Library Assistant 1

Due to current testing space limitations, candidates may need to travel to a test site to take this examination. Candidates will be notified of their test site location on their admission notice.

Appointees who work in the five boroughs of New York City or in Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, or Westchester Counties will receive an additional $3,087 annual downstate adjustment. Appointees who work in Dutchess, Orange, or Putnam Counties will receive an additional $1,543 annual mid-Hudson adjustment.

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Minimum Qualifications

On or before August 3, 2024, you must have:

Either 1. graduated from high school or have earned a high school equivalency diploma;

AND

one year of full-time clerical experience in a library setting.*

*Examples of qualifying clerical duties in a library setting may include:

• Maintaining circulation record;
• Processing acquisitions including the receipt and recording of courier-delivered materials and organizing new items;
• Creating and processing interlibrary loan requests (ILL);
• Assisting in collection maintenance including; weeding, shifting, re-shelving, repairing, straightening, inventory, supply orders, and emptying book drop containers to be checked in;
• Assisting and educating patrons in searching the library catalog;
• Assisting patrons in the use of library equipment.

Or 2. thirty semester credit hours of college study including at least NINE semester credit hours of college study in any combination of the following areas:

• Library/Information Science;
• Computer Applications
• Information Studies.

The information you provide in your application will be the only basis for determining your eligibility for meeting the minimum qualifications for this examination. Therefore, it is essential that you describe your education and experience as completely as possible on your examination application. Ambiguity, vagueness, or omissions will not be decided in your favor.

• If you expect to meet the educational requirements by January 31, 2025, you can be admitted to the written test, but you cannot be considered for appointment until you submit proof of successful completion of the educational requirements to the Appointing Authority at the time of the employment interview. Failure to meet the educational requirements by January 31, 2025, may result in your removal from the eligible list.
• Your required educational credentials must have been awarded by an educational institution accredited by a regional, national, or specialized agency recognized as an accrediting agency by the United States (U.S.) Department of Education/Secretary of Education. If awarded by an institution outside of the U.S. and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. A list of companies that provide these services (fees must be paid to the company you choose) can be found at: http://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/degrees.cfm
• If verifiable, we will accept and prorate appropriate part-time and volunteer experience.
• New York State residency is not required.

The Positions: These positions exist in the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision and the State University of New York throughout the State; the Department of Law in New York City only; and the State Education Department, the Department of Health, and the Department of Economic Development in Albany only.

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Duties

As a Library Assistant 1, you would engage in specialized library clerical activities in support of a library program, such as organizing and maintaining the library collection, helping library patrons locate information, maintaining online databases, acquiring library materials, processing library materials using an integrated library system (ILS), shelving and rebinding books, and scanning and digitizing books and other documents. You may have responsibilities in one or more organizational units within the library, such as Reference, Circulation, Interlibrary Loan, Special Collections, Periodicals, Acquisitions, Government Documents, Preservation, Digitization or Cataloging. You may be called upon to supervise library para-professionals, technical support staff, student workers, interns, or volunteers. If you are assigned to a Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) facility you may supervise incarcerated individual library clerks.

Note:

• A promotion examination will also be held for these positions. If you are eligible for appointment from a promotion list, you may not be appointed in your own agency from the list resulting from this examination open to the public. Although promotion examinations are being held, it is expected that appointments will be made as a result of the open competitive exam.

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Subject of Examination

To be considered for appointment to this title, you must pass the multiple-choice test. The multiple-choice test evaluates your knowledge, skills, and/or abilities in the following areas:

1. Customer service - These questions test for knowledge of techniques used to interact with other people, to gather and present information, and to provide assistance, advice and effective customer service in a courteous and professional manner. Questions will cover such topics as understanding and responding to people with diverse needs, perspectives, personalities, and levels of familiarity with agency operations, as well as acting in a way that both serves the public and reflects well on your agency.
2. Fundamentals of working in a library - These questions are designed to evaluate the candidate's knowledge about the common terms and concepts used in various sections of a library (e.g., Circulation, Reference, Technical Processing, etc.); the procedures associated with shelving, storing, checking out and receiving library materials; and the proper methods of using equipment commonly found in a library and of handling, processing and storing library materials.
3. Name and number checking - These questions test for the ability to distinguish between sets of words, letters, and/or numbers that are almost exactly alike. Material is usually presented in two or three columns, and you will have to determine how the entry in the first column compares with the entry in the second column and possibly the third. You will be instructed to mark your answers according to a designated code provided in the directions.
4. Understanding and interpreting written material - These questions test for the ability to understand and interpret written material. You will be presented with brief reading passages and will be asked questions about the passages. You should base your answers to the questions only on what is presented in the passages and not on what you may happen to know about the topic.

Your final score must be 70 or higher in order to pass. Your final score on the eligible list will be determined after adding any wartime Veterans' and Civil Service Law Section 85-a credits.

Admission To The Test: If approved for a multiple-choice test, you will receive an admission notice which will indicate your assigned test date and the way your test will be administered. Your test may be administered with paper and pencil or online at a state test site using a state-provided Chromebook. You cannot request to change your scheduled day or request a specific type of test administration.

Applicants are required to have a Personal NY.gov account and keep their email address up to date. The Department of Civil Service and other state agencies will communicate with you through email correspondence. This may include notification of your application status, your test arrangements, examination results, and canvassing you for interest in appointment. It will be important for you to keep your email address, phone number, and mailing address current by logging into https://www.cs.ny.gov/home/myaccount.

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How To Apply

Additional Information

New York State is an Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the policy of the State of New York to provide for and promote equal opportunity employment, compensation, and other terms and conditions of employment without unlawful discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, religion, disability, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, veteran or military service member status, marital status, domestic violence victim status, genetic predisposition or carrier status, arrest and/or criminal conviction record, or any other category protected by law, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification or other exception.

Appointment to many positions in State government require candidates to undergo an investigative screening. This may include a thorough character investigation, a Federal Bureau of Investigation Criminal Record History Check, a Child Abuse Registry clearance, or other similar procedures. Candidates may be fingerprinted and may be required to pay any necessary fees for that procedure. Depending on the nature of the job, the criminal convictions discovered, or any falsified or omitted information revealed, the investigative findings may bar appointment or result in removal after appointment.

Eligibility for Employment

You must be legally eligible to work in the United States at the time of appointment and throughout your employment with New York State. If appointed, you must produce documents that establish your identity and eligibility to work in the United States, as required by the federal Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, and the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Religious Accommodation

Most multiple-choice tests are held on Saturdays. If you cannot take the test on the announced test date, due to a conflict with a religious observance or practice, check the box under “Religious Accommodation.” We will make arrangements for you to take the test on a different date (usually the following day).

Reasonable Accommodations in Testing

It is the policy of the Department of Civil Service, in accordance with the New York State Human Rights Law and the Americans with Disabilities Act, to provide qualified persons with disabilities equal employment opportunity and equal opportunity to participate in and receive the benefits, services, programs, and activities of the Department. It is the policy of the Department to provide such persons reasonable accommodations and reasonable modifications as are necessary to provide equal opportunity. Persons with disabilities who require an accommodation to participate in an examination must note this on their application. Further information is available from the Test Accommodation Unit of the Department of Civil Service at Testaccommodation@cs.ny.gov.

Admission to Examination

Notice to appear for the test may be conditional as review of applications may not be made until after the test. If you have not received your notice to appear for the multiple-choice test three days before the date of the test, email us at AdmissionNotices@cs.ny.gov. Please provide your first and last name, address, and the last four digits of your social security number, and we will provide you with the information you need to attend your multiple-choice test. If you have an issue other than not receiving your admission notice, please contact our office at (518) 474-6470 in the Albany area or toll free at 1-877-697-5627. Please leave a clear concise message and provide your first and last name, last four digits of your social security number and a daytime phone number.

Taking State and Local Examinations Scheduled for the Same Day

If you have applied to take a multiple-choice test announced by either one or several local jurisdictions (county, town, city) scheduled to be held on the same test date as this multiple-choice test, you must notify each of the local jurisdictions no later than two weeks before the test date to make arrangements for taking all tests at one test site. All tests will be held at the state examination center. For your convenience, contact information for all local civil service agencies is available on our website at: https://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/local.cfm.

Cell Phones or Electronic/Communication Devices at the Test Site

The use of cell phones, beepers, headphones, or any electronic or other communication devices at your personal testing site or in the test room, hallways, restrooms, building, grounds, or other areas, except as expressly authorized by the Department of Civil Service, could result in your disqualification.

S3/B2 SAM-dah
Issued: 5/17/24

This announcement is subject to amendment or cancellation without notice. Do not copy it, or post it to any other site, but link to it instead.

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