How To Become A Library Media Specialist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a library media specialist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Eve Oishi Ph.D.

If your idea of a dream job is to be surrounded by information, rows upon rows of books, and to head a department in a library, you'll find your place as a Library Media Specialist. This isn't your typical librarian position - you'll be working directly with the library's media resources.

While you'll need an in-depth knowledge of your library's media resources and the files you have available, your most valuable skills will be in customer service and research. You'll not only be assisting visitors and other staff members with locating resources, but this could even extend to other libraries, schools, or other institutions that are looking to obtain records you hold. Library Media Specialists will also need to be able to help customers understand the material. While some people will take what they need and be on their way, you could have students needing help with a project, reporters looking for background on a story, or other individuals taking an interest in your resources that need further assistance.

It may surprise you that many applicants for a Library Media Specialist position hold master's degrees in fields like education and library science. Your experience in media, research, or other library positions will also be important to your potential employer. While the hours will depend on your organization's staffing needs, a Library Media Specialist makes about $20 per hour, on average.

What general advice would you give to a library media specialist?

Eve Oishi Ph.D.

Associate Professor and Chair, Claremont Graduate University

Students who receive a degree in ethnic or gender studies are sure to have received substantial training in how to identify and analyze structural inequality, cultural and political power dynamics, and historical trends. These are all tools that are highly useful and transferrable to innumerable fields. Many students face pressure from their families to avoid areas like these because they won't give them "practical" career training.

At the start of their careers, my advice to graduates would be to remember that the skills they have in critical thinking, writing, and understanding the most pressing issues of the current time, are skills that will make them attractive to employers in many fields. Be creative and bold in highlighting all of your diverse talents. Even if your skillset is not legible to your family or community, you can showcase it in your job search.

ScoreLibrary Media SpecialistUS Average

Salary

3.2

Avg. Salary $41,529

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.6

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.30%

Asian 5.29%

Black or African American 7.11%

Hispanic or Latino 8.17%

Unknown 3.42%

White 75.71%

Gender

female 85.33%

male 14.67%

Age - 48

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 48

Stress level

5.6

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.7

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.6

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a library media specialist

Explore library media specialist education requirements

Most common library media specialist degrees

Bachelor's

54.1 %

Master's

36.6 %

Associate

5.0 %

Start to develop specific library media specialist skills

Skills	Percentages
Professional Development	8.23%
Library Materials	7.18%
K-12	6.60%
Library Resources	5.55%
Instructional Materials	5.48%

Complete relevant library media specialist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New library media specialists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a library media specialist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real library media specialist resumes.

Research library media specialist duties and responsibilities

Assist children on the autism spectrum academically and socially to achieve integration into a mainstream educational environment.
Collaborate with teachers on student research projects by teaching information literacy skills emphasizing on inquiry and organization using some technology.
Teach pre-K through 5th grade.
Initiate and run a summer sewing camp.

Prepare your library media specialist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your library media specialist resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a library media specialist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable library media specialist resume templates

Build a professional library media specialist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your library media specialist resume.