Sample Law Librarian Resume

Do you need to update or write a resume to apply for a job as a law librarian? Your resume is a formal document used to apply for a job that includes a description of your education, experience, skills, and accomplishments.

This article covers the most important information and provides you with a sample law librarian resume, how to write an effective one, what to include, and what to remove.

Remember that your resume offers a window into your professional history. Your resume is your license and one of the essential documents in your job search, providing a crucial first impression on a hiring manager.

Law Librarian

Most law librarians work for law schools or law societies and are responsible for providing support to library patrons.

Their duties include assisting with research, managing library operations, monitoring budgets, overseeing technical services, and coordinating library assistants.

Basic job requirements that can be seen on a sample law librarian resume are legal knowledge, information management expertise, problem-solving orientation, research skills, customer service, and computer skills.

A master’s degree in information science can be seen on most effective resumes, and many positions may also require a law degree.

Law librarians are highly trained professionals who work with legal professionals, judges, and lawyers to provide access to legal information.

They help lawyers research cases, write briefs, and prepare for trial, providing the information and assistance they need to do their jobs well. 

Here are some tips and examples to help you write a compelling law librarian resume that will set you apart from others.

How To Write A Law Librarian Resume

Law is thus a specialized field with its terminology and rules, and law librarians must have extensive knowledge of legal sources and be able to research through them effectively.

They must also be extremely detail-oriented and organized, as they are often tasked with creating highly complex reference materials that users must easily navigate.

Since most law libraries collect information from various sources, they must be able to arrange large amounts of data into concise and clear content.

1. Write Persuasive Bullet Points

Using strong and compelling language is the best way to make your resume stand out. Rather than saying that you “managed a law library staff,” you might say that you “managed a law library staff of six, ensuring the accurate and timely processing of over 100,000 items annually, resulting in a 98% increase rate.”

Your next point should be more specific and clearly represent what you accomplished and the results of your work. It also gives your employee a quantifiable result (98% accuracy rate).

2. Identify And Include Relevant Keywords

When you apply for a law librarian job, your resume will likely be scanned by an applicant tracking system (ATS) for specific keywords. 

These programs search for keywords related to the job, such as “legal research” or “evidence,” to determine if your experience is relevant to the position. The ATS may drop your application if you don’t have enough relevant keywords in your resume.

To increase your chances of recommendation in an interview, engage this common law librarian phrases and keywords as a start-up point for creating your resume:

• Law
• Legal research
• Legal writing
• Information literacy
• Libraries
• Legal advice
• LexisNexis
• Rhetoric
• Legal documents
• Editing
• Higher education
• Literature
• Library instruction
• Legal information
• Community Outreach
• Government

Read also: Personal development (Adding value to yourself).

3. Show Off Your Technical Skills

Law librarians must be adept at using technology because they often need to manage extensive digital collections of legal documents. 

They must also be able to use specific software programs such as Westlaw and LexisNexis to conduct legal research. So, if you have experience with any of these programs, list them in the technical skills section.

Sample Law Librarian Resume Description

• Conducted business/legal references and surveys for attorneys and support staff members in 5 different offices.
• Provided timely, in-depth searches of print and online legal/health information at the request of attorneys working in the firm’s medical malpractice and hospital administration departments.
• Monitored and advised library/executive/training committees on brand new electronic databases and related issues.
• Oversaw and represented the company on all computer database vendor activities – product demonstrations, password management, billing, tracking usage patterns to control costs, equipment troubleshooting, user education, and training.
• Trained lawyers and assistants for research activities and cost containment.
• Negotiated vendor contracts, including fixed rates for Westlaw and Lexis.
• Curated library sections containing in-house legal research, publisher forms on CD, ownership forms, and expert testimony.

Note: Your past job description may not contain the following accomplishments. However, this gives you a guide to what is expected of a competent law librarian.

Also read: Are You Being Sued: Complete Guide To Handling A Business lawsuit

Remember The Basics

There are a few basic ideas and rules to remember when compiling a resume.

Make Sure Your Resume Is Easy To Read And Scan

You can improve your resume to make it look more professional in several ways:

• Use a generally accepted font type and size throughout the document.
• Use the left alignment option and limit the use of bold, italics, and capital letters.
• Use bullet points instead of paragraphs to outline your experiences.
• Use numerals for numbers and leave some blank space on the page to make the document easier to read.

Be Brief

There is no required number of words or length of a resume. However, a one-page resume is generally the best option, especially if you are a recent graduate or have limited work experience.

If you must go through one page, focus on the most relevant and recent experiences. You generally want to be brief and get your point across quickly.

Check Your Work

When you Proofread your resume, you make sure it looks its best. When you are careful, you can easily correct spelling errors, punctuation errors, and grammatical errors.

You can have someone else proofread your resume, as they can pick up mistakes you may have missed.

Read also: Law School Reference Letter

Use A Summary

When you use a resume summary statement, you introduce yourself to a potential employer, and it can help you clarify your prowess, what your best skills are, and what you’re looking for in your next job.

When written professionally, a summary can be a valuable addition to your resume and help capture the interest and attention of a recruiter or hiring manager.

Conclusion

This article provides guidelines for creating a resume for a law librarian position. It also provides you with a sample law librarian resume. 

All required information for this position is provided in this sample resume. If you are the best at editing, you can edit it and create your unique resume. Or you can read to understand the guidelines and apply them to yours.