Placement Center
Welcome to the ALA JobLIST Placement & Career Development Service!
For more than 55 years, the American Library Association's (ALA) Placement Service has provided opportunities for employers and job seekers to meet, network, and achieve success in reaching their employment goals.
Designed to give employers and job seekers access to information on a year-round basis, ALA JobLIST is the official ALA job site. Resumes and job openings should be posted there.
Events and activities held in the ALA JobLIST Placement & Career Development Center are designed to help job seekers retool their skills, prepare for job searches, and connect with employers and others. They are intended for people at every stage of their careers--not just new graduates. Employers are encouraged to interact with job seekers at every level.
Registration is not required for job seekers.
Upcoming Events
- ALA 2025 Annual Conference
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Conference Dates: June 26 - 30, 2025
For information on activities related to jobs and career development, continue to visit this page. You may also contact Beatrice Calvin at (800) 545-2433, ext. 4280.
For information on the full ALA 2025 Annual Conference & Exhibition, visit the ALA Annual Conference website.
*Note: Our top priority is your health and safety as we prepare for the conference. We’re carefully tracking the latest health and safety guidelines for large group gatherings. The ALA JobLIST Placement & Career Development Center will follow ALL conference safety protocols required by the American Library Association. Before attending any activities in the Center, please review the posted Health and Safety Protocols when they become available.
JobLIST Placement & Career Development Service Activities
Conference Accessibility
ALA works to make sure that your conference experience will be a pleasant and accessible one. Please visit the ALA Conference accessibility page (when available) for details regarding accessibility measures for those in need. You may also contact ALA Conference Services Accessibility by email at confaccess@ala.org, before May 1, 2025.
Activities for the ALA 2025 Annual Conference in the ALA JobLIST Placement & Career Development Center are listed below. Continue to visit this page as more will be added as we get closer to the conference. If you have ideas regarding programs or topics you would like presented in the Center, contact the Center's manager, Beatrice Calvin.
Mentoring-on-the-Fly
Saturday, June 28, 2025, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon and
Sunday, June 29, 2025, 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Are you looking for some guidance and advice related to your library career? If so, the ALA JobLIST Placement and Career Development Service will host short mentoring sessions. Mentors with experience in academic and public libraries will be available to offer suggestions and guidance to help you discover ways to advance in your library career. The service will be facilitated by the ACRL - University Libraries Section. You will have the opportunity to talk with an experienced librarian about various aspects of your career. Mentoring sessions are available by appointment. Walk-ins welcome.
Open House - Job Fair
Sunday, June 29, 2025, 10:30am - 12:00pm
Employers will be given the opportunity to talk with individuals about their institutions and available positions. Advanced sign-up is required for employers. Registration not required for job seekers. Employers who want to participate in the Open House/Job Fair, should submit an online participation form no later than Friday, May 30, 2025. There is no cost to participate. Active ad on JobLIST is required by start of the Annual Conference. Contact Beatrice Calvin at 800/545-2433 ext. 4280 for more information.
Participating employers will be listed on our Recruiters at Conference page.
Job seekers and others interested in attending information sessions with the listed employers my join at any time. Registration is NOT required for job seekers.
Photography Services
Saturday and Sunday, June 28 & 29, 2025, 9:00 am - 4:00 p.m.
Have a professional headshot photo taken and set of digital images created for use in job applications, social media, and other networking opportunities. Nominal fee of $20 payable at time of service. Sign-up to secure your appointment time when the form opens in March 2025. Advance sign-up is not required. Walk-ins welcome.
Resume Reviews
Saturday and Sunday, 9:00 am - 5:00 p.m.
Whether you are currently looking for a job or just want to keep your resume polished, this is a perfect opportunity to have a new set of eyes on your resume. Librarians from all types of libraries, with various specializations have volunteered to help you make your resume shine! The service is available to anyone attending the conference. Appointments will be taken soon. Walk-ins also welcome.
Career Guidance Workshops
The sessions listed below will held during the ALA 2025 Annual Conference in Philadelphia, PA in the JobLIST Placement & Career Development Center. Continue to visit this page as more sessions will be added as we get closer to the conference.
The Engaged Job Search: Finding the Right Job for You | Saturday, 9:30am - 10:30am
Looking for a job?... Any job?... Or a job that will engage and empower you? A job that not only utilizes your skills, but supports curiosity and growth, provides professional stimulation, and offers leadership opportunities? Workplace engagement is often considered a crucial factor in job satisfaction and retention, as well as a powerful antidote to burnout. And job satisfaction—which can involve a variety of factors like salary, benefits, condition and nature of work, coworkers, communication, and professional autonomy—is, in most instances, the ultimate goal for the job seeker.
Join us for this interactive session to explore the concept of employee engagement and how it is related to, and intertwined with, institutional structures and personal factors. We will discuss strategies for analyzing job postings to determine which opportunities are most likely to provide that crucial engagement and empowerment, how to broach this subject in application materials and interviews, tips for sustaining engagement throughout the job search, and ways to stay engaged in your current position. We will also explore the roles that organizational culture, leadership, and personal ownership play in creating and sustaining engagement in the workplace.
Presenters: Susanne Markgren, Director of Technical Services, Manhattan University and Linda Miles, Open Educational Resources Librarian, Michigan State University
Don’t forget the yoU in resUme: How to Highlight Your Experiences Beyond the Page! | Saturday, 11:00am - 12:00pm
This session will explore ways to tell your story beyond the resume. Often, we struggle with highlighting the amazing work that we have done. An interview is the perfect time to make sure you share your professional highlight reel! Join us for this interactive session to discuss and discover ways to shine as you engage in a job search.
Presenter: Tasha Bell, Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, North Carolina
TBD | Saturday, 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Resume Writing for Library Workers | Saturday, 2:30pm - 3:30pm
Are you a library worker or student looking to advance in your career? Learn how to create a standout resume that effectively highlights your skills and accomplishments in the library field. This session will cover best practices for tailoring your resume to specific library positions, showcasing your achievements with quantifiable data, and optimizing your materials for applicant tracking systems (ATS) used by larger employers.
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
- Understand and use best practices for font, formatting, length, and placement of content in a resume;
- Use effective verbs, targeted language, and metrics to write about experiences and achievements;
- Demonstrate value and transferrable skills through compelling work experience descriptions;
- Understand the tools used by employers and how to identify appropriate templates.
Presenter: Sarah Eiseman, CCSP, CPRW, Head of Workforce Development & Digital Inclusion, East Hartford Public Library
Ask HR | Sunday, 9:00am - 10:00am
Join us for an open dialogue with human resource professionals about what to expect in the current job market. Do you have questions about what employers expect of job candidates and new staff? Do you want to know how to make yourself shine above other candidates? Do you want advice from someone who does hiring in libraries? If you responded yes to any of these questions, then join us for an informal discussion/Q&A session where you can gain an insider's perspective on what employers really look for in job candidates. Come prepared to ask library human resource professionals your questions about the current hiring situation in libraries. Hiring managers from academic and public libraries will be available to answer your questions. Take advantage of this opportunity to get the real scope on what hiring managers expect from you.
Interview Prep Made Easy | Sunday, 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Do job interviews cause you to tremble? Do you struggle to provide solid answers to interview questions? Is there a successful way to prepare? This breakout session will provide a set of tips and tricks that will aid in your next job interview. Using techniques derived from Toastmasters International, you will learn how to prepare and present powerful answers that will impress your interviewers. Learn simple ways to come across confident and knowledgeable that will increase your chances of landing that next job. During this breakout session, participants will do hands-on practice with real job questions to hone their skills.
Sponsored by the PLA Leadership Development Committee.
Presenter: Douglas Crane, Director, Palm Beach County Library System, FL
TBD | Sunday, June 30, 2:30pm - 3:30pm
Employers
Employers who want a recruitment booth on site in the Placement Center should complete the Booth Reservation form and email it to the Placement & Career Development Center's manager, Beatrice Calvin. The cost of a booth is $625.00. Please review the details for information on what is included in this fee.
We are planning on holding an Open House in the Placement Center on Sunday morning. Representatives from various library and library-related companies will have an opportunity to talk with conference attendees about work environments as well as activities in and around their institutions (i.e. sports, arts, music, community involvement, etc.).
There is no cost to participate in the Open House. Employers interested in participating should complete and submit the online participation form no later than Friday, May 30, 2025.
Employers who want to post job positions should register and post them on ALA JobLIST. Special discounts may be available for organizations participating in the face-to-face Placement Center; contact Beatrice Calvin for more information.
Employers with an active online ad on ALA JobLIST can also review resumes of registered job seekers with active profiles. Once your ad is active, you will have access to the résumés. To arrange interviews before and during the conference, employers can contact job seekers directly, if they have opted to include access to their personal contact information within their JobLIST profile or résumé.
Employers who want to use the on-site interviewing facilities in the Placement Center must have an active ad on ALA JobLIST during the conference period.
It is the employers' responsibility to reserve interview tables. Job seekers cannot do this. To reserve interview space, employers should first confirm the date and time of your interviews with candidates. Then sign-up for a table on the online form. You should be prepared to give the candidate's name along with the day and time of the interview. You may also go to the onsite Placement Center to get a table assignment.
Employers who have a recruitment booth onsite in the Placement Center will not need to get table assignments. You can conduct interviews in your private interview space. You have control of your own scheduling.
Employers who have contacted job seekers directly through ALA JobLIST (or chosen to include a link to it in their ads for job seekers to contact them) should login to JobLIST on a regular basis to check for messages in the period leading up to and including the conference.
Employers who will be meeting with potential candidates in the Placement Center during the next ALA conference should be sure their JobLIST account information and communication settings are up to date.
If you have questions, concerns, or need help, feel free to contact ALA JobLIST Placement & Career Development Center Manager, Beatrice Calvin at bcalvin@ala.org or (800) 545-2433 ext. 4280.
Job Seekers
Job seekers should register and search for jobs on ALA JobLIST. All services are free to job seekers.
Free registration on ALA JobLIST is not required to view job postings, but it can be to the job seeker's advantage to do so. Registration and activation of a free job seeker profile will give actively hiring employers access to your resume information. It will also allow for direct communication between you and the employer. If you see a position that you are interested in, you can contact the employer directly as they instruct in their ad.
Be sure to visit our Recruiters at Conference page to see which employers will be interviewing during the conference.
If you need help getting your résumé polished, stop by the Placement Center while you are at conference. The New Members Round Table provides résumé critiquing service to conference attendees. You will be able to sign up soon. The service is free.
There will also be a number of free workshops on interviewing, résumés, cover letters, etc. at conferences. Go to the Conference Workshops page for the latest information.
There are several podcasts which were developed specifically for library workers on the General Career Information page of our career resources section. Some are directly related to preparing for and making the most effective use of conferences as an active job seeker.
You will also find numerous other resources on various job hunting topics on the Career Development Resources page.
If you have questions, concerns, or need help feel free to contact ALA Placement Service Manager, Beatrice Calvin at bcalvin@ala.org or (800) 545-2433 ext. 4280.
Related Links
Career Coaching sign-up form
If you're interested in volunteering in the Center, contact Beatrice Calvin, the Placement Service Manager.
