Research Support Intern – Maritime Library, University of Exeter

Universtiy of Exeter Internships, UoE Internships, SCP, SBP, GBP, A2I

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

During my internship I was involved in the cataloguing of the Seymour Collection at the Old Library. This involved adding books to the library catalogue and ensuring that the library’s resources could gain wider exposure to the student body at large. I was particularly mindful of the finite space in which to hold such resources and therefore had to make judgements when I came across copies of books already in the University catalogue. Furthermore, I also gained an appreciation of the importance of the bibliographical information contained within books, particularly in regard to reprints or new editions.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I gained an understanding of how the university library functioned and how to catalogue resources.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

By adding books to the catalogue, I helped to increase the library’s accessible holdings which will benefit students in the future.

Did you encounter any problems during the course of your internship and if so, how did you overcome them?

Unfortunately, I was unable to undertake the second of the two tasks assigned as the ELMAP database was inaccessible and by the time this had been rectified I had completed my designated hours.