I chose to study Librarianship as I developed a love for libraries and archives during my undergraduate degree. Before applying to the University of Sheffield, I took a year out to volunteer for the NHS during the pandemic. From this experience, I was eager to get involved in a career that involved helping people.
For me, becoming a librarian fit what I wanted to achieve as a future career and enrolling on the MA Librarianship course at the University of Sheffield was perfect. I was excited to learn more about the LIS field and discover which specific areas I would have a particular interest in. I was also super excited to get to know the city of Sheffield more and what it had to offer.
It was nice to have the opportunity to go back to university
and study a subject that I was particularly interested in. I did feel slightly
nervous about my decision to commute to university, however, as I was worried
that I would be missing out on the full university experience. I have found
that this was not the case at all! There were so many social opportunities to
get involved with at the university (societies, trips etc.) and I met some
amazing people on my course as well. I also found the 1-hour commute to
university to be very productive as it allowed me to keep on top of my
university work!
I thought that the Librarianship course was fantastic! We
were introduced to all aspects of the LIS sector from information organisation,
leadership and management, and information literacy. I was introduced to
aspects of the field that I had not considered before. This was the case for
the ‘Information Literacy’ module, where the class was assigned to produce a
piece of teaching, aimed at current university students. I was not expecting to
enjoy this module as much as I did, and I realised that this was an area that I
would like to pursue a career in. The classes as a whole were very interactive,
consisting of frequent group tasks and discussions. I particularly enjoyed this
aspect as it allowed us to mingle with other people on the course; we really
did feel like a family!
During my studies, I decided to apply to become a student
ambassador. I was really excited about this opportunity as I wanted to help
promote the Information School to prospective students. During my time as a
student ambassador, I felt that my confidence definitely grew when it came to
creating content. I had never created videos or spoken to a camera before, and
I had a lot of fun with it. This definitely helped me to develop my
communication skills!
One of my favourite days in my student ambassador role was
taking part in a photography day. We were asked to be involved in creating
promotional photos for the university prospectus. This gave me the opportunity
to meet the other student ambassadors for the first time. It was such a fun day
where I was able to mingle with the other ambassadors in the information
school.
The best part of being a student ambassador was that it didn’t
feel like work! The opportunities that were given to us allowed us to get
creative! I had so much fun filming and editing my own vlog-style video.
Overall, studying at Sheffield has been one of the best
years of my life. The Librarianship course and the other activities I have been
involved in have really helped me to develop as a person. At times I have been
pushed out of my comfort zone, but this has really helped to develop key
employability skills that I can use for the next chapter. I would definitely
advise you to take on any opportunity that arises during your time at
Sheffield; especially taking on exciting opportunities like the student
ambassador role. It’s a great way to get out there and meet new people and
develop your skills.
Beth Higgins
MA Librarianship
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