Revised Competencies for Cataloging & Metadata Professional Librarians

CHICAGO -- In early 2023, the Core Metadata & Collections Leadership Team asked former member of the Cataloging Competencies Task Force, Dr. Karen Snow, to lead an effort to revise the "Core Competencies for Cataloging and Metadata Professional Librarians." The revision team worked during 2023 to update the 2017 document. Their effort was informed by 2022 survey research data collected by the Cataloging Competencies Task Force that spoke to the current usage of the Core Competencies document and potential changes and additions to the document, as stated by the cataloging and metadata community. Taking into consideration these changes and the aforementioned survey results, the revision team updated the entire original document to clarify language and incorporate competencies relating to artificial intelligence and large language models, emphasize ethics, and move the examples to an appendix for easier updating over time.

According to Dr. Snow, "The 2023 revisions to the Core Competencies for Cataloging & Metadata Professional Librarians build upon an already exceptional core competencies document that has been useful for practitioners, administrators, educators, students, and many others. I am proud of the work of the revision team, which updated the Core Competencies to incorporate new developments in cataloging and metadata work since the 2017 document, and to clarify language for greater precision and ease of use."

The document defines competencies in broad terms to acknowledge the wide variety of work performed by cataloging and metadata professionals in libraries of all types and sizes, regardless of developments in a particular standard or technology. While a baseline of knowledge, skills, and behaviors for cataloging and metadata professional librarians is defined in this document, competence in cataloging and metadata is obtained over the course of an individual’s career. This document is meant to supplement the American Library Association’s Core Competences of Librarianship, and as such, many general competencies of librarianship will not be listed here.

About Core

Core: Leadership, Infrastructure, Futures is the national association that advances the profession of librarians and information providers in central roles of leadership and management, collections and technical services, and technology. Our mission is to cultivate and amplify the collective expertise of library workers in core functions through community building, advocacy, and learning. Core is a division of the American Library Association. Follow us on our Blog, Instagram, or LinkedIn.