Welcome to our GLAMR Professional Profile for April 2018.

This month we’d like to introduce Michael Hawks!

Like many of us, Michael came to librarianship in a very round about sort of way.  Since graduating from Curtin University in 2013, his career has developed in leaps and bounds.   Known and loved by all at QUT library for his kindness and cheer (and his unparalleled ability to bake something utterly fabulous for staff morning teas at a moments notice!), Michael has truly found his calling in GLAMR.

What lead to you librarianship and where has your career taken you so far?

Like so many things, the road to librarianship began with my Mum. After graduating with an Honours degree in English and Communications, I was fairly aimless and unsure about what I wanted the next steps to be – and it turns out potential employers were less impressed about my ability to write an Honours thesis about Survivor than I had planned. Then one day my Mum turned to me and said “I met a librarian today. I think you could do that” and something just clicked in my brain, and 2 weeks later I was enrolled in the Graduate Diploma at Curtin University. After graduating, I moved to Brisbane to take on the 2014 QULOC Graduate Librarian program, and then started at QUT in 2015. I mainly live in the Law Library, but I’m currently acting as a Liaison Librarian in the Science and Engineering team.

What advice would you give to students and new graduates entering the industry?

To butcher a grossly overused cliché, the GLAMR industry is like an iceberg – there is so much happening beneath the surface that you don’t know until you get started. So my advice would be to just jump in head first, seek out and be open to all the new opportunities that come up for you. There is scope for you to figure out where your professional interests are and really build a career around your interests and skills. Part of that is figuring out what you love, but it is equally as important to pay attention to what you don’t love. But the only way you’re going to figure that out is to delve in and experience it all.

What is your favourite thing about working in GLAMR?

This is a hard question as I have many favourite things about the GLAMR industry and being a part of it. But I think my number one favourite would be the people – GLAMR draws in people from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. I feel like every day I learn something new from the people I work with, both about the information industry but also just different perspectives about the world. I have made so many amazing friends from within the GLAMR sector, which have enriched the experience of working in the field.

You can connect with Michael at @mikeyh177.