The School is pleased to report the results of its survey of 1997 graduates, our 10th annual placement survey. In 1997, 31 students graduated with the Master of Library and Information Studies (MLIS) degree from the University of Alberta, of whom 25 responded to this survey (an 81 per cent response rate, which is similar to the year before). The 1997 survey was conducted in June and July 1998, a little over a year after the students had graduated.

The rate of placement of MLIS graduates from the University of Alberta has remained relatively stable over the past five years, with 22 out of 25 graduates (88%) from 1997 reporting employment in library and information services at the time of the survey. Almost all respondents obtained their first job within six months of graduation. As in earlier years, however, only half of those working full-time held permanent positions. Also as in earlier years, two-thirds of responding graduates worked in one or more temporary positions at some point since graduation.

The most frequent employers of currently employed 1997 graduates were post-secondary libraries, accounting for almost half of all placements, with another third employed by public libraries and government libraries. For the first time in the history of the annual placement survey, a significant number of responding graduates found employment in the United States.

The most common way in which graduates learned about available positions was through electronic listservs, followed by word-of-mouth and the School's job board.

The rate of placement of MLIS graduates from the University of Alberta has remained relatively stable over the past five years. Among 1997 responding graduates, 22 (88%) were employed in library and information services at the time of the survey, and the remaining three respondents had also been so employed earlier in the year. Among 1995 and 1996 graduates, the figures were 80% and 82%.

Of the 22 respondents currently employed in library and information services, the majority (91%) held full-time positions; however, only half of those were permanent. This is similar to the pattern among 1996 graduates, when full-time positions accounted for 82% of placements but again only about half were permanent. Nine of the 19 full-time placements obtained by 1997 graduates were temporary positions ranging from three months to one year.

The survey indicates that 16 of the 25 respondents (64%) had held one or more temporary positions at some point since graduation, including a few who had as many as three such positions. This pattern is similar to that of previous years.

The most frequent employers of currently employed 1997 graduates were post-secondary libraries (46% of respondents), with government libraries and public libraries together supplying another third. These three sectors accounted for 82% of all 1997 positions. This contrasts with a year earlier when it was only half of all 1996 positions.

Graduates from 1997 described their positions with the following job titles: electronic services/reference librarian; public access trainer; library media specialist; assistant archivist; medical librarian; humanities reference librarian; library coordinator; collections librarian; serials librarian; and instructional librarian.

Location

Unlike previous years, Alberta did not provide the majority of placements for 1997 graduates: only 11 out of 25 respondents (44%). This was a marked decrease from the previous year, when the proportion of graduates staying in Alberta was 78%. Other work locations were Ontario (3) and British Columbia (1). For the first time in the history of the annual placement surveys, a significant number of graduates found employment in the United States, with 10 respondents (40%) indicating that they were currently employed there.

Almost all of the graduates employed in Alberta worked in Edmonton (9 out of 11), with one in Calgary and one in Lethbridge. This proportion is similar to 1996, when 18 out of 21 graduates employed in Alberta worked in Edmonton.

Five graduates working full-time in Canada reported annual salaries ranging from $29,500 to $43,000, with a median of $31,000. Six graduates in contract positions earned between $6.25 per hour and $22.00 per hour, with a median of $16.50. The 10 graduates with full-time positions in the United States reported annual salaries ranging from $22,000 US to $40,000 US, with a median of $31,500 US.

Of the 10 graduates reporting how they learned about available positions in 1997, electronic listservs were the primary method, accounting for four positions. Word-of-mouth and general networking ranked second in frequency, followed by the SLIS job board. In 1996, word-of-mouth was the most frequently mentioned way in which graduates learned about jobs, and second was newspaper advertisements.

Two-thirds of graduates in 1997 found their first position within three months of graduation, and another five (20%) within six months. Only three people took longer than six months to find positions.

All survey respondents were asked whether they were seeking more satisfactory employment, regardless of their current work situation. Ten of the 25 graduates (40%) said yes, nine still looking for a permanent full-time position and one wanting part-time work. This is down substantially from 1996, when 18 out of 28 graduates (64%) indicated they were still looking for satisfactory employment.

Twenty-three out of 25 respondents (92%) said they had obtained library work experience either before or during their MLIS program, and only two respondents left the program with neither (8%). More 1997 graduates worked before the MLIS program than did 1996 graduates (60% versus 39%). There was a similar shift in the proportion of 1997 graduates who worked during the program (88% versus 68%).