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SOC 25-4022
Librarians and media collections specialists maintain library/information collections for public or institutional searching, borrowing and reference, handling cataloging, collection records, search guidance and media-equipment management.
Model impact index for three equally weighted representative core tasks; not a measured share of working time or a job-loss probability. floor((75+75+50)/3+0.5)=67; fermatmind-ai-impact-v1; 2026-10-18.
Librarians turn reader needs into searchable, borrowable and reviewable collections and services: evaluating and purchasing materials, cataloging under classification systems, maintaining circulation and collection records, providing reference services and information-literacy instruction, and managing databases and audiovisual equipment. They follow copyright and privacy rules while making choices under budget and procurement constraints.
The following assessments concern library and information-service working methods; they predict neither hiring, professional titles nor institutional staffing status.
Sample outputs and reflection: Check whether others can review classification and cataloging, procurement rationale has evidence, reference responses distinguish facts from speculation, copyright/privacy items are marked separately, and you can explain one search failure and improvement. Use this to assess willingness to handle detail and serve readers directly over the long term.
Librarians and media collections specialists manage and maintain library or information collections for public or institutional reference and borrowing. This page covers O*NET 25-4022.00, excluding library assistants, archivists and library technicians.
Collaboration chain: readers and institutional users, library colleagues and supervisors, teachers and researchers, suppliers and database vendors, IT support, and copyright/procurement reviewers. Escalate requests beyond authority through institutional procedures.
Career direction comparison
Compare actual work objects, core deliverables and responsibility boundaries below; qualifications are not interchangeable by title.
| Career direction | Core work and output | Key differences | Best-fit choice |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative Services Managers | Administrative services managers organize administrative processes, facilities and staffing. Librarians focus on collections, retrieval and reader services, with professional judgment in cataloging, reference work and copyright boundaries rather than general institutional administration. | Organize administrative processes, facilities and staffing; librarians focus on collections and reader services. | Compare if you prefer general administration. |
| Postsecondary Education Administrators | Postsecondary education administrators oversee departments, budgets and teaching quality. Librarians manage collections and services within institutions, using library and information-science standards rather than education administration. |
AI impact on this career
Editorial suggestion: Use fictional bibliographies to test assistance with search terms, summaries and initial metadata drafts. This page obtained no adoption-rate, accuracy or job-outcome evidence. Responsible people retain classification, collection choices and copyright/privacy review. AI Impact Score 67% is an editorial estimate. Model impact index for three equally weighted representative core tasks; not a measured share of working time or a job-loss probability. floor((75+75+50)/3+0.5)=67; fermatmind-ai-impact-v1; 2026-10-18.The three tasks, ratings and sources are listed in the FermatMind method source record on this page.
FermatMind AI Impact Score estimation method v1
FermatMind / 费马测试 · 2026-10-18
Editorial ratings use the existing occupational responsibilities and AI task analysis on this page. They are not adoption rates, measured effects, job-disappearance or personal-unemployment probabilities, or official scores from Stanford or another external institution. No measured time weights or future robot deployment are assumed.
Chinese mainland salary reference
Definition note: NBS 2025 annual average wages by industry for urban non-private units are education 133,539 yuan, culture, sports and entertainment 129,447 yuan, and public administration, social security and social organizations 119,465 yuan. All are industry figures, not occupational medians or starting pay.
Category boundaries: Librarians work in public institutions, public libraries, schools and other institution types. Staffing status, job grade and compensation depend on institutional nature and local rules and cannot be compared directly with one industry average.
Only annual average wages published
Only annual average wages published
U.S. salary reference
U.S. 25-4022: employment 142,300 in 2025, 145,900 in 2035, growth 3% (3,600 additional), average annual openings 12,600. May 2025 annual-pay five percentiles are USD 43,660／56,310／68,270／84,480／103,990, not starting pay or individual take-home income.
| Statistical position | Annual wage reference | Definition boundaries | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lowest 10% | $43,660/year | 10th-percentile boundary | Not an individual offer. |
| Median (50%) | $68,270/year | 50% on either side | 2025 U.S. nationwide median annual pay. |
| Highest 90% | $103,990/year |
Fit signals
Assess librarian fit through willingness to handle detail and search problems over time, serve readers directly and judge within copyright/privacy boundaries. Tools such as RIASEC only generate hypotheses and cannot replace actual task experience.
Positive signals： Positive signals: Willingness to verify materials and records individually, clearly guide others' searches, explain choices within budget/policy constraints, and respond to readers patiently and accurately.
Caution conditions： Caution conditions: Those who struggle with repetitive searching/checking, avoid reader complaints or sustained detail work, or organize information by impression may find this difficult to sustain.
Trial activities： Trial activity: Use an entirely fictional bibliography and three to five search questions to produce a classification/cataloging draft and reference response. Ask others to test whether records let them reproduce results.
Risks and boundaries
Address risks through triggers, consequences, controls and escalation boundaries.
O*NET supports task scenarios; ALA ethics supports privacy, intellectual property, equitable service and interest boundaries, not legal liability judgments.
Typical scenario：When copying, uploading, translating or lending materials may exceed license scope.
Roles most affected：Cataloging, digital-collection and lending roles
Possible consequence：May breach copyright or contracts, causing removal, claims or service interruption.
How to reduce risk：Verify licenses and institutional policies first, record terms' scope and escalate through procedures.
Evidence：ALA Code of Ethics
Entry pathway
U.S. librarians typically need a master's in library science; school media specialists often need a relevant bachelor's or master's plus teacher certification, with state requirements varying. Verify each Chinese target institution's education, professional-title and recruitment-status requirements from its announcement.
Market signals
BLS 2025—2035 projects growth of 3% (3,600 additional people) and 12,600 average annual openings, not current hiring or individual hiring probability.
U.S. nationwide · Librarians and Media Collections Specialists 25-4022.00
U.S. 25-4022: 142,300 in 2025, 145,900 in 2035; growth 3%, matching the 3% average for all occupations.
Employment size and growth
Explain employment size, growth rate and job openings separately.
Does not establish：Cannot serve as an individual employment guarantee.
Librarians mostly work indoors in controlled settings. Daily tasks include reference services, cataloging/processing, acquisitions and collection care, information-literacy teaching and circulation management. Most roles have regular workweeks, with busier periods around projects and teaching.
Librarians exercise professional judgment in cataloging, reference services, collections and copyright boundaries. Administrative services managers manage general administration; postsecondary education administrators manage departments and teaching; management analysts recommend process changes; computer support specialists provide technical equipment support. Duties are not interchangeable.
Choose a real task from this page for a small practice project or a conversation with someone in the field. Use the planning guides to set a date, an output and feedback questions before deciding whether to continue.
This is an entirely fictional work-sample check, not a personality diagnosis, hiring conclusion or professional qualification assessment.
Entirely fictional library work sample: Given a fictional bibliography, three readers' search requests and a procurement budget, complete a classification/cataloging draft within 60 minutes, explain purchasing tradeoffs, write a reference response and flag entries needing copyright or privacy checks. Inputs must contain no real reader data, nonpublic contracts or personal identifying information.
Quality standards: reviewable cataloging/classification, accurate and timely circulation/collection records, reference responses separating facts from speculation, evidence-based acquisition/withdrawal decisions, and documented copyright/privacy handling.
| Dimension | Primary track | Comparison track |
|---|---|---|
| Work loop | From reader needs to collections and services | |
| Step one | Analyze needs and searches | |
| Step two | Evaluate and acquire materials | |
| Step three | Classify, catalog and process | |
| Step four | Provide reference services | |
| Step five | Maintain records and permissions | |
| Step six | Inventory and withdraw materials |
Work objects: reader and institutional search/borrowing needs, bibliographies and collection catalogs, classification and cataloging rules, procurement budgets and supplier quotes, databases, audiovisual equipment and copyright terms.
Inspectable outputs: searchable catalog records, acquisition and withdrawal lists, circulation and collection inventories, reference responses, information-literacy courses or guides, and database/media-equipment configuration records.
Complete workflow: analyze reader and institutional needs → evaluate and purchase materials → classify, catalog and process → shelve and manage circulation → provide reference services and information-literacy instruction → maintain records, equipment and copyright compliance → regularly inventory and withdraw materials.
Education, professional titles, staffing status and procurement/publication permissions are verified under specific institutional and local rules.
Librarians' work objects and AI boundaries AI may assist retrieval, summaries and initial metadata drafts, but humans retain cataloging judgments, collection choices, copyright and reader privacy.
| Oversee departments, budgets and teaching quality; librarians manage collections and information services within institutions. |
| Compare if you prefer education administration. |
| Management Analysts | Management analysts study organizational processes and recommend improvements. Librarians directly operate collections and reader services, delivering borrowable, searchable collections and records rather than consulting reports. | Study processes and recommend improvements; librarians directly operate collections and reader services. | Compare if you prefer consulting analysis. |
|---|
| Computer Support Specialists | Computer support specialists provide equipment and software technical support. Librarians manage database and media-equipment use and configuration, but their core is information organization and reader service, not institution-wide technical support. | Provide equipment/software technical support; librarians manage service use of databases and media equipment. | Compare if you prefer technical support. |
|---|
First test objects, methods, boundaries and delivery through a reviewable work sample, then assess direction.
Next, turn comparison results into small exercises that can be stopped.
State only specific assistable steps; a demonstration is not institutional adoption.
Verify data permissions, reader privacy, metadata sources and review responsibility; this page has no single-occupation adoption rate.
Without occupational job-outcome research, do not infer layoff timing, staffing changes or hiring probability.
| Work area | Task | Current change | Human control point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cataloging and metadata | Organize bibliographies and initial metadata drafts | Editorial suggestion: Tools may help organize bibliographic information and search terms; current materials do not establish widespread library adoption. | Verify classification rules, sources and versions. |
| Reference services | Classify and respond to reader search requests | May assist search-term expansion and summaries, without automatically producing final responses | Verify metadata sources, classification rules and versions, and confirm publication and lending permissions. |
| Collections and procurement | Compare candidate materials and budgets | May assist consolidation and price comparison, without replacing purchasing choices | Verify collection policies, license terms and budgets. |
| Circulation and equipment | Maintain records and equipment use | No automatic authorization or external publication | Authorized people confirm within rules and retain records. |
Occupational sources describe librarians' actual tasks and objects. Record tool capability, organizational adoption and job outcomes separately; pay or employment data cannot replace AI evidence.
Different directions have different affected activities; generated metadata or summaries are not automatically records suitable for database entry or public release.
AI primarily changesRetrieval and initial-draft organization can be tested; time savings and job outcomes unverified
Human responsibility remainsClassification judgments, source checks and reader-service responsibility
AI primarily changesMay assist candidate-material consolidation and price comparison
Human responsibility remainsBudget choices, license terms and compliance judgments
Human control points are checking sources and versions, deciding classification and headings, handling copyright and reader privacy, and returning uncertain requests to supervisors or institutional procedures.
Confirm sources, versions, permissions and institutional policies; mark missing items unknown.
Use tools only for low-risk, reversible organization or initial-draft steps.
Responsible people check metadata, citations and exceptions individually, retaining versions and change records.
Stop for copyright, privacy or high-impact actions and escalate through institutional procedures.
Incorrect records enter catalogs and remain cited over time
Control: Check original bibliographies and rules, retaining sources and versions
Search and borrowing records are personal information
Control: Minimize personal information and restrict access under institutional policy
Copying, uploading or lending may exceed licenses
Control: Verify license scope and institutional authorization before acting
Practice classification and retrieval with entirely fictional bibliographies, without real reader data.
Treat AI outputs as drafts, retaining original sources, citations and review records.
Define privacy, licenses, review and stopping conditions before considering adoption.
O*NET supports breaking retrieval, bibliographic organization and summaries into tasks. This page treats assistance as task hypotheses, not automated cataloging conclusions.
Source: Librarians and Media Collections Specialists 25-4022.00Original source ↗
Users must still verify sources, classification rules and versions; outputs cannot replace human review or institutional responsibility.
Source: Librarians and Media Collections Specialists Summary 25-4022.00Original source ↗
Neither task materials nor employment statistics independently establish elimination timing; this page has no single-occupation AI adoption or job-outcome research.
Source: Librarians and Media Collections Specialists 25-4022.00Original source ↗
First practice reversibly with this page's fictional bibliographies and isolated environments, recording errors and human-review results without real reader data or nonpublic contracts.
Insufficient evidence: not separately listed
Mainland China has no separately listed occupational wages; the following are industry proxies, not starting pay, medians or take-home income.
| Definition type | Value | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Not separately measured | Institutional appointment | NBS wage statistics use industry and registration type, not education tiers for this occupation. |
| Not separately measured | Institutional appointment | NBS wage statistics use industry and registration type, not education tiers for this occupation. |
| Not separately measured | Institutional appointment | NBS wage statistics use industry and registration type, not education tiers for this occupation. |
| Not separately measured | Institutional appointment | NBS wage statistics use industry and registration type, not education tiers for this occupation. |
133,539 yuan/year
129,447 yuan/year
119,465 yuan/year
Insufficient evidence: A corresponding nationwide mainland China librarian occupational wage median, statistical period and definition were not obtained; this page shows industry proxies only, explicitly labeled as industry figures.
| 90th-percentile boundary |
| Not an individual offer. |
Pay · 10th percentile：$43,660/year；National Wages: 25-4022.00
Pay · 25th percentile：$56,310/year；National Wages: 25-4022.00
Pay · Median：$68,270/year；National Wages: 25-4022.00
Pay · 75th percentile：$84,480/year；National Wages: 25-4022.00
Pay · 90th percentile：$103,990/year；National Wages: 25-4022.00
Annual pay in USD/year; BLS 2025 nationwide figures, not individual take-home income.
2025 employment size, not recruitment counts.
2025—2035 projection; growth 3%, matching the 3% all-occupation average.
See industry rows for medians and distribution; these do not equal all workers' income.
| Industry | Occupational median annual pay within this industry | How to interpret |
|---|---|---|
| Local elementary and secondary schools | $74,710/year | May 2025 occupational median annual pay in this industry, not the industry's all-worker average. |
| State colleges and universities | $74,490/year | May 2025 occupational median annual pay in this industry, not the industry's all-worker average. |
| Private colleges and universities | $73,700/year | May 2025 occupational median annual pay in this industry, not the industry's all-worker average. |
| Local government (excluding education and hospitals) | $62,860/year | May 2025 occupational median annual pay in this industry, not the industry's all-worker average. |
| Search portals, libraries, archives and other information services | $60,360/year | May 2025 occupational median annual pay in this industry, not the industry's all-worker average. |
Verify against institution and job requirements.
Most roles require postgraduate education and may require related experience.
States and institutions differ substantially; do not extrapolate across regions.
BLS OOH 2025—2035 nationwide 25-4022； additional jobs differ from average annual openings.
BLS OOH 2025—2035 nationwide 25-4022； additional jobs differ from average annual openings.
BLS OOH 2025—2035 nationwide 25-4022； additional jobs differ from average annual openings.
O*NET occupational interest baseline
Primarily Conventional, as a hypothesis only.First observe interest, stress and collaboration experiences in real tasks.
Activity preferences can only help design trials, not judge qualifications or performance.
Check through work samples, without substituting labels for judgment.
O*NET lists interest code CSI (Conventional—Social—Investigative), emphasizing rule-based information organization, helping others and investigating materials. The code describes activity preferences only, not qualifications or performance.
Do not use it this way: These cannot establish hiring, qualifications or performance.
Start a career-interest trialCan you remain accurate during repetitive cataloging and listen patiently to readers?
O*NET lists work styles including cooperation, intellectual curiosity and attention to detail, with skills including reading comprehension, active listening and speaking. These describe job tendencies, not hiring criteria.
Do not use it this way: These are O*NET work styles and skills, not Big Five measurements or validity evidence.
Start a career-interest trialCheck through work samples, without substituting labels for judgment.
Type tools such as MBTI and Enneagram provide no occupational job evidence and serve only self-reflection. Continue checking real tasks, responsibility boundaries and reviewable deliverables.
Do not use it this way: These cannot establish hiring, qualifications or performance.
Start a career-interest trialCheck through work samples, without substituting labels for judgment.
Continue checking real tasks, responsibility boundaries and reviewable deliverables.
Do not use it this way: These cannot establish hiring, qualifications or performance.
Start a career-interest trialCheck through work samples, without substituting labels for judgment.
Continue checking real tasks, responsibility boundaries and reviewable deliverables.
Do not use it this way: These cannot establish hiring, qualifications or performance.
Start a career-interest trialCheck through work samples, without substituting labels for judgment.
Continue checking real tasks, responsibility boundaries and reviewable deliverables.
Do not use it this way: These cannot establish hiring, qualifications or performance.
Start a career-interest trialFits better when: Willing to verify and organize entries individually under rules.
Watch for: Needs additional classification-rule and standards knowledge.
Fits better when: Enjoys communicating and resolving search problems.
Watch for: Diverse needs require patience and records.
Fits better when: Skilled at comparing materials, budgets and licenses.
Watch for: Acquisitions and withdrawals require policy-based records.
Fits better when: Willing to design and teach retrieval and tool use.
Watch for: Adjust teaching audiences and objectives to institutional needs.
Fits better when: Enjoys databases, metadata and system configuration.
Watch for: System changes require compatibility and migration risk assessment.
Fits better when: Willing to advance work in committees and cross-department collaboration.
Watch for: Coordination does not equal final decision authority.
Use this page's work sample to check willingness to keep handling bibliographies, search questions and records.
Keep records accurate under repeated verification and deadline pressure.
Narrow scope and stop high-risk actions first, then escalate through institutional procedures.
Write rules, rationale and exceptions separately.
Verification and records form part of this occupation's quality loop.
Enable others' review through catalog records, search logs and lists.
Act only within authorization and license scope; tool outputs are not conclusions.
Complete a classification and reference exercise with entirely fictional materials.
Typical scenario：When handling reader search records, borrowing histories or personal information.
Roles most affected：Circulation and reference roles
Possible consequence：Improper disclosure violates privacy and harms trust.
How to reduce risk：Minimize collection, restrict access and retain processing records under institutional privacy policy.
Evidence：ALA Code of Ethics
Typical scenario：When cataloging, classification or collection-record errors remain undetected.
Roles most affected：Cataloging and collection-maintenance roles
Possible consequence：Readers cannot retrieve materials, and inventories/statistics become inaccurate.
How to reduce risk：Review headings and classification against standards, retain versions and inventory/correct regularly.
Evidence：Librarians and Media Collections Specialists 25-4022.00
Typical scenario：When procurement, price comparison or supplier performance conflicts with contracts.
Roles most affected：Procurement and collection-management roles
Possible consequence：Budget waste or delayed material delivery.
How to reduce risk：Compare prices under procurement policy and retain contracts and acceptance records.
Evidence：Librarians and Media Collections Specialists 25-4022.00
Typical scenario：When content, bibliographies or guides are externally published without review.
Roles most affected：Reference and information-service roles
Possible consequence：Incorrect or unauthorized content spreads externally, requiring withdrawal and correction.
How to reduce risk：Review through institutional procedures before publication, retaining sources and versions.
Evidence：ALA Code of Ethics
Typical scenario：Database, audiovisual or network equipment faults or misuse.
Roles most affected：Technical-service and circulation roles
Possible consequence：Search and borrowing services are interrupted, affecting readers.
How to reduce risk：Troubleshoot under equipment/system procedures and contact IT support when necessary.
Evidence：Librarians and Media Collections Specialists 25-4022.00
Typical scope：Entry stage: circulation, processing, cataloging assistance or reference support in libraries/information centers, organizing materials, updating records and answering basic search questions.
Readiness evidence：Editorial suggestion: Demonstrate detail handling and reader communication with a reproducible catalog record, reference response and collection-inventory record.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Next step: Verify target-institution degree, professional-title and staffing-status requirements, then test retrieval, cataloging and reader-service capabilities through volunteering or internships.
Typical scope：Independently complete classification, headings and catalog maintenance.
Readiness evidence：Reviewable catalog and correction records.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Transition toward independent collection/service responsibility: select books, classify and provide reference services, handling copyright/privacy under policy. Support-role experience does not automatically equal librarian qualification.
Typical scope：Coordinate collection policies, cataloging standards and database configuration.
Readiness evidence：Collection-policy documents and catalog-quality records.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Assess system-migration and compatibility risks.
Typical scope：Lead collection planning, standards and system direction.
Readiness evidence：Reviewable collection and service outcomes.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Maintain cross-department collaboration continuously.
Typical scope：Answer basic search questions and record service.
Readiness evidence：Search logs and response records.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Add subject and database knowledge.
Typical scope：Independently provide reference services and information-literacy teaching.
Readiness evidence：Courses or guides and reader feedback.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Adjust content and format from feedback.
Typical scope：Connect with department/institution needs and design services.
Readiness evidence：Service plans and collaboration records.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Assess service coverage and effects.
Typical scope：Lead service direction, standards and staffing.
Readiness evidence：Reviewable service outcomes.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Establish institutionalized service procedures.
Typical scope：Organize electronic resources, links and access records.
Readiness evidence：Resource lists and access records.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Add database and metadata knowledge.
Typical scope：Maintain databases, licenses and access controls.
Readiness evidence：License registers and access reports.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Verify renewal and compliance terms.
Typical scope：Coordinate library systems, standards and data migration.
Readiness evidence：Migration and compatibility test records.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Assess long-term preservation and backups.
Typical scope：Lead digital-collection and system planning.
Readiness evidence：Reviewable digital-service outcomes.
Credential boundary：Follow target-institution education/appointment requirements; separately verify state certification for schools and some public libraries.
Next moves：Maintain systems and data governance continuously.
Confirm sources, versions, permissions and institutional policies.
Follow classification, license and record rules.
Create reviewable catalog and service records.
Expand duties within authorization.
U.S. nationwide · Librarians and Media Collections Specialists 25-4022.00
12,600/year
Projected average annual openings
Includes replacement and new demand, not the number of actively recruiting positions.
Does not establish：Cannot serve as individual hiring probability.
U.S. nationwide · Librarians and Media Collections Specialists 25-4022.00
$68,270/year
Median annual pay
A BLS 2025 nationwide median, not starting pay or take-home income.
Does not establish：Does not include individual take-home income.
These are capability relationships, not automatic promotions or credential waivers.
Transfers：Transferable capabilities: information organization/retrieval, reader communication, classification and records management, database/equipment use, and compliance/privacy awareness.
Build next：Gaps to fill: target-role subject knowledge, management experience or institution-required education and qualifications.
View career profileTransfers：Information organization, reader communication and process records.
Build next：Add target-role subject knowledge and qualifications.
View career profileTransfers：Information organization, reader communication and process records.
Build next：Add target-role subject knowledge and qualifications.
View career profileTransfers：Information organization, reader communication and process records.
Build next：Add target-role subject knowledge and qualifications.
View career profileTransfers：Information organization, reader communication and process records.
Build next：Add target-role subject knowledge and qualifications.
View career profileTransfers：Information organization, reader communication and process records.
Build next：Add target-role subject knowledge and qualifications.
View career profileFit signals are willingness to sustain detail/search work, guide others clearly, explain choices within budget/policy constraints, and respond to readers patiently and accurately. Carefully assess difficulty with repeated verification or reluctance to face readers.
AI may assist retrieval, summaries, initial metadata drafts and question classification, but humans retain cataloging judgment, collection choices, copyright/privacy judgments and reader-service responsibility.
Human responsibilities include classification/headings, acquisition/withdrawal choices, copyright/license boundaries, reader privacy and authorization for public release or lending.
Mainland China has no separately listed wages for this occupation. NBS 2025 annual average industry wages for urban non-private units are education 133,539 yuan, culture/sports/entertainment 129,447 yuan and public administration/social organizations 119,465 yuan. All are industry proxies, not this occupation's median.
BLS 2025 wage data shows median annual pay USD 68,270 and the 10th through 90th percentiles at USD 43,660—103,990, nationwide figures rather than individual take-home income or starting pay.
A common U.S. threshold is a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS); school librarians may have additional state qualification requirements. Verify mainland China roles through public-institution recruitment and professional-title systems; degrees and training do not automatically confer staffing status or titles.
Main risks are copyright/license violations, reader privacy leaks, cataloging/record errors and procurement/supplier compliance issues. Respond by verifying licenses and policies, minimizing personal information, retaining versions/records and escalating through institutional procedures.
Occupational directories and employment projections cannot directly establish hiring scale, job stability or individual hiring probability; market signals show only scale and trends under their statistical definitions.
If you value information organization, reader service and stable institutional settings, try a low-cost catalog-record and reference-service exercise. Transitions require target-role subject knowledge and qualifications.
Evidence for China, the United States and specific institutions is stated separately: do not combine pay, employment, qualification, copyright or AI conclusions across scopes. This librarians and media collections specialists page provides career assessment and safe-trial information, not a substitute for local laws, institutional procedures, copyright licenses or professional advice. Any 'insufficient evidence' statement means only that a bounded search did not establish reliably corresponding data; do not fabricate figures using proxies or memory.
FermatMind research workflow
2025 average wages; published 2026-05-15; accessed 2026-09-24
2025 annual average wages of urban-unit employees
Limitations：Not adoption rates, performance or replacement probability.
Limitations：Industry averages cannot replace occupational wages; this occupation is not separately listed.
Limitations：Certification does not equal appointment eligibility or institutional staffing status.
Limitations：U.S. occupational scope does not set Chinese appointment qualifications.
Limitations：Does not equal essential job skills or proficiency.
Limitations：Interpret the summary with detailed occupational scope.
Limitations：Nationwide projections, not individual hiring probability.
Limitations：Nationwide figures, not individual take-home income or starting pay.
Limitations：Applies only to the stated O*NET occupation and U.S. market.
Limitations：Applies only to the stated O*NET occupation and U.S. market.
Limitations：Applies only to the stated O*NET occupation and U.S. market.
Limitations：U.S. employment distribution, not a Chinese industry definition.
Limitations：Certification does not equal appointment eligibility or institutional staffing status.
Limitations：Training programs do not equal appointment eligibility.
Limitations：U.S. nationwide figures, not individual take-home income.
Limitations：Applies only to the stated O*NET occupation and U.S. market.
Limitations：Use within the stated occupation and jurisdiction; cannot set Chinese qualifications.
Limitations：Use within the stated occupation and jurisdiction; cannot set Chinese qualifications.
Limitations：Editorial ratings use the existing occupational responsibilities and AI task analysis on this page. They are not adoption rates, measured effects, job-disappearance or personal-unemployment probabilities, or official scores from Stanford or another external institution. No measured time weights or future robot deployment are assumed.
2026-10-11: BLS OOH checked for exact 2025—2035 projections, industry pay and school/public-library certification boundaries. The United States row on O*NET's California wage page verified nationwide five percentiles; state values were not used. Three NBS industry figures are context only. ALA ethics is only a professional ethical framework; older projections and candidate-source wording in shared protected fields retain listed conflicts.
