Cohort 9 Rocks!

Even more enjoyable than seeing my old hang-out spots at Pitt was meeting my fellow MLIS students (cohort 9 is pictured on left), faculty members, and our SIS librarians.

It was helpful to experience face-to-face classes with Dr. Alman and Dr. Tomer. I also enjoyed learning about the history of the University of Pittsburgh, the Cathedral of Learning, and the library science program from Dr. Biagini. She is the new chair of the department and is very enthusiastic and interesting to listen to.

The guest speakers representing the different types of librarians (academic, archivist, public, school, and special) was a highlight for me. I am still undecided between academic, public, or special libraries, so I am glad there is an individualized option. At least I can rule out archives and school librarian.

Spending time with other MLIS students was definitely the best experience. At Sunday's dinner I enjoyed meeting Amiya, Lori, and Pasha, who all work at the public library in Cleveland. When I travel there, I will need to stop by and visit. Lori Sheetz and Becky also sat nearby and we all had a great time.

I also went out to dinner Monday with Jenny P., which was really fun. We have a lot in common. We went to Peter's Pub - mainly because it was close and we needed a drink. I wish we had more time to go somewhere outside of Oakland (like Station Square, South Side, or even Shadyside), but we both still had so much reading to do and were still working on our group project.

I feel bad for those who didn't get to experience Pittsburgh outside of Oakland. There was an afternoon set aside for exploring the city, but many people used that time to meet with their groups, read, and work on assignments.

Our "hot topic" group presentations were held on the last day. My group (pictured, from left: Laura, Jen P., me, Jillian, Becky, and Sam) worked well together. We were scheduled last, though, and our presentation (as well as others) ran over the 30-minute time limit so we had to stop and then finish after the faculty members visited. I wish we had gotten those over with earlier. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone again in October!