I was recently intrigued by a blog post from a colleague and friend, Tom Avery, titled Bachelor of Applied Science – majoring in Information and Library Studies, (I just had to click on it, it’s what I’m trying to do mysefl!)
I found I had more to say than what a reasonable amount of comment filled form would allow. Example A here.
Tom asks,
What have you studied, and how do you integrate that in with your work? Were you able to study full-time, or study part-time and work full-time, like I had to?
My fuller answer to Tom’s pondering is this:
I have studied Media and Education at Vic and attempted Geography. I enrolled in eight papers and completed just two in total after seven or so months with them. I wouldn’t say it was a waste of time or money as I had an appropriate experience of student life there. Sort of. I felt old going to Uni at 20. Scoff if you like, but I did. That’s how I felt. I would like to continue Media studies one day, as well as Education. Maybe even one day get a degree in them! But that’s something for another day.
Now seeing as I only completed those two non-library papers, I don’t find I can integrate much media theory into my daily work. I do on the other hand put into direct practice a lot of what I learn and have learnt through studying library science and information management.
How do you integrate your study with your work?
Well, when I am given an assignment, I look for a project at work or something that I’d like to do, and put my assignment effort into helping that project along, effectively always looking to kill two birds with one stone. Last year, together with a colleague, I wrote a proposal for work. It took us quite a while (the better part of a year), but we wrote it. I had an assignment last semester that involved writing a business plan. Because of my work on that proposal, I knocked the bolts of that assignment out in one night. Damn I was proud of myself!
My advice to those studying is always look to knock out two birds with one stone – an assignment, and something productive and beneficial for your workplace.
Were you able to study full-time or study part-time and work full-time like I had to?
I would like to say that I have had the luxury of the option.
After having worked in a library for 6 months full-time, I enrolled in full-time study without a student loan. That, I am proud of. My plan was to get full-time work over the summer to earn enough money to pay for the next year’s worth of papers.
So I tried full-time study, but I really didn’t enjoy it. I didn’t get into the student lifestyle. I had a strange job at the time that required me to be awake, alert, physically active and driving from 3am-6am 6 days a week; not very conducive to a student lifestyle. For as long as I’ve been out of school I’ve really enjoyed throwing myself into work. I think the pull of actually working in a library and helping in any way was just too much of a call for me to not answer straight away. I’m very impatient like that.
When I enrolled at Vic, it was with the intention to do a degree then go onto a Masters in Library and Information Management. Yeah… I couldn’t wait it out that long. I wanted to be in a library N. O. W !
With my two enrolled papers at Vic, I kept working part-time in the library. Somewhere along the line I decided that this job was winning out over the study and there had to be something in that. Frankly I was far more interested in doing the most in my job than I was with my studies. I changed tack, quit Uni and enrolled in a paper towards the Level 5 information and library studies diploma with the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand.
I credit the staff at that first workplace of mine with inspiring me to start studying library science
Amongst other things in my comment on Tom’s lovely post, I said I wouldn’t do anything differently if I was going to live my life again. And I really wouldn’t. Experiences do make you the person you are today.
Big smiles
