I could not be happier with my experience as an intern. Since I was not locked into a department, I was able to explore other areas and get more experience in a busier atmosphere. Working at night and on the weekend is very isolating. It is an entirely different library during the week days because of heightened activity as students rush around before or in between classes. My hours at night or on the weekend also mean I am usually the only staff member working, with very few exceptions. Interaction with coworkers during the day made for a wonderful learning experience since I got the chance to discuss issues in person as they arose instead of sending an email to notify coworkers of a problem or event. I really like the academic world and helping college students seems to be the right path for me but it would be useful to get some experience working in/for a public library for comparison. I hope that my summer experiences will help with this goal.

            To support the GSLIS Educational Outcomes, I got a chance to teach a full instruction session that I had designed and planned which gave me much needed experience with lesson planning and presenting for a full class period. Prior to this, my only experience with library instruction had been a brief 30 minute introduction to the library and the summer Talent Development tutoring sessions for LIB120. This gave me an opportunity to run the show on my own which is what I will be expected to do in future positions. My work with tutorial video creation was very rewarding as it reaffirmed my ability to work with educational technology to assist students and library users and gave me confidence in such a marketable skill. As a future librarian, it is my purpose to assist with communication cycle by providing access to and helping people find information they need or want. This internship connected with that professional purpose and desire. I was able to pass along my knowledge of video creation to the librarians thus furthering their education and mine in a valuable way since continuing education and lifelong learning is another important part of this career.

            Even though my shifts at the Reference Desk were quiet ones, learning opportunities did arise through formal one-on-one sessions, walk-up questions, and a chat reference question. All of them were useful learning experiences that pushed me to improve in weak areas. Outside of my Reference work, I got some practical experience working with Voyager ILS and OCLC to suppress records and discard books, and I researched informal usability testing methods to assist the Web Development Committee with improving the new Library website. I feel much more confident in my talents and abilities for future librarian positions thanks to the work and opportunities of this professional field experience. My only regret is that it had to end. Because I want as much experience as I can get, I have offered myself up for free labor in Access Services in August after my summer classes and summer job are over. This is all about being the best librarian I can possibly be someday but I want to learn as much practical knowledge out in the field to be fully prepared for that future.