Hiring qualified entry-level health sciences and medical librarians is becoming increasingly difficult. Practitioners hired directly from library school have received little-to-no training in health-sciences specific resources, reference, or searching. Despite 51 ALA-accredited LIS programs listing a course in health sciences or medical librarianship, these classes are not part of a standard library school curriculum and are offered infrequently, if at all. New practitioners must learn on the job and develop their skills in health sciences librarianship over time, which decreases entry-level job opportunities, as onboarding new practitioners is resource-intensive.
We recognize that our profession lacks an established school-to-career pipeline; the NAHSL Health Sciences Library Apprenticeship Program (HSLAP) aims to address gaps in the library curriculum and prepare a select number of current library learners for success in health sciences and medical libraries.
Create an extracurricular program for students enrolled in MLS (or equivalent) programs comparable to a health sciences library elective class
Introduce participants to the various roles and responsibilities of a health sciences librarian
Provide resources (readings, videos, online courses, and other continuing education opportunities) to train and educate future health sciences librarians
Expose participants to the basics of searching and instruction in a health sciences library setting
Pair participants with a local mentor and facilitate a week of practical education in a library setting
Prepare participants for a first job/early career interview experience
Minimize barriers to hiring new graduates in health sciences library positions.
The NAHSL (HSLAP) is a 6-month internship/apprenticeship for library learners entering their final year of study. For this pilot year, we aim to fund two students. The program has four main components:
Twelve weeks of didactic learning that include:
NNLM CE courses
MLA courses
Journal club
Online discussion
Reflection opportunities
Time to complete a final project or presentation
Check-ins with mentors and project directors
A week-long practical learning experience on-site with their mentors
Attendance at the NAHSL conference
Introduce participants to a community of health sciences and medical librarians from academic, hospital, and government libraries
Jumpstart networking with potential future employers and colleagues
Development of skills and an artifact that can be used in the job interview process such as a sample PubMed class
Barr-Walker, J., Bass, M. B., Werner, D. A., & Kellermeyer, L. (2019). Measuring impostor phenomenon among health sciences librarians. Journal of the Medical Library Association : JMLA, 107(3), 323–332. https://doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2019.644
Medical Library Association. (2023). Library schools with courses in health sciences information. https://www.mlanet.org/p/cm/ld/fid=339