Wednesday, July 27, 2011
ArchivesSpace funding
As an Archivist Toolkit user, I'm very excited to hear that the ArchivesSpace project has received development funding. Read more here.
CA Reading List
There is, of course, no way I'm going to read everything on the Certified Archivist exam reading list. A co-worker is trying, but I would implode if I tried. So I decided to start with the SAA Fundamentals Series:
Managing Archival and Manuscript Repositories by Michael J. Kurtz
Arranging and Describing Archives and Manuscripts by Kathleen D. Roe
Selecting and Appraising Archives and Manuscripts by Frank Boles
Providing Reference Services for Archives and Manuscripts by Mary Jo Pugh
Preserving Archives and Manuscripts by Mary Lynn Ritzenthaler
Understanding Archives and Manuscripts by James M. O’Toole & Richard J. Cox
A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology by Richard Pearce-Moses
The Ritzenthaler book isn't on the list, but the 2nd edition is recent and I think it will have good information. Still waiting for my ILL copy, though, and it's a long one, so I may not get around to it. Roe's book was really good for me to read since I don't have a classroom education in archival anything. Instead, four different faculty members with four different approaches have given me varying instructions depending on what project I'm working on. It's no wonder I've been confused. It was refreshing to start with the basics. I asked for, and was granted, a small collection to process on my own from start to finish and I worked my way through Roe and the collection at the same time. Doing so allowed me to develop my own path and reinforce my belief that my department needs a processing manual.
The glossary is a reference, of course. Someone suggested that learning the terms would almost guarantee a pass. Sure, and I'll just memorize the dictionary while I'm at it. I am using it as a companion so I don't feel like an idiot when I read some of the books. It's been good to me.
Several authors reference Terry Cook's What is Past is Prologue and I hope that the history contained in that article will allow me to skip, say, Selected Writings of Sir Hilary Jenkinson which is lurking somewhere behind me as I write this. I'm planning to skip the Dutch Manual, too. If they seem to be essential reading for a pass, then I suppose I'll get to read them when prepping for my next attempt.
I'm currently working on Selecting and Appraising (at home) and Karen Benedict's Ethics and the Archival Profession (during lunch breaks - it's pleasantly concise) which provides an overview of SAA's 1992 Code of Ethics with ample case studies. While the Code was updated in 2005, the case studies still seem to apply.
I've also looked over Providing Reference Services but the information seems to parallel what I learned in library school (my emphases were reference and special collections) and what so I've decided not to worry much about that section. I'm pretty confident in my preservation knowledge as well, but I hope to get to some of those materials before August 24.
Managing Archival and Manuscript Repositories by Michael J. Kurtz
Arranging and Describing Archives and Manuscripts by Kathleen D. Roe
Selecting and Appraising Archives and Manuscripts by Frank Boles
Providing Reference Services for Archives and Manuscripts by Mary Jo Pugh
Preserving Archives and Manuscripts by Mary Lynn Ritzenthaler
Understanding Archives and Manuscripts by James M. O’Toole & Richard J. Cox
A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology by Richard Pearce-Moses
The Ritzenthaler book isn't on the list, but the 2nd edition is recent and I think it will have good information. Still waiting for my ILL copy, though, and it's a long one, so I may not get around to it. Roe's book was really good for me to read since I don't have a classroom education in archival anything. Instead, four different faculty members with four different approaches have given me varying instructions depending on what project I'm working on. It's no wonder I've been confused. It was refreshing to start with the basics. I asked for, and was granted, a small collection to process on my own from start to finish and I worked my way through Roe and the collection at the same time. Doing so allowed me to develop my own path and reinforce my belief that my department needs a processing manual.
The glossary is a reference, of course. Someone suggested that learning the terms would almost guarantee a pass. Sure, and I'll just memorize the dictionary while I'm at it. I am using it as a companion so I don't feel like an idiot when I read some of the books. It's been good to me.
Several authors reference Terry Cook's What is Past is Prologue and I hope that the history contained in that article will allow me to skip, say, Selected Writings of Sir Hilary Jenkinson which is lurking somewhere behind me as I write this. I'm planning to skip the Dutch Manual, too. If they seem to be essential reading for a pass, then I suppose I'll get to read them when prepping for my next attempt.
I'm currently working on Selecting and Appraising (at home) and Karen Benedict's Ethics and the Archival Profession (during lunch breaks - it's pleasantly concise) which provides an overview of SAA's 1992 Code of Ethics with ample case studies. While the Code was updated in 2005, the case studies still seem to apply.
I've also looked over Providing Reference Services but the information seems to parallel what I learned in library school (my emphases were reference and special collections) and what so I've decided not to worry much about that section. I'm pretty confident in my preservation knowledge as well, but I hope to get to some of those materials before August 24.
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Monday, July 25, 2011
The Certified Archivist exam
I'm going to take the CA exam for the first time ever in oh, what is it now? A month? Yep. Just under. This is the first year I'm both eligible and living within a couple of hours of a test site. When I applied, I wasn't convinced I needed or wanted the certification. What does it mean, really? It seems like a lot of people have pondered that very question and I haven't seen any really good answers. I asked co-workers who have the certification and got a few eloquent shrugs. So why am I putting myself through this?
I'll admit, when I first heard about the certification, I was new to my job and had high hopes for moving upward. I thought it could only help to be certified. Four years later, the stars have aligned so that I can actually take the exam and I feel a lot more jaded. I don't need the certification to keep my job and the competition is fierce for the few jobs out there right now. I haven't seen much call for the certification on job postings, though it does appear under preferred qualifications from time to time. I know a lot of people who didn't pass the first or even the second time. The reading list is lengthy. The $50 application fee in and of itself was almost a sufficient deterrent and, if I pass, the $150 certification fee will hurt. But I wrote the check and sent it in because I am looking for a professional position and what if - what if - this is the little thing that pushes my application over the edge? I need that hope and the opportunity to feed that little bit of hope is well worth the study time and the drive to the test site and the application fee.
I'll admit, when I first heard about the certification, I was new to my job and had high hopes for moving upward. I thought it could only help to be certified. Four years later, the stars have aligned so that I can actually take the exam and I feel a lot more jaded. I don't need the certification to keep my job and the competition is fierce for the few jobs out there right now. I haven't seen much call for the certification on job postings, though it does appear under preferred qualifications from time to time. I know a lot of people who didn't pass the first or even the second time. The reading list is lengthy. The $50 application fee in and of itself was almost a sufficient deterrent and, if I pass, the $150 certification fee will hurt. But I wrote the check and sent it in because I am looking for a professional position and what if - what if - this is the little thing that pushes my application over the edge? I need that hope and the opportunity to feed that little bit of hope is well worth the study time and the drive to the test site and the application fee.
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