Since the mid 1980s academic libraries have established minority residency programs in an effort to increase the representation of librarians of color in their institutions. Now more than a decade later, these programs continue to be developed. Essays written by librarians of color who participated in residency programs, and administrators whose institutions made the programs possible, remind us of the continuing need for diversity in academic libraries.

This book contains invaluable feedback from residency program coordinators and current and former library residents that will benefit program managers, recent graduates and early career librarians, and students of library and information science. The effective training of individuals in the new wave of library professionals who will replace those of the outgoing "baby boomer" generation is essential to the future success of libraries. Residency programs will undoubtedly serve as the backbone of this transition process. The New Graduate Experience: Post-MLS Residency Programs and Early Career Librarianship is a much-needed text that will complement the limited, existing publications on library residency programs, serving to complete the record of residency program activity over a series of successive decades, management strategies from program coordinators at different institutions, and first-hand accounts of residents. This book includes the contributions of authors from a diverse group of ARL libraries, including early career librarians who describe their experiences in library school and joining the professional workplace, and program coordinators who detail how they implemented and managed their programs. Information on nursing residency programs is also included, providing different conceptual models for accelerated development of new librarians.