Kristen Thorp
Outreach services
Robert E. Kennedy Library, Cal Poly SLO
Milestones
My road in life took a while to figure out.
At 19 I realized that my life-long dream of being a film maker was no longer my dream.
Took a silly part-time job at a library to pass time until I figured out what was next.
Celebrated Banned Books Week and my love of libraries and information sharing started to grow.
I got promoted. Twice. I was now the highest position I could be without having a masters degree.
A librarian I respected encouraged me to pursue the degree because I would make an awesome librarian.
After 7 years of working in a library, it was now my mission to get that degree.
I moved. Started school full time, and found another wonderful library job.
June 2013 I graduated with my Masters. Looking forward to my next adventure.
Keep following my journey
Education
Career
Outreach services
I connect people with information and advocate the free exchange of ideas.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Technology
Education
Helping People
Day to Day
I don't really have a typical work day, because every day is slightly different. The only constant is emails. Today I am working on a blog post about our new Open Education collection, copy editing the website, working on a research paper, gathering materials for an open-house event this weekend, promoting Banned Books Week and ordering some new books. Tomorrow is unknown.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for high school students
Be curious. You don't have to know everything, but you have to want to know everything.
Recommended Education
My career is not related to what I studied. I'd recommend this path instead:
Bachelor
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Society in General:
"You should go for it. I was very fortunate to have an amazing support system of friends and family. Even when I had self doubt, I had a cheering section to build me back up."
Challenges I Overcame
Financial
Going back to school after a long break
