The need for a librarian outside the library is very rarely an emergency. I don’t know that anyone has ever, in a fit of panic, called out, “is there a librarian in the audience?” Usually, I find my self talking to strangers about library resources when a bit of small talk turns into a library question or when I overhear a conversation and find myself interjecting with just the right resource to help solve the problem.
My most recent librarian-in-the-wild interaction was at a bookstore in Tulsa. A gentleman was looking for a study guide that the store didn’t have – it didn’t even seem like it could be ordered. He was frustrated and the bookseller was apologetic. Of course, I, nearby nosey librarian, swooped in!
I started the conversation with “I’m a librarian” then explained about our online resource “Learning Express” and how it might be just the thing the man was looking for. We talked about his local library and how it likely has the same resource. All left the aisle a little less frustrated and apologetic than before. Hooray!
If you’ve been reading this part of The Paper for any length of time, you know that Learning Express is my favorite resource to promote. It is incredibly robust and useful! It has study guides and practice tests for every standardized test I know of any, as I discovered in the above interaction, many I don’t know about.
For job-seekers, it has resume-building tools, guides to help prepare for certification exams in many fields like plumbing, electrical, police, fire, medical, and real estate, and a partnership with Indeed so you can do your job search within Learning Express itself. There’s even an app! (search “EBSCO LearningExpress” to find it more easily)
As always, if you need help with this or any other resource we have, please let us know.