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The Library & Information Science Professional's Career Development Center |
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Benefiting From Your Academic Library Job |
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It’s rare to encounter an applicant who hasn’t researched salary. But what about benefits? Employment benefits like health care, retirement, or tuition reimbursements can be just as important as salary when considering a prospective library job. I’ve spent my library career in academic law libraries, working for both public and private universities. While you won’t become a millionaire working for an academic library, universities are generally known for their good benefits. You can expect to find some benefits – like retirement plans and health care coverage – at any institute of higher education, from the tiniest community college to the largest state university. Other benefits may vary from place to place. No matter what package your academic library employer might offer, benefits are likely to make a significant impact on your quality of life and continuing job satisfaction. It’s even possible for benefits considerations to be the deal-breaker when applying for two equally appealing library positions. So what benefits are generally available at academic libraries? The following list touches on many benefits and offers some questions for consideration. Health Care With health care being such a major concern, it’s fortunate that colleges and universities generally have several options for reliable coverage. You’ll want to get all the details on questions such as:
Retirement Retirement is probably one of the most important benefits your employer offers. You will likely be automatically covered by one of your employer’s retirement plans and have a certain amount of retirement money invested each month by your employer. But there are further considerations, such as:
Time Off All employers are required to offer their employees a certain number of paid days off. This amount of time can vary by employer and by job position. Some of the things you’ll want to find out include:
Insurance Insurance plan options can be used as your primary coverage or to supplement plans you already have in place. Some insurance coverage may be offered at no cost to employees. Academic institutions may offer any combination of these plans:
Flexible Spending Accounts Many colleges and universities offer health care and dependent care reimbursement accounts. These accounts allow to you to make pre-tax contributions to a spending account that you can use for expenses not covered by your normal medical, vision, or dental plans or child care coverage. To have a clear picture of how these accounts work, you’ll need to find out:
Educational Benefits This benefit usually involves tuition coverage for university-level classes. Questions to consider include:
Counseling and Wellness Services Along with tending to the physical and emotional needs of their students, most colleges and universities offer counseling and wellness services to their employees as well. Services to consider include:
Miscellaneous Benefits There’s a whole host of benefits that can vary from institution to institution. Sometimes these benefits aren’t promoted to employees as well as they should be, so it pays to ask around. Occasionally universities host “benefits fairs” with booths and information on every possible benefit associated with the university. Besides asking long-time employees, these types of events can be great sources of information on the more elusive benefits. Some interesting miscellaneous benefits I’ve encountered include:
Getting Oriented With so many options to consider, it’s not surprising that many new librarians feel confused and overwhelmed when it comes to benefits. I certainly did when I started my career. Before you even initiate contact with a potential college or university employer, you can find a wealth of benefits information on the institution’s human resources website. It’s definitely worth checking out the HR site before going in for an interview. You’ll likely find that the high points of the major benefit areas – like health care and retirement – will be at least touched upon during your job interview. While the job interview certainly isn’t the place to ferret out the details of bookstore discounts or deals on laptops, it is appropriate to ask for a general overview of health care and retirement benefits if this is not covered in the interview. Often there will be a session during the interview just to cover these issues. Once you’ve landed the job, you can really get down to the details. Most colleges and universities provide benefits orientation programs that can last from an hour to a half day. Co-workers are often more than happy to share their experiences – good and bad – with the organization’s benefits. Annual benefits fairs can be the place to ask about some of the more “hidden” benefits of university employment. Tackling the Paperwork Nothing can prepare you for the mountain of paperwork you’ll face. It’s enough to make you want to reconsider trying to use your benefits. Who needs health care or a retirement plan anyway? Don’t let the amount of paperwork shock you into inaction – there are deadlines to meet to sign up for most benefits. Your choices won’t be set in stone, but you’ll have to take care of all the initial paperwork in a timely fashion. When you do want to make a change to a major benefit package, you’ll have to wait until open enrollment – the HR equivalent of drop and add – so it’s a good idea to make careful decisions the first time around. Navigating the sea of benefits offered at colleges and universities can be a challenge. But the more you know, the better you’ll be able to take advantage of the benefits your employer has to offer. Amy Burchfield works as the Access and Faculty Services Librarian at the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. Her previous library positions were at the Georgetown University Law Center and The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. Article published Mar 2008 Disclaimer: The ideas expressed in LIScareer articles are those of their respective authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the LIScareer editors.
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Page last updated
02/27/2008
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