Library and Information Science (MS)
Description
The SLIS Master of Science, Library and Information Science degree integrates theory with practice to help our graduates play dynamic roles in shaping the future of libraries, archives, museums and other information settings. Our students learn to organize information, to preserve collections, and to support users as they seek reliable and rich information resources. Above all, SLIS is committed to helping libraries, archives and museums engage diverse audiences and address society’s critical information needs.
Our faculty bring real world experience to classrooms and take pride in being personal mentors. The interests and expertise of our faculty cover a wide range of areas, including access to information for all users, organization of information, big data, technology, ethics, and how this applies to a range of organizational settings, including archives, school, public, academic, and special libraries, corporations, research environments, and the technology sector.
Through internships, site visits and pre-professional work opportunities throughout Massachusetts, across New England and all over the country, our students gain experience in their fields. Students take advantage of what Boston has to offer while taking on a flexible schedule, with classes held on days, nights, weekends, part-time, full-time, in-person or online. Our students go on to achieve a successful career, a meaningful life and a powerful return on their educational investment.
Our students go on to a variety of successful careers as digital librarians, web developers, social media managers, school media specialists and much more. The skills and knowledge you gain in this program prepare you for libraries, museums, archives, management of information systems and also for data-rich business and research settings.
Concentrations
LIS students may choose to focus their studies by following a degree concentration curriculum designed to prepare them to work in a variety of information institutions with a diversity of materials and tools. Students who choose to concentrate their studies must complete the LIS core courses required of all MS students as well as a sequence of courses required to earn the degree concentration. The following concentrations are available (see below for additional information):
- Archives Management
- Cultural Heritage Informatics
- Self-Directed
- Information Science and Technology
- Libraries and Librarianship
- School Library Teacher
Tracks
The LIS faculty has developed topical “tracks” that serve as guides for course selection and professional development in specific areas of the library and information science field. Students may customize their LIS degree program by working with their faculty advisor to select recommended “key courses” in a track of interest as well as elective courses that can broaden and deepen a student’s knowledge in the subject area.
Please refer to the description of the tracks on the web site to explore the key courses and electives in each curricular track:
- Information Organization
- Management and Leadership
- Preservation Management
- User Services
- Youth Services
Learning Outcomes
- Apply professional standards, tools, and best practices in the information field and across specialized areas.
- Communicate effectively across different audiences.
- Demonstrate the technological skills required to help information professionals and organizations achieve their goals.
- Critically analyze and apply research.
- Select, implement or create services, programs, and resources/systems that respond to the needs of diverse communities and stakeholders.
- Demonstrate individual and collaborative leadership potential.
- Be guided by professional ethics and values.
Requirements for Entry into Program
Applicants to the MS (LIS) program must have a Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university. Applicants must also submit official transcripts from all institutions attended (including transfer credits), three letters of recommendation, a statement of purpose, a resume, a completed application form, and application fee. International applicants must also submit a minimum TOEFL score of 79 (internet-based) or IELTS score of 6.5 in each part. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) tests are required only when an applicant’s Grade Point Average (GPA), when averaged and reflective of any and all degrees earned prior to application for admission to SLIS, measures less than 3.0. Applicants with less than a 3.0 GPA for all degrees will be considered after they submit the GREs.
Delivery Modes Available
SLIS has a flexible schedule, with classes held synchronously on days, nights and weekends, or online asynchronously. Classes are offered at three campuses: Boston, SLIS West in Greenfield, Massachusetts, or online. Students may attend full time or part time and may change their enrollment designation at any time. Small class sizes create a cohesive community and help our students succeed in the classroom and in their careers.
Experiential Learning
SLIS students develop hands-on skills and experience through internships, practicums, and pre-professional jobs in a wide variety of settings, including schools, libraries, corporations, hospitals, government agencies, NGOs, and media organizations. We strongly encourage all students to gain experience in the field, and we help students connect with the best sites for their career goals.
Every SLIS student is offered the opportunity to gain experience via coursework or pre-professional positions within our ever-growing network of partner institutions, including not only those in Massachusetts and New England, but also institutions all over the country. Archives Management, Cultural Heritage Informatics and School Library Teacher concentration students have experiential learning opportunities built into their programs, whereas students in the other concentrations can take an internship elective for credit. SLIS has a long history with internship sites, thereby providing matches for students rather than requiring students to find their own sites.
Degree Requirements
Students in the MS (LIS) degree program must complete 36 credits of graduate coursework to be qualified to earn the MS (LIS) degree.
MS (LIS) students must maintain a cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.0 to continue in the program.
Students in the School Library Teacher (SLT) concentration must receive a “B” (3.0) or better in every course. Any course in which the student has received a grade lower than a B must be repeated before the candidate may enroll in a practicum or be recommended for licensure.
Program Requirements
The School has initiated a program to provide a common base of knowledge of the technologies and tools students will encounter during the course of their studies, as well as resources available to them as a Simmons LIS student. All students entering the program are required to register for the following virtual orientation course.
MS in Library and Information Science (LIS) Core
MS (LIS) students are required to complete a three course LIS core (9 credit hours).
| LIS 407 | Information Service, Behaviors & Ethics | 3 |
| LIS 415 | Information Organization | 3 |
| LIS 488 | Technology for Information Professionals | 3 |
These core courses must be completed within a student’s first eighteen (18) credit hours of coursework.
School Library Teacher (SLT) Concentration: Core Technology Course
SLT students will complete LIS 460, instead of LIS 488, as part of their their MS (LIS) core.
| LIS 460 | Technology and the School Library Teacher | 3 |
SLT students may complete LIS 460 at any time during their degree program. However, they must still complete LIS 407 and LIS 415 within their first eighteen (18) credit hours of coursework.
Concentrations and Specializations
LIS students may choose to focus their studies by following a degree concentration curriculum designed to prepare students to work in a variety of information institutions with a diversity of materials and tools. Students who choose to concentrate their studies must complete the LIS core courses required of all MS students as well as a sequence of courses required to earn the degree concentration.
Archives Management Concentration Course Requirements
LIS core courses (9 credits):
| LIS 407 | Information Service, Behaviors & Ethics | 3 |
| LIS 415 | Information Organization | 3 |
| LIS 488 | Technology for Information Professionals | 3 |
Take the following (9 credits):
| LIS 438 | Introduction to Archival Theory and Practice | 3 |
| LIS 440 | Archival Access and Use | 3 |
| LIS 442 | Establishing Archives and Manuscript Programs | 3 |
One of the following (3 credits):
| LIS 433 | Oral History | 3 |
| LIS 441 | Appraisal of Archives and Manuscripts | 3 |
| LIS 443/HIST 527 | Archives, History, and Collective Memory | 3 |
| LIS 456 | Records Management | 3 |
| LIS 471 | Photographic Archives and Visual Information | 3 |
| LIS 472 | Moving Image Archives | 3 |
| LIS 476 | Outreach and Advocacy for Cultural Heritage | 3 |
| LIS 506 | Government Archives | 3 |
| LIS 508 | International Perspectives on Managing Archives and Records | 3 |
One of the following (3 credits):
Four elective courses (12 credits)
Cultural Heritage Informatics Concentration Course Requirements
LIS core courses (9 credits):
| LIS 407 | Information Service, Behaviors & Ethics | 3 |
| LIS 415 | Information Organization | 3 |
| LIS 488 | Technology for Information Professionals | 3 |
Take the following (12 credits):
| LIS 432 | Concepts in Cultural Heritage Informatics | 3 |
| LIS 438 | Introduction to Archival Theory and Practice | 3 |
| LIS 477 | Digital Asset Management for Libraries, Archives and Museums | 3 |
| LIS 507 | Museum Studies | 3 |
One of the following (3 credits):
Four elective courses (12 credits)
Information Science and Technology Concentration Course Requirements
LIS core courses (9 credits):
| LIS 407 | Information Service, Behaviors & Ethics | 3 |
| LIS 415 | Information Organization | 3 |
| LIS 488 | Technology for Information Professionals | 3 |
Take the following (9 credits):
Any two from the complete list below (6 credits):
| LIS 421 | Social Informatics | 3 |
| LIS 455 | Usability and User Experience Research | 3 |
| LIS 462 | Digitization Project Planning and Management | 3 |
| LIS 465 | Knowledge Management | 3 |
| LIS 467 | Web Development and Information Architecture | 3 |
| LIS 475 | Organizational/Information Ethics | 3 |
| LIS 486 | Systems Analysis in Information Science | 3 |
| LIS 487 | Data Interoperability | 3 |
| LIS 500 | Independent Study | 3 |
Four elective courses (12 credits)
Libraries and Librarianship Concentration Course Requirements
LIS core courses (9 credits):
| LIS 407 | Information Service, Behaviors & Ethics | 3 |
| LIS 415 | Information Organization | 3 |
| LIS 488 | Technology for Information Professionals | 3 |
Take the following (9 credits):
| LIS 404 | Principles of Management | 3 |
| LIS 408 | User Instruction & Information Literacy | 3 |
| LIS 453 | Collections Development and Management | 3 |
One of the following (3 credits):
Five elective courses (15 credits)
School Library Teacher Concentration Course Requirements
LIS core courses (6 credits):
| LIS 407 | Information Service, Behaviors & Ethics | 3 |
| LIS 415 | Information Organization | 3 |
Take the following (24 credits)
| LIS 406 | Management and Evaluation of School Library Programs | 3 |
| LIS 459 | Fundamentals of School Librarianship | 3 |
| LIS 460 | Technology and the School Library Teacher | 3 |
| LIS 461 | Curriculum and Instructional Strategies for the School Library Teacher | 3 |
| LIS 481 | Library Collections and Materials for Children | 3 |
| LIS 483 | Library Collections and Materials for Young Adults | 3 |
| LIS 498 | Practicum (PreK-8) | 3 |
| LIS 499 | Practicum (7-12) | 3 |
Two elective courses (6 credits)
Self-Directed Concentration Course Requirements
LIS core courses (9 credits):
| LIS 407 | Information Service, Behaviors & Ethics | 3 |
| LIS 415 | Information Organization | 3 |
| LIS 488 | Technology for Information Professionals | 3 |
Nine elective courses (27 credits)
Changing to or from a Concentration
Students who have begun their program of study within a concentration may decide to leave the concentration or switch to an alternate concentration. Students who wish to leave a concentration or switch to an alternate concentration must complete the Change of Concentration form and submit this form to the Student Services Center.
Students electing to leave a concentration or change from one concentration to another may request a new advisor to guide their progress through the degree program. To request a new advisor, students must first contact the advisor with whom they wish to work and then complete the Change of Advisor form, which requires the signature of the student and their new advisor, and submit this form to the Student Services Center.
Students currently enrolled in the Library and Information Science (MS) program and in the Archives Management or Cultural Heritage Informatics Concentrations can apply for admission to the dual degree (MA/MS) program in History (MA) and Archives Management or Cultural Heritage Informatics (MS) by submitting an application and the required materials with the University's Office of Graduate Admissions. Once these materials have been received, an interview with the History Graduate Program Director is also required.