development of finding aides and resources. I also delivery workshops and induction with students and I am lead for information literacy at the library I work at. All of these duties can be used as evidence towards my chartership application when I come to submit. If I am already working at a professional level, why won't I want this to be recognised?

The process of documenting, reflecting and acting is crucial to improving practice. As a current student at the (relative) start of my professional career, I feel that support in honing these skills would benefit me greatly. Although I am comfortable in my current employment, the ability to reflect on my practice will help me when I come to look for new employment, especially during application and interview stages. 

These are some of the main reasons that I feel that chartership is worth working towards, others have also said that they want to act as a positive force for improvement within our profession and also that they want to help improve CILIP from the 'inside'. 

I will use this blog to document my journey toward chartership. I will post my opinions and comments and thought by other people too. I hope that this blog will also be read y other people doing chartership and help stimulate debate on this subject.