The time has come for Minzah’s placement to wrap up. Here’s what she has to say about her last week and her placement…
My placement has come to an end! I have learnt so much over the three weeks and gained a lot of knowledge during my time here. I would like to thank the Knowledge and Information Management team at Urbis for helping me throughout my professional development. Before commencing my placement I had expectations of what I may learn, and believe me I have far exceeded them.
During my time at Urbis I was able to develop capabilities of reflective analytical practice and socially and culturally responsible practice specific to Urbis. With these skills I was able to evaluate services offered by Urbis, in relation to its clientele; observe and evaluate the activates, processes and systems which support the organisation’s functions; observe the range of resources within the organisation and their relationship to the services offered; and finally evaluate the strategies employed to assess the effectiveness of the organisations services and programs.
What I most enjoyed from working Urbis was the ability to explore the many different sides of Knowledge & Information Management. I was able to examine how the Knowledge and Information Management team is broken down into sections, such as library staff, database staff and GIS.
I undertook many tasks throughout my time at Urbis and the great thing was each task varied day-to-day. From doing desk-circulation work; to creating a library induction for podcasting using MediaWiki. I was also given the opportunity to go through the process of cataloging
I spent a lot of time with Katy Li (library technician), which gave me an insight of the daily activities commenced in the K&IM team. She helped me understand the cataloguing system whilst explaining the two types (electronic and hardcopy), with the help of Katy I was able to observe and participate in management processes which helped me in understanding how data is managed and maintained at Urbis.
Finally many students think placement involves sitting in front of you desk and typing away, well this maybe right depending on where you do it. Fortunately for me I was given hands-on experience, with the opportunity to visit the Athenaeum Library, Bureau of Metrology Library and the State Library. My experience at Urbis has been excellent, I am now able to explore future career opportunities and asses my professional development. Thanks Jill for this fantastic opportunity
Minzah
We both agree that her experience has really come together and that her placement at Urbis has benefited her learning with regards to what happens in a private corporate library. I look forward to posting another blog as Minzah progresses in her career. And who knows, our collaboration, and that with my other students, may evolve into some research down the track.
Thanks again Minzah.
