Career as a Special Librarian

WHAT KIND OF INFORMATION WOULD YOU FIND in a special library? Well, did you know, for example, that William Shakespeare had a younger brother, named Edmund, who was an actor? The siblings were born in Stratford-upon-Avon, about 100 miles northwest of London. As an adult, Edmund followed his older brother William to London, but the pair never worked on a production together or even came close to working together in the field they both loved. It is all true - you can look it up. Where? At the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, a special library dealing with all things Shakespeare. The Folger Shakespeare Library is one of thousands of special libraries located throughout the United States, and around the world. Special libraries are unique repositories of very specific data dealing with detailed information on a particular subject. If you can think of a topic of interest, you can probably find a special library that has a collection of information about it, most likely not found anywhere else. Having all this material is wonderful, but it is only valuable if it can be made available to people to use, especially in research. Special librarians organize these repositories of specialized information so researchers can make the maximum use of the information. Special librarian is a fascinating career because it allows you to combine a variety of your talents and interests. While many public and school librarians deal with books and periodicals covering a wide range of topics, your job as a special librarian has a keener focus. Your library skills have to be top-notch, but you also must be an expert in the topic covered by the library where you work. While you may not be a doctor, if you are a special librarian in a medical library you would know the difference between a ligament and a tendon. You have to know where to get information on both, plus other even more technical medical information. Similarly, a special librarian working at the library housed at the Early Ford V-8 Foundation Museum in Auburn, Indiana, would have a deep-rooted love for and background in cars. This in addition to being able to draw on the savvy of a book and data chronicler to sort through and catalogue the comprehensive facts and figures about Ford automobiles of a bygone era, contained in the repository's exhaustive collection of printed materials related to the vehicles. If you are passionate about a specific subject, being a special librarian is the perfect job in the perfect work environment