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I think that I was looking for a sense of professional belonging and I have been able to find this both in CILIP and within an institution that regards librarianship highly and professional registration is encouraged...


reflect on my past experience. Once I found the right role, I wanted to take the time to gain a clear understanding of the purpose of my professional experience and completing Char- tership allowed me to do this. It also helped that the University of Bath is a CILIP Employer Partner and retains the sense of a community of library profes- sionals. I think that I was looking for a sense of professional belonging and I have been able to find this both in CILIP and within an institution that regards librarianship highly and pro- fessional registration is encouraged, supported and celebrated at all levels. After several failed attempts at Chartership, I had all but given up. The move to a different institution and brand-new role allowed for a complete reassessment of where I was, where I wanted to be and what I could do to get there. It felt like the right time.


Getting started I’m really lucky in that the University of Bath is a CILIP Employer Partner and therefore much of the signing up pro- cess is taken out of my hands; I just had to click a couple of buttons and send some emails! I did have a mentor and would highly recommend getting


one. Thinking back, I’ve just realised that we never actually met up either online or in person! Instead, we communicated over email, with me sending drafts and asking questions, and her responding. I found that this worked for me, and it was great having someone to read over what I had written, partic- ularly if, like me, reflective writing isn’t something that comes naturally. She was brilliant in making sure that I kept on task, hitting the correct criteria and didn’t go off down rab- bit holes. It was great that she was in a completely different library sector (public librarian) to HE. This meant that she was able to give me a completely different perspective, and she also put me in touch with her colleague who I shadowed to gain experience and evidence for criteria 3.


The process For me there were initially two main challenges. The first was the time to put into the process, and not just the writing, but the self-reflection and understanding that was needed. The second was putting this self-reflection into practice – I find reflective writing really difficult! I attended several of CILIP’s reflective writing workshops, which I found helpful, but the most useful tool was the STAR method. I stuck to this dili- gently and found that it allowed me to include much more reflection, when my temptation is to describe the life out of something! Surprisingly, completing the process of professional regis- tration alongside a new role was less stressful than I might have thought. I had always found the Chartership process quite vague, what was I supposed to write about, how was I meant to do and what did I need to include? It was all a bit of a mystery to me. Therefore, I found it particularly helpful to


Autumn 2025


have the boundaries that a new role created – this is me and my knowledge base currently, this is where and what I would like myself and the role to be, so this is what I need to do. I found that this ‘fresh start’ gave a narrative flow to my port- folio and particularly the evaluative statement that had been missing before, I had a beginning and middle and an end point. I also discovered that looking at criteria 2 was more straightfor- ward when looking at it from scratch, you maybe have more objectivity when it isn’t something that you are used to. However, the biggest surprise of all was that I had fun doing


it. I had not properly written anything for a long time, and I had forgotten how much I enjoy it. This meant that I was really pleased with the feedback from my assessors, especially considering the torrid time I’d had with Chartership over the years. I guess that it just proves that you need to be in the right place with the right job and suddenly it all comes together! Having the time set aside to consider and reflect on what I


do and where and how I can improve, was particularly useful in a new role. This also allowed me to more deeply review the relevance of my current processes and workflows, making changes only when and if necessary. After finally, and successfully, having learnt how to write reflectively, this is a skill that I will continue to employ in my own role and with my external projects.


Moving forward Completing a successful application after years of trying did absolute wonders for my professional confidence! The feedback from the assessors was also a real positive for my self-confidence and some of this feedback has encouraged me to think about professional pursuits in the future. I’m currently in the process of working out how to put them into practice. One of the things that I found most enjoyable about the pro-


cess and have continued to do since, was around Criteria 3. I enjoyed reading and thinking about the profession in a wider context to my own role – possibly buying into the feeling of professional belonging that I was looking for at the beginning of the process. I feel more part of a wider community, rather than simply doing a job within one institution and sector.


My advice Don’t give up and don’t assume that its easy, for some people (me!) it’s a difficult process. I would also recommend both the CILIP Shut up and write group, which gives set aside time for writing your portfolio and their online workshops which focus on each of the criteria. At Bath, although it started after I was nearly finished, they have a Chartership ‘support’ group. I feel that peer support through the process would have been massively useful to me and would recommend looking for something similar if you are at the start of the journey. There is a real sense of achievement once the process is completed and lots of skills learnt.


INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL 59


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