Educational & Professional Goals
My academic goal is to obtain a better understanding of the best practices and trends on how to best serve library users with various information behaviors. One example of my commitment to this goal is that I am re-designing the library at the zen meditation center where I am a member. In my volunteer work at the meditation center, I am re-organizing the library catalog to increase the usability of the collection. I am also installing an online library catalog system for the meditation center’s members.
My commitments at work in the library and volunteering at the meditation center are why I am pursuing the Information Organization concentration of University of North Texas’ (UNT) Master of Library Science (MLS) program. In both roles, at the library and meditation center, I will fill in any knowledge gaps I have of the research and best practices in cataloging and classification. Also, I will use the indexing, and information retrieval knowledge I gain from the information organization courses to improve usability for all the users I support. The information organization is a natural fit for a student like me who has prior knowledge in the data management process. I am confident that I will be able to transfer the knowledge and skills I gain from the program into my current and future endeavors.
Since enrolling in the MLS program in Spring 2020, my professional goals have pivoted slightly from becoming a library science professional to embracing myself as an information professional. From my perspective, an information professional encompasses practices and skills that go beyond the library: Information professionals are part of a global workforce. Furthermore, that is how I see myself now that I am in the last semester of my education at UNT: I am part of a global workforce.
As an information professional, my goals are to seek positions to use my knowledge and skills working with diverse populations. Thanks to the MLS program at UNT, I am confident to seek out positions within large, globally based organizations. Fortunately, my current library associate role at a library located in metro Atlanta allows me to serve customers who are non-native speakers of English who come from various cultural backgrounds.
On May 2021, I graduated with a Master of Library Science degree, with a concentration in Information Organization. Click the following link to access my Current Degree Plan and Courses Completed detailed course program information. In closing, I look forward to serving diverse
populations while applying the professional information skills that I have
acquired from the MLS program at the University of North Texas.
