Out now: Our book on how to work abroad as a librarian!

We expanded our ALA presentation into an actual book, which is now available!

Taking Your MLIS Abroad: Getting and Succeeding in an International Library Job

Our book is published by Libraries Unlimited, a division of ABC-CLIO. Yes folks, this is an actual scholarly publication, with professional copy editing, an index, CIP data...all the things you want in a vocational guidance monograph! It's available directly through ABC-CLIO, amazon.com, and all your favorite library vendors/book wholesalers.

Besides drawing on our personal experiences working in Fiji and the United Arab Emirates, we surveyed 39 librarians who have worked in 29 countries on six continents We heard from other academic librarians, as well as school librarians, Fulbright scholars, special collections librarians, law librarians, health science librarians, and librarians in government agency and NGO placements. They shared their career advice, stories of culture shock and adjusting to a new country, and advice for future international librarians.

As a sneak peak, here's the Table of Contents:

1: Why Work Abroad? Myths and Reality

2: Is Working Abroad for You? How to Assess Yourself Honestly

3: How to Find Foreign Jobs

4: The Application Process

5: Winning the Interview: What's Different, and What the Panel Needs to See

6: The Job Offer and Getting Your Work Visa

7: Before You Move

8: Your Housing and Transportation: Apartment Finding, Furnishing Allowances, and Getting to and from Work

9: Banks, Money, Foreign Exchange and Taxes

10: Working Abroad while Married: Care and Upkeep of the “Trailing Spouse”

11: Expat Parenting, School, and Nannies

12: Healthcare Overseas

13: Your New Workplace: How Your Library Might Differ from American Ones

14: Recognizing and Dealing with Culture Shock

15: Keeping in Touch and Combating Loneliness

16: Expat Social Life: Making Friends, Dating, and the Quest for Decent Pizza

17: Surviving Worst Case Scenarios, Part 1: Crime, Natural Disasters, and Tropical Diseases

18: Surviving Worst Case Scenarios, Part 2: Quitting before the End of Your Contract

19: Returning Home: Leaving Your Host Country at the End of Your Contract

20: What We Wish We'd Known Before, and What We Learned from Working Abroad

If you're a PhD looking to escape the adjunct world via full time employment at a foreign university, about 85-90% of this book is applicable to you. You can skip over the library parts, you won't hurt our feelings.