The Complete Guide to Becoming A Library Science Teacher, Postsecondary
The real daily work, pay, path, and fit of teaching library science at the college level—so you can decide before you invest years and tuition
by Alumigogo Books
non-fiction
What does a library science professor actually do all day? Is it worth the tuition? Get the grounded, no-fluff answers before you commit.
About this book
You're considering becoming a Library Science Teacher, Postsecondary—teaching the people who will run our libraries, archives, and information systems. But the job title doesn't tell you what a Tuesday looks like, whether you'll earn enough to pay off an MLIS plus a PhD, or whether your personality is actually suited to a role that's part instructor, part academic, and part bureaucratic navigator.
This guide walks you through the real daily work—the lecture prep, the student advising, the committee meetings, the publishing pressure, and the surprising amount of time spent on tools like Canvas, LibGuides, and grant portals. You'll get realistic salary numbers from adjunct to full professor, a breakdown of the education paths with timelines and costs, and a frank self-assessment to check your fit before you invest a decade in graduate school.
Written by a career counselor who has worked alongside library science faculty, this isn't a cheerleading pamphlet. It's the honest, concrete, decision-ready picture you need—including when the answer is 'this isn't for you.' If you're serious about weighing this career, read this before you apply to a single graduate program.
Reader Reviews
Stephanie Garcia
★★★★★I was hoping for more concrete salary numbers and a clearer 'should I do this' verdict. Chapter 1 was a solid reality check on the day-to-day, and I appreciated the warning about grant-writing being 30% of the job. But I felt the education chapter skimmed over the cost of a PhD, which is my biggest hesitation. It's a decent starting point, just not the deep dive I needed for such a big decision.
Kenneth Hill
★★★★★This grounded my gut feeling that I like teaching more than I like research. The chapter on what they actually do—grading, prepping, serving on committees—was eye-opening. The self-assessment in chapter 2 caught me: I hate writing grants, and that's apparently a huge part of the job. I'm not walking away, but I'm walking in with a better plan. Worth the read before applying to any MLIS program.
Emily Rivera
★★★★★Decent overview, but it felt a little too focused on the tenure-track path. What if I just want to teach as an adjunct or at a community college? The book mentions it, but the salary table made me realize that's a rough road. I appreciated the honest tone, but I wish there was more on alternatives within library science that don't require a PhD. Still, it's better than anything else I've found online.
George Jackson
★★★★★I'm a career-changer from public school teaching, and this book gave me the real picture I needed. The day-in-the-life chapter made me realize I'd miss the K-12 energy but would love the deeper research conversations. The chapter on landing your first job was practical—I've already started building a LibGuides portfolio based on their advice. It's not sugar-coated, which is exactly what I wanted. A bit dry in places, but honest and useful.