# much work as a librarian?



## april (Jul 22, 2007)

My fiance (Japanese) and I (Australian) intend to move to America in two years time. He will have a student's visa. By that time I will have finished my qualifications for a librarian.

Anybody want to guess what my chances of getting a job + visa sponsorship as a librarian are?

What is a popular job vacancies website so I can check the need for librarians? Craigslist? Whenever I do a google search the only websites I come up with are from websites that aid people in immigration to America, not the actual websites that American people would use to look for a job.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Hate to be so pessimistic, but your chances of finding a library job with sponsorship probably aren't all that great. A few years ago, getting an MLS (Masters of Library Science) was one of those things that lots of people did to try and make their liberal arts degrees "marketable." So there is no real shortage of librarians.

Add to that the current crummy economy, and you have cities and towns cutting back on public services like libraries. Already there has been a big cut back in opening hours and library budgets as local government budgets are being cut. This has the added disadvantage of making sponsorship of a foreigner next to impossible, as the sponsorship costs the employer a significant amount.

You may want to try checking for job vacancies on the websites of large multinational or US companies. They sometimes hire librarians to keep track of their internal records or reports, research, etc. - but whether they'd be willing to sponsor a newly qualified librarian for a work visa could be a long shot. If you speak decent Japanese, you might have a shot at Japanese companies that have branches or subsidiaries in the US. (Anything to differentiate yourself from the crowd with a skill that isn't common in the US.)

For librarian jobs, just google the term. There are a couple sites - including the ALA (American Library Association) site - that will give you a good idea what sorts of jobs are out there and what kinds of backgrounds they require. 
Cheers,
Bev


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

Your fiance will potentially receive a visa for the duration of his studies and maybe one year working in a study related position.
Fatbrit - do student visas support cohabitation visas and can the partner work?


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

twostep said:


> Your fiance will potentially receive a visa for the duration of his studies and maybe one year working in a study related position.
> Fatbrit - do student visas support cohabitation visas and can the partner work?


If he gets an F1, there's no work possible for a spouse on an F2. And there's no F2 for a "partner". Poster has expectations beyond the probable.


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## april (Jul 22, 2007)

I actually don't have much expectations. Originally I was just going to hang out during the year we are in America and be a full-time leisure specialist. We are budgeting our finances now to allow this to happen. 

But then I thought if I could work, might as well try as I heard Aussies are on their own visa thing and it is easier than other countries. An Aussie friend of mine got a job and work sponsorship within two months of arriving! But that was a couple of years ago.


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

april said:


> I actually don't have much expectations. Originally I was just going to hang out during the year we are in America and be a full-time leisure specialist. We are budgeting our finances now to allow this to happen.
> 
> But then I thought if I could work, might as well try as I heard Aussies are on their own visa thing and it is easier than other countries. An Aussie friend of mine got a job and work sponsorship within two months of arriving! But that was a couple of years ago.


If you're an Aussie, there's the E3--which brings my expectations up considerably. You need a job offer, though!


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

If the husband can come over as a J-1 (assuming he's a "husband" and not a "fiance" by then) and she gets J-2, then she can apply for work authorisation. But J-1 isn't as straightforward as F-1 and he may only be eligible for an F-1 depending on the circumstances.

Either way it's gonna be tricky to get a job in a library, even stacking books. They always seem to have plenty of people who want to work there.


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## april (Jul 22, 2007)

Thanks everyone.

I figure there is no harm trying. Worst case situation is I get to be a lounge lizard for 12 months. (which is actually pretty bad because I enjoy working.)


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

april said:


> Thanks everyone.
> 
> I figure there is no harm trying. Worst case situation is I get to be a lounge lizard for 12 months. (which is actually pretty bad because I enjoy working.)


You need to find out which visa he will be on. F1 and you'll need a job and a visa combined. J1 and the job and the visa are no longer combined -- assuming you're married.


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## synthia (Apr 18, 2007)

If you aren't married, you aren't going to be able to accompany him.

Years ago I worked for an organization that hired a woman with a masters in library science to organize our reference library. She was thrilled with her pay, which was slightly above that of a secretary with a couple of years experience, because her government jobs hadn't paid as well. When we had to make cutbacks, her job was eliminated. Now, all the reference materials are available on line, so even a company that was deep in funds would have no use for a librarian.

Librarians tend to make good computer programmers, though, if you can find a job where they will train you.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

If you're more interested in keeping busy than in making money while you're over there, most public libraries in the US are desperate for volunteers. You might not be doing anything more exciting than re-shelving books, but with library training, they'd probably be happy to put you to work.

They wouldn't be able to pay you - but it's a GREAT way to meet people and get very integrated into whatever community you wind up in.
Cheers,
Bev


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