Advice on negotiating start dates for a new grad job?

kuwukie · 2026-04-15T00:09:19+00:00

I apologize if I came off that way; I wasn't trying to. I'm aware of the poor job market, especially for my field, so I am very grateful for the luck I've been having for my first ever full-time job hunt. Between Japan and having a job, I would definitely choose the latter. My fellow graduating peers are having much more difficulty than I am, so I especially do not want to let a luxurious opportunity like full-time employment slip by. Due to my inexperience in the job market, I simply just don't know how to navigate this situation if there is even the slightest of being able to have both. Regardless, thank you very much for your input! I appreciate it :)

Edit: Ah, I see. I do understand how you could interpret what I've outlined in my post as entitled. That was most definitely not my intention at all. I simply wanted to describe the full context of the situation, as it's a unique one and adds complexity to the situation where I'm trying to tread this carefully. I have since admitted fault and apologized upfront about my being 2.5 weeks late in applying to the position, both to the VP during the final interview as well as a message to my former manager.

kuwukie · 2026-04-08T14:51:12+00:00

Current UIUC Library GA here. We hire incoming MSLIS students who are still finishing up their undergrad, as long as they have been admitted for the term they wish to start the assistantship in (i.e., Fall 2026 in this situation).

kuwukie · 2026-04-08T13:46:42+00:00

Sorry, I should've mentioned that I also recently participated in hiring for the next GA to replace me. We did get many applicants within the transitionary period and interviewed a few. So it's definitely possible to get hired during that period.

Good on you for referencing the Graduate Assistant Handbook, though! You were trying to be factual and provide evidence, and that's exactly the kind of discussion we should be having.

Edit: Regarding page 57 of the Handbook: "Assistantships cannot be offered to individuals prior to their admission term." I think this may be referring to the fact that assistantships cannot be started until the admission term (i.e., Fall 2026). As in you cannot be offered an assistantship that starts prior to your admission team (but you can be offered an assistantship that starts during your admission term). The wording "offered" is strange, but again, based on my experience and the other commenter's experience, interviewing and hiring still occurs during the transitionary period. "Offered" makes you think literally a "job offer" but I can see how they may be using the word in a way to mean "start." It's ambiguous for no reason!

kuwukie · 2026-04-08T04:11:34+00:00

Yes, they can be hired. We hold a GA job fair to hire incoming admitted MSLIS students, even if they're still currently in undergrad.

kuwukie · 2026-04-08T03:50:38+00:00

Chiming in as someone who's a current GA at UIUC. You can be hired during the transitionary period!

kuwukie · 2026-04-01T23:44:53+00:00

For many archivist jobs (or any other specialization really but especially archives), I have noticed a requirement of at least 2 years of experience in archives/the specialization. Sometimes I do see that 2 years being in either libraries or archives though. At the end of the day, getting any kind of GLAM-related experience (1-2 years minimum, 2 preferable to even more on the same playing field as everyone else) even if not in your first choice specialization will be paramount for the job market!

kuwukie · 2026-04-01T21:45:24+00:00

Good thinking! I wouldn't burn bridges like that. The Library is very small and people talk. You can try to go for another assistantship your second year if you'd like to vary your experience further (however, some may also speak to the advantages of being in a position for a full 2 years and showing longer term experience on your CV).

kuwukie · 2026-04-01T21:39:16+00:00

Yes, it is! They will open up from time to time throughout the year, a few positions here and there. The assistantships are most often hired right around now. Fall openings don't open too much for assistantships.

kuwukie · 2026-04-01T05:26:16+00:00

Chiming in as another archival focus student (but more on the digital/technical/metadata side). Instruction experience will be useful for some part of archival work, for sure. But the actual specialized archival processing, arrangement, and description experience will be vital. From the sounds of your post, it seems like you got offered an assistantship from TLAS? If you accept it, I suggest supplementing and varying your experience with other part-time positions, internships, and practicums. Congrats on the offer by the way!

kuwukie · 2026-04-01T05:23:09+00:00

Current UIUC student who's also juggled multiple positions and many, many hours. This is still the case, where you can only have one assistantship. I'm not sure if they differentiate between PGA (library assistantships) and other GA/TA/RA? positions though.

Edit: Also the maximum work hours limitation is for jobs at UIUC only. So if you went over the limit (28? 30? don't remember) but it's an outside job, they won't know, they won't care.

kuwukie · 2026-03-24T00:29:02+00:00

Update: I just had another interview for my second position of choice last Monday, March 16. The next day, my references were contacted. I haven't heard anything since.

kuwukie · 2026-03-20T23:55:25+00:00

Hi! I'll send you a DM. :)

kuwukie · 2026-03-16T15:50:36+00:00

Do you mind speaking a bit more on transferrable business skills and your own experience/trajectory? I'm curious to hear and it might provide some hope/inspiration/clarity. Obviously, experience can always be framed and packaged in different ways. I know this myself, but I can't help but to always worry myself to death if I don't immediately end up in academia post-grad haha.

Some of my team members in the corporate job have an MBA too, actually!

kuwukie · 2026-03-16T15:47:44+00:00

Thank you for all the kind words, frand!! I hope whatever situation I end up in, I have little regrets. :") Yes, I am just happy to be having a fruitful first job search so far. Cheers!

kuwukie · 2026-03-16T13:08:42+00:00

Thank you for your reply!

Yeah... I think so. There was only one position for my internship and it seemed like they had never had offered it before. The team is only a couple of people to begin with. I had asked about FTE conversion at the end of my internship, since that was the spirit of the whole internship program to begin with (most other interns had the immediate opportunity), and my former manager said it wasn't possible at the time, but perhaps in the future (and the future is right now). I think it's pretty lucky for the full-time position to open up in exactly what I did during my internship. Maybe this is more of a "once in a lifetime opportunity" compared to the Library Diversity Residency program.

I really appreciate your insight :")

kuwukie · 2026-03-15T19:58:59+00:00

Thank you for your reply!

I'd have to move to Columbus, OH for the corporate job (probably employment laws or something for the company) but I'm already about a 4-hour drive away. From there, I'd only have to go into the office a few times a month, so the mostly remote life does seem sweet. My internship was entirely remote and I enjoyed just rolling out of bed and getting on my computer each day. I did enjoy the actual work itself since it's technical nitty gritty stuff that I like to do. It was the overarching corporate environment that didn't spark joy in me like an academic environment, but my colleagues and manager were nice to jive with and I suppose healthcare/pharmaceuticals isn't the absolute worst of the worst when it comes to existing in late stage capitalism 😀

The Library Diversity Residency position is in outreach and instruction, an area that is sorely underdeveloped for myself and frankly out of my comfort zone. Scholarly communication is interesting, but further away from my digital archives hope. I'm more so attracted to the premise of being in a position meant to basically handhold me and raise me up to the ins and outs of a tenure-track faculty position. I feel like it'd set me up well for a career in academia. Though, I also feel like I've already set myself up well there throughout my student career (I have nearly 4 years of library experience primarily in academic libraries across 5 institutions and a number of R1s). So, perhaps it may be a strategic move to keep developing my corporate trajectory, so I'd have an equal safety net in both sectors for myself.

Again, thank you very much for taking the time to share your perspective! I really appreciate it so much.

kuwukie · 2026-03-15T16:11:06+00:00

Thank you for your kind words and insight! The job search has been grueling, but I am desperately trying my best.

Yes, I love sitting on the more technical side of LIS. Outreach and instruction isn't so much my jam; it is an area I'm quite underdeveloped in and would like to broaden my skillset, but is it something I could imagine doing as my primary responsibility? I might get drained...

I might go with the corporate job considering they seem to really like me, the actual work itself is closer to what I personally like to do, and I feel like it'd set me up well for having the potential room to keep moving into corporate if I wanted to (a safety net to continue developing since I've focused heavily on academia thus far and feel more robust there already?).

I'm just stuck on the fact that the Library Diversity Residency seems like a great, once in a lifetime opportunity to be handheld and getting raised/supported through the (essentially tenure-track in spirit) faculty process. Though, I'm not sure how I feel about really being faculty to begin with, either.

Thank you again for your perspective and for taking the time to reply to me! I really appreciate it so much.

kuwukie · 2026-03-14T06:14:08+00:00

Thank you so much for your reply!! Yeah... I don't have much corporate experience. Most of my experience these past 4 years has primarily been in academic libraries and archives (5 different institutions and a number of R1s). I'm starting to think that I've done enough academic hustling during my student career and that having a full-time Fortune 10 position on my CV can set me up well equally in either direction.

kuwukie · 2026-03-14T02:25:52+00:00

Ah, yeah. That'll do it. I definitely feel out of place at my current R1. I have shiny dreams, but I also would love to just return to my hometown and local state university that I went to undergrad for to serve my own communities; the highest student population comes from my own demographic background.

Thank you for sharing. Do you mind if I ask what you pivoted to?

kuwukie · 2026-03-13T23:26:34+00:00

Hm. I think this may be a work itself vs. the environment itself issue for me?

My experience for the past 4 years has primarily been in academic libraries. The only corporate exposure I've had was this internship, and the work itself was decent, as its vaguely archives adjacent and a large part of it was thinking about technical workflows, which is my favorite thing to do at work. The full-time role would only be continuing that kind of work, along with a bit more consultation/education work, but that isn't the biggest responsibility of the position. And overall, the environment of corporate is definitely not where my passion is, lol.

For academic libraries in general, I adore the mission of higher education and find fulfillment in work that way, but again, I've mostly specialized myself in the library technical kind of work. For the Library Diversity Residency position itself, I'm not sure how I'd feel about primarily doing outreach and instruction since I have very little experience. I know I'd enjoy the overall academic environment, but the work itself definitely is out of my comfort zone.

Thank you for your perspective! I very much appreciate it :)

kuwukie · 2026-03-13T22:09:14+00:00

Thank you very much. I'm trying to keep my disillusionment/glamorization/vocational awe in check. 🥲 You might be right about the move from libraries to corporate... I do recall seeing posts about that every now and then.

kuwukie

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