Is it appropriate to change my job title on my resume?
Edit: Thanks for the input everyone! I got the response I was mostly expecting. In other fields, it seems like it is a lot more acceptable to play loosey goosey in job titles, which is why it was on my mind (perhaps too much r/resumes for me).
Hello!
I am an MLIS student, and I currently work in an elementary school library with the job title "library clerk." I am looking to change jobs. There is a position open in an area I would very much like to move to. I'm refreshing my resume, and one thing that I am concerned about is the translation of the title "library clerk" to what I actually do. I feel like "clerk" kind of denotes a more junior position than "assistant" or "associate", which is the language used in the job I am applying for. In reality, I think this move would actually be a decrease in responsibilities.
The way my school district works, I am the only staff member who works in the library about 80% of the time. There is one district elementary librarian for the four elementary schools in the district. I do all of the day-to-day work. This includes: shelving, signage, displays, programming, teaching mini lessons, book repair, projects/initiatives, checkouts, reader's advisory, student council, library helpers (i.e., volunteer management), and anything else incidental that comes up. The big thing that I don't do is OPAC management, ILL, and book orders, but I do give suggestions to the librarian that are respected because I am the person who actually works with the patrons/students in the day-to-day. The librarian also is the one who does the lesson plans for the lessons I teach.
I was considering changing the job title to Library Technician because it seems more indicative of the scope of my work. I'm not a librarian; I don't have an MLIS (in my second semester), but I do more work than a regular assistant/associate. In one of my previous jobs, library technicians were a very specific intermediary role between assistant and librarian, which is why I'm not sure if it's entirely appropriate.
I wanted to ask the group if one: this is an inappropriate substitution (i.e., I do not do the work of a library tech) and/or if this is an inadvisable idea (i.e., I shouldn't change my job title at all). For reference, if you looked at my district's website, you'd be able to see my real job title.
Thank you!