AI exposure: Librarians and Media Collections Specialists
Administer and maintain libraries or collections of information, for public or private access through reference or borrowing. Work in a variety of settings, such as educational institutions, museums, and corporations, and with various types of informational materials, such as books, periodicals, recordings, films, and databases. Tasks may include acquiring, cataloging, and circulating library materials, and user services such as locating and organizing information, providing instruction on how to access information, and setting up and operating a library's media equipment.
Reading this score
computed41.1% of this occupation's weighted task load is exposed, which puts Librarians and Media Collections Specialists at the 72th percentile of 923 occupations. The capability is largely there. Its average task scores 2.3 out of 4 on what a current system can produce, and the frictions that hold other jobs in place are comparatively weak here.
No single friction dominates this occupation. The strongest is context at 1.58 out of 3 and the weakest is accountability at 0.55, which is a narrow spread. Where nothing structural stands in the way, exposure tracks capability almost directly, and capability is the thing that changes every quarter.
The most exposed thing this job does is Search standard reference materials, at 93.3%. The least is Assemble and arrange display materials, at 0.0%. A gap of 93.3% between two parts of the same job is the reason this index publishes at task level. An occupation-wide number would have hidden both.
Within educational instruction and library occupations, this one is less exposed than the median of 42.4% across the group's 62 roles, with 35 scoring higher. Being in an exposed family does not make a particular job exposed, and the reverse holds too.
What would move this score. Of 30 tasks, 21 are currently banded exposed, 1 assisted and 8 untouched. For that distribution to shift materially would take systems being given deeper access to the organisation's own records and history, which is already happening. The score is re-computed every quarter against a fresh capability reference, and the change is published rather than quietly applied.
Task by task
30 tasks, O*NET 31.0| Task | Exposed | Assisted | Untouched | Importance | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Search standard reference materials, including online sources and the Internet, to answer patrons' reference questions. | 93.3% | 6.7% | 0.0% | 4.65 | exposed |
| Locate unusual or unique information in response to specific requests. | 93.3% | 6.7% | 0.0% | 3.96 | exposed |
| Compile lists of books, periodicals, articles, and audio-visual materials on particular subjects. | 80.0% | 20.0% | 0.0% | 3.00 | exposed |
| Code, classify, and catalog books, publications, films, audio-visual aids, and other library materials, based on subject matter or standard library classification systems. | 73.3% | 26.7% | 0.0% | 4.30 | exposed |
| Arrange for interlibrary loans of materials not available in a particular library. | 60.0% | 15.0% | 25.0% | 4.13 | exposed |
| Develop, maintain, and troubleshoot information access aids, such as databases, annotated bibliographies, Web pages, electronic pathfinders, software programs, and online tutorials. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 3.91 | exposed |
| Develop library policies and procedures. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 3.91 | exposed |
| Plan and deliver client-centered programs and services, such as special services for corporate clients, storytelling for children, newsletters, or programs for special groups. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 3.71 | exposed |
| Confer with colleagues, faculty, and community members and organizations to conduct informational programs, make collection decisions, and determine library services to offer. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.30 | exposed |
| Review and evaluate materials, using book reviews, catalogs, faculty recommendations, and current holdings to select and order print, audio-visual, and electronic resources. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.26 | exposed |
| Keep up-to-date records of circulation and materials, maintain inventory, and correct cataloging errors. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.00 | exposed |
| Analyze patrons' requests to determine needed information and assist in furnishing or locating that information. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 4.43 | exposed |
| Explain use of library facilities, resources, equipment, and services, and provide information about library policies. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 3.96 | exposed |
| Respond to customer complaints, taking action as necessary. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 3.87 | exposed |
| Confer with teachers to select course materials and to determine which training aids are best suited to particular grade levels. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 3.62 | exposed |
| Evaluate vendor products and performance, negotiate contracts, and place orders. | 39.6% | 22.9% | 37.5% | 4.17 | exposed |
| Maintain inventory of audio-visual equipment. | 35.0% | 23.3% | 41.7% | 2.75 | exposed |
| Plan and teach classes on topics such as information literacy, library instruction, and technology use. | 30.0% | 20.0% | 50.0% | 4.35 | exposed |
| Teach library patrons basic computer skills, such as searching computerized databases. | 30.0% | 20.0% | 50.0% | 4.10 | exposed |
| Train faculty and media staff on the use of software and audio-visual equipment. | 30.0% | 20.0% | 50.0% | 2.86 | exposed |
| Maintain hardware and software, including computers, media equipment, scanners, color copiers, and color laser printers. | 26.7% | 23.3% | 50.0% | 3.35 | exposed |
| Troubleshoot problems with audio-visual equipment. | 23.3% | 26.7% | 50.0% | 2.38 | assisted |
| Direct and train library staff in duties, such as receiving, shelving, researching, cataloging, and equipment use. | 20.0% | 17.5% | 62.5% | 4.14 | untouched |
| Check books in and out of the library. | 16.7% | 8.3% | 75.0% | 4.05 | untouched |
| Set up, adjust, and operate audio-visual equipment, such as cameras, film and slide projectors, and recording equipment, for meetings, events, classes, seminars, and video conferences. | 15.0% | 10.0% | 75.0% | 2.25 | untouched |
| Evaluate materials to determine outdated or unused items to be discarded. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 3.30 | untouched |
| Supervise daily library operations, budgeting, planning, and personnel activities, such as hiring, training, scheduling, and performance evaluations. | 8.3% | 16.7% | 75.0% | 4.36 | untouched |
| Engage in professional development activities, such as taking continuing education classes and attending or participating in conferences, workshops, professional meetings, and associations. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 3.83 | untouched |
| Represent library or institution on internal and external committees. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 3.48 | untouched |
| Assemble and arrange display materials. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 2.70 | untouched |
Task text and importance ratings sourced from O*NET 31.0. Shares computed. The occupation score is the importance-weighted mean.
Where the score comes from
judgedEvery task is scored through the standardised work activities it maps to. These are this occupation’s averages on the six rubric dimensions. Capability is what AI can do; the other five are what stands in the way.
| Dimension | Mean | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | 2.31 | 0-4 |
| Embodiment | 1.12 | 0-3 |
| Presence | 1.19 | 0-3 |
| Accountability | 0.55 | 0-3 |
| Context | 1.58 | 0-3 |
| Verification cost | 0.98 | 0-3 |
What this means in practice
Where most of a role's weighted task load is exposed, the work that survives is usually the part of the job nobody wrote into the job description: deciding what should be produced rather than producing it, and being answerable for the result. The tasks lowest on this page are a better guide to where to spend your time than any general advice about the future of work.
Occupations either side of this one
The four closest scores in the same occupational family, then the four closest anywhere in the index.
Read this carefully. Exposure is not displacement. A high score means current AI systems can produce this work, not that anyone will stop paying a person to do it. Adoption depends on economics, regulation and inertia that this index deliberately does not model. How the score is built.