A Student’s Perspective on Professional Development: UC San Diego Hosts Annual “Librarians Shadow Day”

Disclaimer: This is a long post and if you don’t think you can make it all the way through, at least read the conclusion because that’s where the moral of the story lies.

Introduction

As library and information science and archives and records administration students, we’re constantly bombarded with terms “professional development,” “networking,” “professional branding,” etc., by our instructors and other more experienced figures. And although most of us know what these terms means, sometimes it can be hard to figure how to successfully put them into practice and make the most of the opportunities afforded to us. I can honestly say one of my biggest regrets in undergrad was that I was one of those students who did not take full advantage of the opportunities I was given. Through this incredible journey at San Jose State, my number one goal has been to not make the same mistake! I got wise to this knowledge a little late, but I have seen that often times many of my peers and colleagues still haven’t learned the lesson. So I want to take this time to share with you about one of the more recent events I attended and how important it was to actually listen to the wise words being spoken to us.

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