LSS Certification

LSSC: an Opportunity

In January, 2010, library support staff across America had something new to consider for their career plans: Library Support Staff Certification. LSSC is a program sponsored by ALA that gives all of us support staffers the ability to demonstrate definitively our skills, knowledge, and commitment to the field. The idea is that LSSC will lead to better salaries, better jobs for support staffers, and better morale. Hopefully, we'll also learn something along the way. Check out the ALA website here for more information and to sign up! 

If you're not sure about LSSC, here are some at-a-glance benefits of this particular program:

1. It's a fantastic value. 

The cost for LSSC is $350 if you decide not to take one of the optional LSSC-certified courses. That's it! For the price of a new smartphone, you could have a resume builder, leverage in compensation discussions, and tangible proof of your skills in the workplace. What a bargain, huh? 

Of course, not everyone has a spare $350 dollars lying around, so SSD regularly offers scholarships that can be applied towards the cost of certification. And, if you're lucky enough to work for a library with a budget for staff development, they can often help with the cost as well. ALA even maintains a page with more ideas for paying for LSSC here. So if you're worried about the cost, you have many options to help.

2. It can breath new life into your career.

Sometimes, support staffers can find themselves a little bit boxed in during the course of their careers. Certification offers a chance to cut your way out of many boxes. Unlike in-house training, an LSS Certificate means that you have met a national standard of education, so you will be better prepared for opportunities for advancement anywhere. The better prepared you are, the more likely it is that you'll be ready when the time comes to move up to the next level.

3. It will help you be the best you can be. 

Everybody wants to do a good job, and support staffers have an essential role in libraries. LSSC can take your work to the next level. Having the expertise and knowledge needed to get certified will make you the most effective you can be in your workplace, which is good for you, your boss, your colleagues, and libraries across the state. The better our service can be, the easier it will be for all of us to meet the needs of our communities and stay relevant. 

4. It can supplement your other degrees and certifications.

Any degree shows that you have good communication skills, a foundation of knowledge, and that you  know how to learn. These are all important factors in getting, keeping, and performing in a library job. Often, though, we have degrees and credentials that are only tangentially related to library work. LSSC can fill that gap beautifully, and spell out to employers with no uncertainty that you have what it takes to be a valuable member of a library's staff. 

LSSC could go a long way toward reaching your individual and our collective goals. If you have questions we can help answer, drop us a line at ssd@olaweb.org, or else you can see ALA's page about LSSC by clicking here.