Megan Fitzgibbons

Librarian

Innovation Librarian, Centre for Education Futures, University of Western Australia

Education

• BA (History/Linguistics), Colorado College, 2004
• MLIS Dalhousie University, 2007

Career Path

I gained work experience in academic libraries during my undergraduate and graduate studies, but it took six months, countless job applications, and a handful of interviews before I landed a job. I was fortunate to get a tenure-track position as a liaison librarian at McGill University. I spent an incredibly busy and fulfilling 5 years there in the Humanities & Social Sciences Library and Education Library. After moving to Perth, Australia, I became a librarian at the University of Western Australia (UWA). During my three years there, I had several roles, particularly in the Law Library and in various teaching and learning initiatives. I now live in Japan, but am continuing to work remotely as Innovation Librarian for UWA’s Centre for Education Futures. 

Information Management in Action

Somewhat unusually, I entered the MLIS program directly after finishing my undergraduate degree. I knew that I was interested in librarianship, but I didn’t know how that might play out in terms of employment. The MLIS degree opened up a rewarding career that I feel I can take in new directions in the future.  The connections that I made at Dalhousie have also had a great impact on my personal and professional life. In a lot of ways, I now feel that librarianship is a part of my identity rather than just my job.

Last words

The MLIS program at Dal gave me a foundational understanding of the profession that has served me well in academic librarianship. The coursework was good, but I now recognize that the most important outcomes were in the overall program of professional preparation—networking, engagement with issues in the field, and values of librarianship.