On the right path – trainee's journey at SeAMK Library

When I started my practical training here at SeAMK Library, I was a father for a two-month-old baby girl. Back then, the little one spent her days mostly sleeping on my stomach and viewed the outside world with the sleepy curiosity of a newborn. Now, when my training is coming to an end, she keeps crawling around the apartment keeping mom and dad constantly on their toes and reacts to every new thing with an excited squeal. My five-month long training period is coming to an end.

My name is Kimmo Gorski and I’m a third-year student here at SeAMK, where I study Library and Information Services. Back when our teachers first started talking about the approaching Practical Training period, I had already set my sights on SeAMK Library. My firm belief was that a university library would be the best place to give me a diverse environment to nourish and cultivate the skillset I had acquired during my studies here at SeAMK. The fact that I got paid while training here was a nice bonus! Especially for a new father like me.

So, five months have passed and what do I have to show for them? Since day one my brains were filled with constant flow of new information. Information about our library system Alma and its nitty-gritties, how to catalogue material or purchase new books for our patrons or even how to use our cash register! The amount of new information seemed so overwhelming at first that, at the end most days, I was completely drained and utterly exhausted. My poor brains were doing their best to make sense of the amount of new information I was feeding them, and even thought I am a fast learner, I sometimes wondered: “How on earth am I going to learn all this?”

Well, thankfully I did, and soon my days were filled with customer service, meetings, cataloging, event planning, acquisitions, setting up book exhibitions around different themes… There were constantly things to do and although the days might’ve been busy, I enjoyed every single moment and it quickly became clear that this, working in a library, is what I want to do in the future and that I am on the right path. My studies had not been in vain!

Was there any tasks or assignments that I particularly enjoyed? Well, there is one thing that I want to write about. One of our teachers here at SeAMK approached me and asked me to find information for her for an approaching course that she needed material for. I got to use all the information seeking skills that I had gained during my studies in scouring the web and rummaging through our bookshelves for information that could be of use to her.  It was during this assignment that I found out how much I really enjoyed harnessing my inner Sherlock Holmes. Helping our staff and our patrons in locating the information they seek soon became the highlight of my days. Whether it was The Case of the Lost Book or Mystery of Missing Source Material.

Finally, I want to give thanks to every single member of the SeAMK Library staff for an amazing training period. Five months were filled with plenty of new experiences, funny mishaps and poorly slept nights. I wouldn’t trade those months for anything.

The article was written by the SeAMK student Kimmo Gorski, who completed his internship at the SeAMK Library in the autumn semester 2024.

Thank you Kimmo and all the best to you and your family for the future!