Medical librarian vs cataloger

The differences between medical librarians and catalogers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a medical librarian and a cataloger. Additionally, a medical librarian has an average salary of $54,614, which is higher than the $34,943 average annual salary of a cataloger.

The top three skills for a medical librarian include patient care, health system and library resources. The most important skills for a cataloger are library catalog, RDA, and cataloging.

Medical librarian vs cataloger overview

	Medical Librarian	Cataloger
Yearly salary	$54,614	$34,943
Hourly rate	$26.26	$16.80
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	45,262	93
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	2	2

Medical librarian vs cataloger salary

Medical librarians and catalogers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Librarian	Cataloger
Average salary	$54,614	$34,943
Salary range	Between $37,000 And $78,000	Between $23,000 And $52,000
Highest paying City	-	New Haven, CT
Highest paying state	-	Alaska
Best paying company	-	Harvard University
Best paying industry	-	Education

Differences between medical librarian and cataloger education

There are a few differences between a medical librarian and a cataloger in terms of educational background:

	Medical Librarian	Cataloger
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Library Science	History
Most common college	New York University	University of Maryland - College Park

Medical librarian vs cataloger demographics

Here are the differences between medical librarians' and catalogers' demographics:

	Medical Librarian	Cataloger
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 19.6% Female, 80.4%	Male, 37.9% Female, 62.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 4.9% White, 76.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 4.9% White, 77.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between medical librarian and cataloger duties and responsibilities

Medical librarian example responsibilities.

Manage document delivery via Docline and consortia memberships.
Evaluate and execute no-cost online library system for cataloging and circulating library materials.
Develop organization's first set of library policies and procedures for acquiring, cataloging and lending materials and program development.
Create and maintain the department SharePoint site.
Provide opportunities for students to use the library for class-relate research, individual investigation, independent reading, and personal inquiry.
Provide opportunities for students to use the library for class-relate research, individual investigation, independent reading, and personal inquiry.

Cataloger example responsibilities.

Manage category of materials: including books, CDs, films and other documents.
Assign subject headings using LCSH.
Cataloge books and serials for all the school district libraries.
Master the use of cataloguing resources such as WorldCat and HomeBase.
Assist librarians in other EPA libraries with the conversion of their serials list.
Assign LCSH and LCC, as well as a local classification system for legal treatises.

Medical librarian vs cataloger skills

Common medical librarian skills

Patient Care, 22%
Health System, 13%
Library Resources, 10%
Collection Development, 8%
Electronic Resources, 8%
Medical Literature, 5%

Common cataloger skills

Library Catalog, 13%
RDA, 11%
Cataloging, 11%
OCLC, 8%
Online Database, 8%
Lcsh, 6%

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Medical Librarian vs Cataloger

Updated January 8, 2025

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