Profiles

Cheri Crist

Sponsoring Organization: University at Buffalo, SUNY
Attending: University at Buffalo, SUNY

My career path up until now represents a labyrinthine journey from writer, to proofreader, to editor, back to writer again, filmmaker, back to editor, and now finally, librarian-to-be. After earning my M.A.H. in English and Media Study, I began to realize that filmmaking, while a passion, just wasn't what I was meant for. So began an odyssey of intensive vocational exploration which included an almost alarming number of skill and interest surveys, lists, and suggested careers that matched my personality and vocational inclinations. I researched and considered such varied career paths as park ranger, EMT, dog groomer, sign language interpreter, and chef. Librarian was always there in the mix, but wasn't something that came to the fore until I looked back at one of the lists I had made in which I recorded 25 characteristics of my ideal career. To my surprise, delight, and utter relief, I realized that librarianship encompassed almost all every single item on that list. I had found my calling. Here was a profession in which I could learn and grow, and help others do the same. It was a career that would make a difference.

Now that I'm in library school -- which wouldn't have been possible without the help of the "Making it REAL!" scholarship -- I am only more certain that librarianship is what I was meant to do. Librarians are a breed unto themselves, and every time I begin a new class, I can look around me and say, "These are my people." I'm excited to begin my new career with the knowledge that librarianship can take me anywhere I choose to go.