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

What is a youth services librarian and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Kerol Harrod

Contrary to popular belief, librarians do more than silence people. They help match patrons to books that they will love, provide additional services like computer education, and organize programming for the library. Youth services librarians have an especially important job because they help foster a love of reading among young people.

Youth services librarians can work with very young children just entering the wonderful world of books, teenagers, and every child in-between. They help maintain the library's collections with an eye towards what kids are interested in particularly. They also help lead fun events to get youth excited about the library, such as partnering with local schools or hosting storytime.

Many librarians think that youth services librarians have the best job in the library since they get to have fun with children all day. However, the job is not all fun and games. Youth services librarians do a lot of work and need to put in a lot of effort before getting to their position. In fact, many have master's degrees in library science.

What general advice would you give to a youth services librarian?

Kerol Harrod

Lecturer, School of Library and Information Studies, Texas Woman’s University, Texas Woman's University

Much of what I would advise involves just sticking to the basics. Show up to work on time. Have a good attitude and a growth mindset. Don't complain about menial tasks, and always be looking to learn the skills of the next position above you. I started out as the transit driver in my library system, loading and unloading boxes of books that circulated among the different library branches. I worked my way up, and now I am teaching graduate students how to become librarians. Put in the time and do the work. Networking is a huge part of success, so it's important to maintain good connections with co-workers, former professors, and fellow librarians. Finally, consider establishing a mentorship with a successful, trusted colleague who has experience in the position you want to attain. Personal connections go a long way.

ScoreYouth Services LibrarianUS Average

Salary

3.9

Avg. Salary $49,971

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 4.83%

Black or African American 6.31%

Hispanic or Latino 7.69%

Unknown 3.58%

White 77.27%

Gender

female 72.94%

male 27.06%

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 youth services librarian

Explore youth services librarian education requirements

Most common youth services librarian degrees

Bachelor's

56.1 %

Master's

23.5 %

Associate

8.9 %

Start to develop specific youth services librarian skills

Skills	Percentages
Social Work	19.10%
Mental Health	16.31%
Community Outreach	7.25%
Library Services	5.73%
Collection Development	5.07%

Complete relevant youth services librarian training and internships

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

Research youth services librarian duties and responsibilities

Manage integrated library system including OPAC, serials control, cataloging and acquisitions.
Cataloge books using OCLC database.
Cataloge printed and non-print materials with OCLC.
Reorganize the entire children's picture book and fiction collections.

Prepare your youth services librarian resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your youth services 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 youth services 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 youth services librarian resume templates

Build a professional youth services 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 youth services librarian resume.

Apply for youth services librarian jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a youth services librarian job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do youth services librarians rate their job?

-/5

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1 star

Youth services librarian reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2020

Pros

I'm an academic librarian, so helping students learn about information and research, teaching classes about same, and the intellectual aspect of working with information access around colleagues who are smart and kind. I've also been a teacher and a sales and marketing executive, but librarianship is by far my most rewarding career.

Cons

The pay. The stereotypes. The people who ask, "do they even still have libraries"?