The document discusses attracting young people to the librarianship profession and addresses the barriers and potential solutions. It notes a staffing crisis as older librarians retire. New professionals identify barriers as invisibility of the profession, negative stereotypes, qualifications required, poor career advice, and lack of opportunities. To attract young people, they recommend increasing awareness through promotion on social media and addressing stereotypes that librarians only work with books by emphasizing the technology skills required. Changing public attitudes is ultimately needed to attract young people to the profession.

1. Attracting Young People into the Librarianship Profession Sarah Newbutt

2. Overview Staffing Crisis The importance of recruiting young people The Barriers New professionals’ views on what’s stopping young people from entering librarianship The Solutions New professionals’ views on what we can do to attract more young people into librarianship

3. Overview Staffing Crisis The importance of recruiting young people The Barriers New professionals’ views on what’s stopping young people from entering librarianship The Solutions New professionals’ views on what we can do to attract more young people into librarianship

4. Of the 16 respondents… 4 were aged between 18-24 years old 11 were aged between 25-39 years old 1 was over 40 years old 1 didn’t give an answer to this question

5. What barriers do you see facing young people wanting to enter the librarianship profession? Invisibility of the profession Negative stereotypes Qualifications required Poor careers advice Lack of job opportunities Money - low salaries

6. Overview Staffing Crisis The importance of recruiting young people The Barriers New professionals’ views on what’s stopping young people from entering librarianship The Solutions New professionals’ views on what we can do to attract more young people into librarianship

7. The Solutions Self-promotion Increase awareness Increase visibility Engagement with Web 2.0 technologies Banish negative stereotypes

8. Communication “ Lack of public awareness is often behind under-appreciation of the LIS sector ” “ Better communication to counter ‘ invisibility ’ of key LIS work ” Library & Information Update

9. School Librarians “ a recent survey discovered that the average age of school librarians was 50” “ We can’t let schools become book-free zones” Times Higher Education

10. New Libraries, New Librarians The Information Commons at The University of Sheffield http://www.shef.ac.uk/library/libsites/ic.html

11. National Action Television campaigns Librarian’s Day A Face of Librarianship Who is the Florence Nightingale of the Library World?

12. Breaking Down Stereotypes Librarians are highly qualified professionals Librarians work with technology, not just books Librarians are young!

13. Ultimately, we need a change in attitudes This is what we’re up against… Eugene Adam