Don't get me wrong, I believe whole-heartedly in self development. I just don't think it is worth going down the CILIP chartership model. It maybe because I came to librarianship through the back door. I was first an Information Assistant in a business before I did the Masters degree in Library and Information Science.
I did the Masters degree because it proved my willingness to learn, to develop and grow. I will have the qualification forever and no-one can take it away from me.
Chartership on the other hand is a whole other kettle of fish. You do the learning, the hard work and are rewarded with Chartership - that is dependant on CILIP and paying their fees.
What happens if I take a year out go travelling and don't pay the exorbitant fees? I lose chartership - and then you have to start all over again.
What happens if I go redundant, get a lower paid job and can't pay the exorbitant fees? Yep you guessed it. I lose chartership - and then have to start all over again.
How is that fair? I would rather do a PHd which shows my ability while being forever mine. I am continually learning and developing and resent paying an extroadinary amount of money just to prove it. My record should stand as it is. I can prove my capabilities and I can get good references as a result. This should be enough and luckily for me, for most employers (including my current one) - it is.
I don't subscribe to CILIP. I have done in the past but only because my employer paid at the time. The problem was that the only thing I could see that was beneficial was the magazine but even then most of the time the articles were irrelevant for the sectors I was in.
You could argue that they campaign for better pay and conditions - but do they? They themselves say they are not a trade union. So what power do they actually have? If they were a trade union with bargaining power - I would certainly join. But for a trade union's poorer cousin - I don't think so. I can't afford it and I don't think it is worth losing a few nights out to pay for the subscription - there are far more important things to spend my money on. For example that web design course - or that presentation skills course I went on.
So I ask - what did CILIP ever do for us?
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1 comment:
I agree with you wholeheartedly. CILIP membership is a complete waste of money. The only reason for being a member of the old LA was the vacancies list and that is freely available on the Web.
Like you I stopped being a member when I changed jobs and my new employer no longer paid the fees for me.
CILIP does nothing for Librarian's pay & conditions, CF the SOA who will not run ads for jobs with poor pay & conditions.
If all information professionals stopped paying them so much money they might decide they actually had to do something to persuade people to join.
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