Top 5 reasons MLIS students should attend the NJLA Conference 2019

1. Networking: It’s been drilled into us, networking is an important key to professional success.  Conference offers oodles of opportunities to network with all types of library and information professionals in one place!  In addition to program sessions, there are lunches, social events, and poster sessions which provide different formats for you to practice your elevator pitch and make all sorts of new connections.  New this year will be opportunities to learn more about NJLA, which offers networking and professional development events throughout the year.

2. Meet IRL: With so many MLIS programs expanding their offerings through online coursework, many of us have classmates and professors with whom we’ve forged great relationships, albeit virtually.  Conference is a great place to meet in-person! Check in with your university’s ALA and ACRL student chapters or with your MLIS program director and inquire about plans for a student meet-up.  

3. Find out more about what’s new and interesting in the library world across the state and beyond:  Even if you’ve been actively working in a library as an MLIS student, it’s important to see the practical side of what’s happening in libraries, both the innovations and the challenges, to supplement all of that theory we get in class.

4. It’s a learning buffet: At Conference, you’ll find sessions on topics of importance to academic, public, and school librarians.  Whether you are interested in emerging technologies, library instruction, collection development, children’s programming, community outreach, or digital collections there will be sessions for you.  It’s all here; sample away!

5. Kick back and relax: Conference room rates in the NJLA block are $79 per night and extend into the following weekend.  Enjoy some R&R in AC after you’ve maxed out on all things Library. You deserve it!

And this might be a good time to remind all MLIS students that you can join both NJLA and ALA for one low price through the ALA’s Joint Student Membership program, giving you access to networking and professional development opportunities in your state and on a national level.

Lisa Thornton is recent Rutgers MI grad (Jan 2019) and member of the Conference Committee.  She has attended several previous Conferences as a paraprofessional and most recently as an MI student.