Librarianship Students’ Perceptions of the Role of the Client Services Librarian

Prospective librarians differ greatly in educational background, but a core part of their learning before starting their professional career is how to serve clients effectively. Before beginning the librarianship programme at University College Dublin (UCD) in 2017, students were asked to seek out the person in a library local to their area, who deals with client services and find out what their job entails. Upon completing UCD’s required module in information and client services, students were asked to describe the professional role again and to reflect on whether their perception of the client services role now differed from what they learned before starting the course. A majority of students initially believed their role as a client services librarian would be mainly administrative, potentially because they encountered paraprofessional working in client services positions. Upon completion of the module, the majority of students perceived a broader role for client services librarians. There may be opportunities for educators and the profession to assist students learning to take up the client services role.