Over the years, many college and university libraries have created
residency programs for the betterment of the library, the post-masters'
student and the profession. Residency programs can be a valuable
experience for recently graduated MLIS students. Former residents
reported in Library Personnel News (May-June 199610:3) that the
"mentoring and networking opportunities were invaluable." The overall
experience of residents motivated and encouraged them in their work.
Residents improved their ability to work together and were more accepting
of different viewpoints and ideas. Library clients and staff benefited
from residents by gaining a fresh perspective on the profession. During a
residency position, residents gain "career long" professional
associations with staff that are taken to the next professional position.
The Who & Where of Residency Programs
The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has a database of
Internship & Residency Programs. It lists twenty-three active internships
& residency programs. Residencies are available in different fields of
library science including law, medicine, minority residencies, special
collections & others. The database is located at
http://www.arl.org/careers/residencies.html.
Library Personnel News v.10 no. 3 May-June 1996. The whole issue
discusses different viewpoints of the resident librarian. It also lists
colleges & universities that have programs, but does not provide indepth
information about individual programs.