Name: Alison

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Vancouver, BC

What is your favorite summer activity? Or your favourite Halifax activity?

Swimming! I’ve signed up to complete the Big Swim this summer and will be swimming from PEI to NB on July 23 in an effort to raise money for Brigadoon Village (a summer camp in Nova Scotia for children living with chronic illnesses). As I’m originally from Vancouver, BC this is also a great event to explore the Maritimes and the Atlantic Ocean! To prepare for the event, I’ve been swimming at the Dalplex and Long Lake. When I’m not in the water, some other Halifax activities that I enjoy are going to brewery patios and Dee Dee’s ice cream in the North End or enjoying a walk by the harbour.

What internship are you affiliated with?

I am one of the multidisciplinary interns for Dalhousie Libraries.

What brought you to the MI program at Dal?

As like many other people, the pandemic presented a lot of new challenges and opportunities. It made me reflect on my career, education, and personal life and one of the outcomes of this reflection was the decision to go back to school. I wasn’t 100% sure what direction that decision would take me, but after doing some research and conducting a few informational interviews with people in my network that worked in the librarianship and information management field, I felt confident that it would be a good fit for me. I am curious by nature, enjoy problem-solving, and thoroughly believe in the mandates of libraries and the broader merits of access to information – all of which are reflected in the roles of information professionals. After applying to three MI programs, I ultimately chose Dalhousie University because I was attracted to the smaller cohort size and community feeling of the program. I felt that I would be able to connect with the content and my professors more easily, and I liked that the program offered a mix of more traditional librarian classes with alternatives like data science and data management. Halifax had also been on my list of places to visit for a long time, so the opportunity to move here was exciting!

What drew you to the internship opportunity at the Dal Libraries?

In our first week of the MI program, we had a couple of second-year students talk to our class about their experiences as an intern. I really enjoyed hearing from them and thought that the internship would be an amazing way to gain professional experience in a supportive environment. I made a mental note to apply for the position when the time came! Flash forward to now, and I’m extremely grateful for the chance to work at the Dal Libraries this summer. Learning about theory and doing coursework is imperative, but applying this knowledge in the real world is a great way to broaden your understanding, ask questions, and apply context.

What’s your educational background?

I have a BA in English and Psychology from Simon Fraser University and certificates in Film Arts and Creative Writing. My educational background led me to work as an editorial intern and assistant in my first few years post-graduation and I eventually transitioned into communications and marketing for the higher education and non-profit sectors. Believe it or not, there are a lot of similarities between communications and library work! They both require the creation, organization, distribution, and management of information and I’ve enjoyed being able to use some of these transferrable skills in my internship role thus far.

What projects have you worked on so far during your internship?

Some of the projects that I have worked on during my internship so far include reviewing Brightspace instructional modules, video tutorials, and webpages for errors and optimal user experience, creating marketing materials for new library resources, attending professional development sessions, editing LibGuides, and assisting with course assessments. My favourite part of the internship role so far has been answering reference questions through both the Killam and Sexton library email accounts. I love opening a new email and not knowing exactly what to expect. The questions and requests of the library patrons are highly varied, and I’ve helped people with everything from finding a digitally archived microfilm from the 1800s to clarifying the benefits and shortcomings of using Chat GPT for research. The multidisciplinary role has allowed me to learn about disciplines across Dalhousie and throughout three diverse campuses – which is a really unique experience. As the summer progresses, I look forward to working on an upcoming weeding project, creating new video tutorials, and putting together the popular Blind Date with a Book event among many others!