The Associate University Librarian Handbook

A Resource Guide

Edited by Bradford Lee Eden

Hardback - £96.00

Publication date:

10 May 2012

Length of book:

208 pages

Publisher

Scarecrow Press

ISBN-13: 9780810883819

The associate university librarian is tasked with running the various services and workflows of academic research libraries, allowing the head university librarian to focus on the acquisition of resources through fundraising and external public relations. Although the positions of assistant or associate university librarians and deans are considered a training ground for upward movement in the profession, there are surprisingly few mentoring experiences available. The Associate University Librarian Handbook: A Resource Guide looks to change that.

Bradford Lee Eden has brought together a variety of helpful topics for university librarians. The first section provides a broad overview of the field and what it means to be an associate librarian. A section on managing change, a topic endemic to the academic library in these times, follows. The next section deals with the question of funding the library enterprise and managing resources, with chapters on how best to handle budget reductions, cultivating donors and donor relations, and managing a research function. The fourth section covers career management, and includes chapters on navigating the transition to university librarian. A concluding section deals with leadership and defining the future. Intended for both those in the position of associate university librarian and for those aspiring to get there, The Associate University Librarian Handbook will be a valuable tool and guide.
Geared for current and future associate university librarians and deans, the work fills a gap in the literature for handbooks and sourcebooks for this specific position. Beginning with an introductory section that introduces the book as a whole and defines the Associate University Librarian, the work next presents two case studies on managing change as an associate university librarian, followed by five chapters on funding the library enterprise and managing resources. The fourth section presents three chapters on managing your career and development, while the fifth provides two chapters for the associate university librarian taking on an interim leadership role. This work is of use for practicing librarians in academic environments who are looking to move up to a higher position, and for those already working as associate university librarians.