Library Research Training and Collaboration Opportunities

In support of our mission to contribute toward the extension and improvement of library research and to inform and educate ALA members concerning research techniques and their usefulness, LRRT provides this list of research training opportunities and research collaboration opportunities.

Research Training Opportunities

LRRT Mentorship Program

The Librarian Parlor (aka LibParlor or #libparlor)

LibParlor is a space for conversing, sharing expertise, and asking questions about the process of developing, pursuing, and publishing library research. We feature interesting research methodologies, common challenges, in progress work, setbacks and successes. In providing this space, LibParlor aspires to support the development of a welcoming community of new researchers.
URL: https://libparlor.com Social Media: @LibParlor

Research Institute for Public Libraries (RIPL)
Launched in 2015 by the Colorado State Library (CSL) and the Colorado Library Consortium (CLiC), RIPL was a singular event for public library leaders and others interested in public library data and evaluation. In this immersive, bootcamp-style event, participants learned practical, strategic methods of gathering, analyzing, and using data for planning, management, and communicating impact. While RIPL no longer offers these events, Webinars from past participants are still available for viewing.

URL: https://ripl.lrs.org Social Media: #RIPLeffect

MLA Research Training Institute for Health Sciences Librarians (RTI)

The MLA Research Training Institute for Health Sciences Librarians was developed to provide practicing health sciences librarians with an opportunity to immerse themselves in instruction and focused activities related to scholarly research, inquiry, and publishing.

The institute program offers a combination of:

  • hands-on instruction in research design by faculty experts
  • a full year of post-institute mentoring and support for participants to complete research projects of their own design
  • membership in an ongoing research community of practice
  • a unique capstone research presentation at an MLA annual meeting
  • scholarship support

URL: https://www.mlanet.org/rti Social Media:


Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL)
The Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL) was a continuing education program for academic and research librarians designed to create a growing community of confident librarian-researchers. The year-long program began with a summer research workshop, to provide novice researchers with social science research training, followed by a year of peer and formal mentor support in completing a research project of their design.

The summer research workshop was delivered as an in-person experience from 2014-2019, shifting to an online format from 2022-2024. The program was offered at no cost to participants and was open to librarians in the United States and Canada in full-time positions; librarians in a full-time residency were eligible to apply.

URL: https://library.lmu.edu/irdl Social Media: @IRDLonline

Research Collaboration Opportunities

LibParlor Classifieds

LibParlor Classifieds are a way to connect with members of the community to discuss research. There are three types of classifieds: Seek Connections, Share Opportunities, and Build Collaborations.
URL: https://libparlor.com/classifieds/

Evidence Based Library & Information Practice

EBLIP is a peer reviewed, open access journal published quarterly by the University of Alberta Learning Services, using the OJS Software. The purpose of the journal is to provide a forum for librarians and other information professionals to discover research that may contribute to decision making in professional practice. EBLIP publishes original research and commentary on the topic of evidence based library and information practice, as well as reviews of previously published research (evidence summaries) on a wide number of topics.

URL: https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/eblip/index.php/EBLIP/index Social Media: @eblip
 
International Conference on Performance Measurement in Libraries 

The Conference brings together practitioners, researchers, educators and students interested in all aspects of performance measurement in library and information services in any context. The conference provides a mix of invited speakers, contributed papers and workshops designed to stimulate discussion, provide ideas for measuring and improving library performance, and develop new concepts and techniques to advance the field.

URL: https://libraryperformance.org Social Media: @LibPMC


Empirical Librarians Conference. Research Supported and Done by Librarians.  Empirical Librarians logo

A small conference focused on librarians doing research and librarians supporting original research. Empirical librarians provides a great venue for learning, networking, and discussion about the many ways that research and librarianship thrive together.

URL: https://lib.utk.edu/emplibs/ Social Media: