Résumés/cover letters/applications
Top mistakes
Typographical errors and grammatical mistakes in cover letters and résumés. They should be proofed with human eyes.
Desirable Length
The résumé should cover all employment history. One page résumés are discouraged. Organize employment history in reverse chronological order and make sure sentences have parallel construction. Make it very clear where you were employed, for how long, and provide a job description.
Interviewing/Follow-up
Pre-interview
Do your homework. Research the library as much as possible. Study the court’s website and learn about the various offices within the court, not just the library.
Make sure you get the phone number of a contact at the court so that you can call if something goes wrong on the way to the interview, such as an automobile accident.
Dress
Wear your best business attire. The applicant’s appearance should be conservative; dark skirt suit for women; dark suit and tie for men. Women should wear hose, low-heeled pumps with closed toes, very simple jewelry, no perfume.
Attitude
Be alert, courteous, interested, and rigorously punctual. Beyond these, be yourself. Project a positive attitude and disposition. Negativity is not appreciated and may seriously handicap you in the interview. One way to project a positive image is to smile from time to time. You may be asked about problems at your current job but don’t go into detail. Discuss them briefly and in general terms. Answer all questions but keep your answers concise. Do not use slang in the interview.
Project an interest in libraries and traditional library endeavors, such as helping court staff with current awareness through newsletters and technology, and finding sources on different areas of the law. The courts are looking for staff to maintain the library and help with reference and research. Many of the reference questions can require something like detective work. For example, you might be asked to find a source/fact/statistic that is quoted in a brief.
Expect several “canned questions,” such as:
- Describe an accomplishment in your professional or personal life that best demonstrates your initiative.
- Describe how you have been involved in professional organizations or otherwise engaged in professional activities.
- If we were to contact your last two employers, what could they tell us about you?
- What role do you see for technical services in its interaction with public services and the clientele of the library?
- How would you keep users updated on the changing legal research environment? (Good answers: newsletter, classes, internal blog)
Always send a follow-up email or letter/note thanking the person for the interview. Whether this note should be via paper or email is dependent on what format they used to communicate with you. Keep your tone formal and respectful. Immediately after the interview, write down as much as you can remember about the members of the committee (names, titles) and what was said about the job responsibilities. Use this information to personalize the thank you note by expressing interest in specific projects that were mentioned.