The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Tenure-Track Librarians

Abstract:The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic brought about significant disruptions in higher education, including changes within the field of academic librarianship. This paper reports on a March 2021 survey of tenure-track faculty librarians. The purpose was to identify the challenges they faced because of the pandemic, the effect on their confidence, and the impact on job responsibilities, workload, and promotion and tenure requirements. Key findings showed that several factors, including colleague retirements and changes in instructional needs, precipitated workplace changes during the pandemic. Furthermore, support for the meeting of promotion and tenure requirements diminished for most participants, as evidenced by decreases in funding for professional development and lack of time to devote to research and writing. Respondents also provided personal reflections regarding how work changed during the pandemic. This paper adds to the growing body of pandemic-related literature and proposes future research.