GCU’s Library Service offers an annual library Graduate Traineeship for aspiring librarians. This is a full-time, fixed term opportunity for 12 months. Recruitment for the role takes place on a yearly basis in the Autumn, with the successful candidate starting in January of the following year.
The following questions provide some context to what you will be expected to do during the traineeship, what training opportunities are available and the application process.
As a Disability Confident 'Committed' employer, we are striving to ensure that our recruitment process is inclusive and accessible to disabled people. Although the Disability Confident 'Committed' level does not guarantee an interview for disabled applicants, we will make reasonable adjustments for disabled applicants during the recruitment process.
Reasonable adjustments can also be made to provide the successful candidate with a working environment suitable to their needs.
Where will I be working?
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The award-winning Sir Alex Ferguson Library gives access to more than 500,000 books, 350 open-access PCs and a huge range of online resources including databases, ebooks, journals and more. Open seven days a week, the Sir Alex Ferguson Library is the only higher education library fully open to students, staff and members of the public in Glasgow.
The library offers services and support for all learning, teaching and research activities across the GCU Community. The library is also home to the University's archives and special collections, which hold rare and unique items from GCU's past together with other collections of national importance.
The library currently employs a hybrid working policy. While there will be the opportunity to work from home, the post holder will be required to work on site at the Sir Alex Ferguson library during their employment. The successful candidate will work in the library office which is on the first floor within the library building. The library office is a large open plan office, with a quiet working environment. As outlined above, reasonable adjustments can be made to provide the successful candidate with a working environment suitable to their needs.
What will I be doing?
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You will work primarily as part of the Collections and Discovery team, based in the Sir Alex Ferguson Library. The post is part of a team of Library Assistants who contribute to the management of the library’s physical and electronic resources, such as resource list management, acquisitions, cataloguing, stock management, digitisation, and research records.
The role will provide a varied experience of working in a multi-cultural, modern university library which will be of interest to anyone wishing to pursue a career in librarianship.
The post holder will also have the opportunity to undertake job shadowing with our academic librarians as well as with the Library Information Support Team (LIST) and archives team within the Sir Alex Ferguson Library.
What will I learn on the training programme?
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You will learn how a Collections and Discovery (resource management) department functions within a modern academic library. As part of the training programme you will gain experience in:
Acquisitions: ordering, receiving and invoicing processes Resource Lists: creating, updating and processing reading lists for academic staff Cataloguing: learning about bibliographic data standards, copy cataloguing and identifying suitable records, creating records in different library systems Research: gain knowledge and understanding of library research support services including supporting open science, thesis digitisation and data management / quality control Communication: responding to queries from colleagues, wider GCU community and external stakeholders using a variety of communication tools such as email and Microsoft Teams applications Social media: supporting library services by creating and scheduling social media content
What types of projects might I work on?
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As part of the role, you will be asked to contribute to various projects within the Collections and Discovery team and possibly the wider library. Examples of projects you may participate in include:
Annual performance review of the library’s Resource List service Library website content and accessibility review Ongoing development of our wellbeing collection Supporting development of library technologies by conducting environment scans Supporting creation of library training materials e.g. creating user help videos
What could trainees go on to do?
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Following completion of the one year gradate trainee position you may wish to pursue a postgraduate qualification in Library and Information Studies (LIS). There are a wide variety of courses available at a range of institutions. Many of these courses are offered as part-time or distance learning allowing you to work in a library while completing your studies. Your employer may offer funding support for your studies. For the most up-to-date information on LIS courses, visit CILIP’s list of places to study .
The information profession offers a diverse range of opportunities for LIS graduates in a variety of sectors, including:
Government information services Legal libraries and court services Television and other media centres Corporate knowledge management Third sector/charities Health and social care organisations University, college, public, special, and school libraries
What qualifications and experience do I need to apply?
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The post is designed to provide a year of work experience and training for applicants with minimal or no library work experience prior to pursuing a qualification in Library and Information Studies.
Applicants need to have a degree qualification or equivalent as a minimum. No experience of working in libraries is required. A full program of training will be provided in the day-to-day operations of the library.
How do I apply?
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Recruitment for the role takes place on a yearly basis in the Autumn, with the successful candidate starting in January of the following year. Trainee posts are advertised each year on the GCU website and the myjobscotland recruitment website .
Shortlisting for interviews will be marked against the essential criteria outlined in the role profile, so ensure you evidence your knowledge and experience clearly.
