I’ve been having people ask a lot recently what I do for work.  It is my task now to explain exactly what I do as a library studies student.

I work three jobs on campus, which takes up about forty hours each week.  I’m also a full-time student, taking two classes.  (Grad school is strange, but six credit hours is still considered full-time).  I have my hands full, to say the least.

I start my mornings doing a little work from home.  I read over the clipsheets for my job as the librarian for University Communications.  Clipsheets are the compilation of news stories that mention the University of Wisconsin or are about higher education in general.  I determine where they should be organized, classify them, and then send them off to co-workers who write the description on them and who file them with the older news stories.

I then head to work.  I catch up on e-mails and work on various projects at UComm.  I’ve dealt with things from Presidential visits to topics concerning UW’s Go Big Read project.  It’s always interesting, but I love the days, today being one, where I have the chance to clear out my e-mail and get my desk cleared off.  I also had a chance to compile a to-do list for tomorrow…which is always a good feeling!

I typically have  a lunch break of some form, and then head off to work for the Center for Demography and Ecology library.  I come here and do many different tasks, ranging from searching for articles for professors and researchers in the department to helping get rid of items in the collection.  It’s a small, specialty library, and I’ve enjoyed learning completely different aspects of librarianship from all of the other jobs I have ever had.

Lastly, I work at College Library.  It’s the main undergraduate research library on campus, and I am a night reference librarian.  I help students with any reference question they may have, from why it is cold in Helen C. or helping professors out with finding articles to put on reserve for their classes.  It’s a rewarding job, and I really love finding the intricate answers students are looking for.  It also disappoints me when I can’t seem to help them out…but I always try to help refer them to someone who may know better.  It all takes time to learn, and I believe I’m learning a lot.

So that’s what I do.

I should head back to work.  Or try to find a task to do.  I’m so unbelievably tired.  I just need a nap.