Thursday, December 12, 2019 by Mary Lynne Bartlett
Hello!
I’m Marya and I’m a third year in Biomedical Sciences. This is my 1st term being a Library Ambassador and I am absolutely loving it!
Recently, I got the opportunity to sit down, talk to, and learn more about one of our talented library staff, Lauren Doyle.
The work that library staff and in particular, Lauren, who works in Collection Development, directly benefits us as students. I hope you find this interview as interesting as I did. Its always fascinating to know more on what goes on behind the scenes.
What is your job title?
Acquisitions Associate in Collection Development
What is your degree in?
I have a Masters in Library and Information Science degree that I got from Western University.
How long have you worked here?
Two years in August
Why do you like working at UWaterloo?
I like the people that I work with, and again it’s the library’s atmosphere that I really love. I like being in a library and helping the University or student community in whatever way I can.
What does your job entail?
My job is dealing with the collection. Any time students need to use books or a database, my job is to manage them or order them for the librarians who place their requests of what they would like for their specific subject areas (English, Math, History, etc.). Myself and the two other team members place the orders to get the resources to the library from many different vendor sites.
Then, in terms of things like databases or journals, that can either be with a subscription vendor, or sometimes there are different consortia deals that go on with libraries, things like CRKN (Canadian Research Knowledge Network) and OCUL (Ontario Council of University Libraries). So, the library can get different subscriptions from those two vendors. The library can get percentages off and there are things that you can get packaged in with other universities so I’m helping to manage the collection in that way. Our department also deals with any issues that come up for example- a journal for some reason is missing an issue that typically comes 4 times a year and we need to bring that issue because a student or a researcher might need that.
What hard and soft skills do you use in your job?
For hard skills, I must understand a little bit of technology, for example using Excel, or understanding some of the knowledge that’s behind CRK or OCUL so that you can understand that when placing an order. Some of the soft skills move along the lines of being able to communicate with people. I have to communicate in person, phone, or email with selectors and with vendor representatives so that we can work with them appropriately.
How does your job affect students?
If things aren’t coming in, then students won’t get things that they need. If the resources are not here, then it’s not helping them in any way. Our job is mainly about having resources here and that it’s managed correctly so that students can access it for school, research, etc., and that they have what they need from a university to study.
-Marya
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