How To Become A University Librarian: What It Is and Career Path

What is a university librarian and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a university librarian. For example, did you know that they make an average of $25.61 an hour? That's $53,277 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 8,500 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreUniversity LibrarianUS Average

Salary

4.2

Avg. Salary $53,277

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.6

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.33%

Asian 4.94%

Black or African American 6.51%

Hispanic or Latino 7.87%

Unknown 3.60%

White 76.75%

Gender

female 46.15%

male 53.85%

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

5.6

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

9.5

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a university librarian

Explore university librarian education requirements

Most common university librarian degrees

Bachelor's

56.8 %

Master's

31.8 %

Associate

4.5 %

Start to develop specific university librarian skills

Skills	Percentages
Library Services	17.40%
University Libraries	16.93%
Collection Development	12.78%
Library Resources	10.56%
Library Operations	10.47%

Complete relevant university librarian training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New university librarians 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 university librarian based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real university librarian resumes.

Research university librarian duties and responsibilities

Achieve proficiency cataloging electronic materials (audio records, video recordings, and streaming video) and continuing resources/serials.
Update and revise cataloging procedures in department: develop and design templates for standardize and improve workflow in cataloging operations.
Provide opportunities for students to use the library for class-relate research, individual investigation, independent reading, and personal inquiry.
Redesign and repair periodical and CD-ROM/DVD center at no cost.

Prepare your university librarian resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your university librarian 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 university librarian resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable university librarian resume templates

Build a professional university librarian 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 university librarian resume.