If you can read this message, then it is likely that your browser does not support the latest web standards, and this site will appear in a less than optimal way. We recommend you upgrade to a standards-compliant browser to improve your Internet experience.

Skip to content | Accessibility Info

Completed Projects

The Class of 1988 - National Cohort Study of Newly Qualified Librarians and Information Workers 1991

This report provides a picture of the early career patterns and experiences of library and information professionals. It is bases on three surveys of all library and information professionals who qualified in 1988. The surveys were conducted three months, fifteen months and twenty-one months after qualification.

The report provides both quantitative and qualitative information on:

Use of proficiencies and skills acquired during courses

  • Choice of career
  • Level of job satisfaction
  • Nature of jobs undertaken
  • Movement into and out of the library and information profession
  • Training and career development
  • Wastage from the library and information profession
  • Experiences of different groups in the Cohort

The report offers library employers, educators and the profession as a whole a number of suggestions to improve the experiences of new professionals and to reduce the amount of wastage from the profession. Priorities include:

  • Attracting more students and employees from non-British ethnic origins
  • Development of pay and career structures
  • Active promotion of a positive image and status for the whole library and information profession