So, like
many people out there I'm working on balancing full-time work with part-time
study. To be more specific I'm approximately half way through my undergraduate
degree in Library and
Information Studies at Charles Sturt University (CSU).
As many of you may be aware, CSU places a heavy emphasis on the practical
elements of their courses and this one is no different. One of the course
requirements is to complete a minimum of 30 professional development hours by
the completion of the degree. This is a great idea for multiple reasons but
it's gotten me thinking about what opportunities are out there for professional
development.
Not
everyone can afford the time or money for conferences. Groups like ALIA Sydney
put on some great events (shameless plug here, if you haven’t been to an ALIA
Sydney event yet we have some great things planned for the second half of the
year), but again for those that are time poor, travelling all over Sydney isn't
always possible. So what can we do from our armchairs to stay current and get
those important points??
You can
always read an article but that can be a little dull. Have you ever thought
about writing one yourself??
When
starting on the road to academic authorship, you don’t have to jump into the
deep end of the pool. Why not try something that’s a little more straightforward
to start with. So when a colleague of mine suggested I write a book review I decided
to take the plunge. I got in contact with the coordinator of book reviews for
Library Management, a journal published by Emerald, and had my chosen book sent
out to me. In comparison to academic writing, a book review is a relatively
simple thing to write. All you need is the book and an opinion (and we all have
those).
My
article was published electronically in early March. I can’t tell you the
excitement I felt when I got the link to my review. In addition I got sent a
physical copy of the edition of Library Management that my article was printed
in (which upon arrival I photographed my name and sent it to everyone). From
the start of March to the end of April, my little review had over 250
downloads. It’s not a great piece of academic literature but writing the book
review gave me two opportunities, I managed to work up a few PD points and got
to read a text that related to my studies and work; and I’m on the road to
writing my first academic piece as a professional.
Kirsty
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