Alternative Spring Break is a noncredit career development program which places interested and motivated graduate students in professional work environments during the week of Spring Break. (Consult the Academic Calendar to look up Spring Break dates.

Experience Professional Life

Approximately 70 students will have an opportunity to experience professional life in libraries and other information centers in Chicago, Washington DC, Central Illinois, St. Louis, or Minneapolis.

At these placements, students can:

• Pursue their fields of interest
• Observe the work of professional staff (job shadowing)
• Work as a volunteer along with professional staff
• Learn new skills
• Create professional partnerships

To Apply

To apply, visit the ASB Moodle site and enroll yourself in ASB.  Then complete the ASB 2012 Application Steps 1 and 2 by October 31st.

Contact

Please contact Roy Brooks, Practicum Coordinator (Telephone 217-333-6202, Email: -rebrooks, at illinois.edu- ) with questions about the application or the program.

 Frequently Asked Questions

Who May Apply?

All graduate students enrolled and in good standing at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, whether on-campus students, LEEP students, or CAS students, may apply.

Where Can I Go?

You can be placed in academic, public, or special libraries, or in museums or archives in Chicago, Washington DC, Central Illinois, St. Louis, or Minneapolis. In your application, you may also suggest a particular location that might be a better fit for your interests and needs.

How Do I Apply?

In the application you are asked to describe your courses, work background, your career interests, and the locations in which you can accept a placement. You are also asked to provide a current resume. The application deadline is November 1st.

How Will I Be Matched With a Host Institution?

Once your application is received, we'll work with GSLIS alums and people in other related professional networks, such as the Special Libraries Association, in the placement cities to match you with an institution based on your interests and preferences.

What Will I Do There?

In the past, students have job-shadowed professionals in all types of libraries. Students worked behind the scenes on a wide variety of week-long projects in cataloging, reference, preservation, digitization and administration, as well as in archives and special collections.  Hosts vary in the degree to which they can provide an experience based more on job-shadowing, versus an experience based more on completing a project. 

Trip Reports written by some of the past ASB student participants are available at the ASB Moodle site, labeled as Shared Trip Reports.  They offer a sampling of the types of experiences that the ASB week can provide.

Will I Earn Academic Credit?

No, the Alternative Spring Break program provides professional experience only, without academic credit. To earn credit for work experience, consider enrolling in LIS591 Practicum. For more information, see the Practicum Guide.

How Many Students Will be Accepted?

Approximately 70 students can be accommodated for Alternative Spring Break.

How Much Will it Cost?

GSLIS may be able to provide stipdends of up to $300 per student, to help cover costs for food, housing, gasoline and/or transportation for students who could not otherwise participate.

When Will I Know if I am Accepted?

You will be informed in November if you are accepted into the Alternative Spring Break program.  In December or January we will contact you with information about a specific placement site, which you can then accept or decline.

Student Comments

• "I was able to see almost everything the library does, ask questions and even try out some activities."
• "I was able to see many of the basics from my classes put into practice, which was very rewarding."
• "My week was equally divided between doing actual work and observing or shadowing others."
• "Of all the experiences though,I felt that meeting and speaking with people was the most beneficial."
• "Going between learning from speaking with staff and learning from working on projects was a fluid, enjoyable process."
• This week gave me an insider's view of what it is like to work in a wonderful library that is part of an important cultural institution."
• "The librarians made the experience engaging, fun, and multifaceted, and got me excited at the prospect of one day working in a similar setting."
• "This program was awesome and gave me one of the most invaluable experiences to augment my formal education."
• I would definitely recommend alternative spring break to others, particularly students who don't have time for an entire practicum but wish to get some exposure to a particular type of workplace."

Selected Past Alternative Spring Break Host Sites

Central Illinois

• Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, Springfield
• Caterpillar, Decatur
• Galesburg Public Library, Galesburg
• Harrisburg District Library, Harrisburg
• Heartland Community College Library, Normal
• Helen Matthes Library, Effingham
• Illinois State University, Milner Library, Normal
• Illinois Wesleyan University Library, Bloomington
• Indian Prairie Public Library, Darien
• Moline Public Library, Moline
• Western Illinois University Libraries, Macomb

Chicago

• Abbott Laboratories
• Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum
• American Bar Association, Legal Technology Resource Center
• ALA Internships
• Art Institute of Chicago
• Association of College and Research Libraries
• Chicago Association of Law Libraries
• Chicago Botanic Garden
• Chicago History Museum
• Chicago-Kent College of Law
• Chicago Public Library
• College of DuPage Library
• Columbia College Chicago, Center for Book & Paper Arts
• Columbia College Chicago Library
• Deerfield Public Library
• Elmhurst College Library
• Field Museum Library
• Hinsdale Public Library
• The History Makers
• Internationl Academy of Design & Technology Library
• Loyola University Library
• Metropolitan Library System
• Morton Arboretum Library
• Mount Prospect Public Library
• Naperville Public Library
• National Archives & Records Administration, Great Lakes Region
• National Louis University Library
• Newberry Library
• Niles Public Library
• Prritzker Legal Research Center, Northwestern University
• Pritzker Military Library
• Prospect Heights Public Library District
• Shedd Aquarium
• University of Chicago Libraries
• University of Illinois at Chicago, Library of the Health Sciences

Minneapolis

• Hennepin County Library (Minneapolis Public)
• Minneapolis Community & Technical College
• U of Minnesota, Charles Babbage Institute
• U of Minnesota, Children's Literature Research Collections
• U of Minnesota, Immigration Research History Center

St. Louis

• Lewis & Clark Library System, Edwardsville IL
• Missouri Historical Society Library and Archives, St. Louis
• O'Fallon Public Library
• Washington University School of Medicine Library
• Webster University Library

Washington, DC

• American University LIbrary
• Fairfax County Public Schools
• Folger Shakespeare Library
• George Washington University Library
• Georgetown University Library
• Jefferson Library, Charlottesville VA
• Law Library of Congress
• Library of Congress, Asian Division
• Library of Congress, Collections (Preservation)
• Library of Congress, Digital Reference Team
• Library of Congress, Serial and Government Publications
• National Library of Medicine
• National Institutes of Health Library
• National Archives and Records Administration
• The Phillips Collection Library
• Smithsonian Institution Libraries
• U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum Library
• Wiley Rein Law Library

Other Locations

• California College of the Arts, San Francisco
• Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
• County of Los Angeles Public Library
• Jefferson-Madison Regional Library, Charlottesville, VA
• LDS Church Library, Salt Lake City
• Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR
• Portland State University Library, Portland, OR
• Purdue University Library, West Lafayette, IN
• University of New Mexico Library, Albuquerque