A Study on the Job Training and Self-Training of the Cataloging and Classification Librarians Working in South Korean Academic Libraries

This study surveys the current status of job training and self-training provided for the cataloging and classification librarians in Korean academic libraries to actively deal with the rapidly changing library environment. Cataloging librarians from 98 universities in South Korea responded to the survey. As a result, 64.3% of the librarians reported that they were trained, and about 43% of them indicated that they had a short training of less than a week. However, all of them emphasized the necessity of job training. The materials used for training were mainly in print. Only 10% of the academic libraries subscribed to journals relating to library work. An overwhelming majority of the academic libraries surveyed provided financial support for staff training. The use of foreign languages and metadata, and job-related library school courses were preferred by the cataloging librarians. In academiclibraries, more organized job-training programs and more support for librarians’ self-training were needed