Joint MA in Library and Information Science and Graduate Certificate in Book Studies, for those interested in Special Collections librarianship.

School of Library and Information Science

Purpose

To prepare students for careers in Special Collections librarianship. (Special collections librarians manage rare book, manuscript, archive and other types of special collections, including graphics, music and ephemera.)

Research libraries report a shortage of qualified applicants for current openings, and anticipate worse shortages as retirement numbers rise over the next few years. The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has convened a Task Force on Education and Training for Careers in Special Collections. At meetings held on November 12 and 11, 2003, participants made the following points:

Institutions report recruitment difficulties and concern about impending retirements.
Few LIS programs are preparing students for careers in this area; few schools offer in-depth programs for special collections, although students are interested in the field.
As digitization revitalizes interest in special collections there is likely to be growth in the curriculum.
Some recruitment difficulties can be viewed positively as reflecting growth in the nature of special collections jobs (e.g., Head of Public Services within special collections is a new type of position).

We anticipate that initially, about ten to fifteen percent of the incoming SLIS students (five or six) might take the joint MA/Certificate option. We expect this initial figure to rise after the first few years, but that it is unlikely to be more than twenty percent (ten students) of the total annual intake.

Joint Program

To enroll in the joint program, students must be admitted to the MA program of the School of Library and Information Science and to the Graduate Certificate program at the Center for the Book. Taken separately, these two programs require a total of sixty semester hours (36 for the SLIS MA, and 24 for the Book Studies certificate). But for students enrolled in the joint program, up to nine semester hours of study may be applied toward the MA in LIS or to the Book Studies Certificate.

All core requirements for both programs must be met. Students must take at least 27 credits in LIS and 15 credits in Book Studies, as part of the total 51 credits required for the joint program. The remaining nine credits may be taken from either LIS or Book Studies, or from another unit, provided the substitution or transfer of credit is negotiated in advance with the student's advisor in either SLIS or the UICB. To transfer credit from other programs into the joint degree/certificate, the student must follow the rules for transfer or substitution of credit currently in operation at either SLIS or the UICB, depending on the nature of the courses involved.

If a student drops out of the joint program, but stays in either the certificate or master's program, then the normal regulations for that individual program come into effect, including rules for transfer or substitution of credit from other programs.

Curriculum

Taken as a stand alone, the master's degree in Library and Information Science (LIS) requires 36 semester hours of graduate credit with a grade-point average of at least 3.00, and the successful completion of a written and oral comprehensive examination or portfolio. For more information go to: http://www.uiowa.edu/~libsci/bookstudies3.html.

The 36 semester hours include 17 earned in required core courses and 19 earned in electives, distributed among four curricular clusters. A thesis option is available for students who wish more research experience.

The UI Center for the Book certificate requires 24 semester hours of coursework in courses numbered 100 and above, which must be taken at the graduate level. At least 6 semester hours must be taken in historical/cultural courses and 6 semester hours in arts & technologies courses. For more information go to: www.uiowa.edu/~ctrbook/programs/requirements.html.

SLIS required courses: 17 s.h.

101. Foundations of Library and Information Science (3 s.h.)
120. Design of Automated Systems (3 s.h.)
122. Org. of Information Resources I (3 s.h.)
141. Reference and Information Services (3 s.h.)
202. Research Methods (3 s.h.)
260. Strategic Management (2 s.h.) or 262. School Media Administration (2 s.h.) or 263. Nonprofit Organizational Effectiveness I (3 s.h.)

Recommended electives (total of 19 s.h., minimum of 10 s.h. from list below)

From Conceptual Structures/Systems Cluster:

21:224. Electronic Publishing (3 s.h) (propose cross listing with UICB)
21:226. Digital Libraries (2 s.h.) (propose cross listing with UICB)
21:228. Hypertext Systems (2 s.h.) (propose cross listing with UICB)

From Resources/Services Cluster:

21:240. Collection Management (3 s.h.)
21:242. Online Information Systems (2 s.h.)
21:254. Scholarly Domains (3 s.h.)
21:256/108 :220. History of Reading (3 s.h.)
21:258/ 108:183/16E:118 . Transition from Manuscript to Print (3 s.h.)
21: 269 Topics: Preservation of Archival and Library Materials (3. s.h.) (propose cross listing with UICB)

From Policy/Planning Cluster:

21:269 Topics : Introduction to Special Collections (3 s.h.) (propose cross listing with UICB)
21:278. Information Policy (2 s.h.)
21: 271. College and University Libraries (3 s.h.)
21:270. Public Libraries (3 s.h.)
21:279 Topics: Policy/Planning (Archives) (1 s.h.)

UICB required Courses: 15 s.h.:

6 s.h. in Arts and Technologies,
6 s.h. in Historical/Cultural,
3 s.h. 108:205 Final Project

Historical/Cultural (all 3 s.h.):

108:185/008:134 Introduction to Book Studies
108:181:001 Literature and the Book
108:182:001 The Book in the Middle Ages
019:213 History of Books and Printing
019:250 Visual Communication
01H:137 Romanesque and Gothic Art
01H: 157 19 th Century Art in Britain (focus on illustrated books and relationship of image and text in book form)

Arts/Technologies (all 3 s.h.)

Bookbinding (students could either focus on traditional/historical binding structures or artists' book work - both appropriate for Special Collections work):

108:150 Bookbinding I: Materials and Techniques
108:151 Bookbinding II or 108:250 Structure of the Handmade Book
108:153 Artists' Books

Calligraphy:

108:142 History of Western Letterforms
(overview of calligraphy from Roman to present day; both hands on and historical presentation of material)

Papermaking

108:110:001 Papermaking

Printing (both introduce traditional letterpress technology as well as some contemporary adaptations):

108:161/008:187 Handprinted Book: Design and Production
108:162 Typography for Letterpress Printing

Recommended Advanced Electives in Arts/Technologies (all 3 s.h.)

Bookbinding

108: 152 Bookbinding III
108: 251 Advanced Bookbinding
108: 157 or 108:158 Pop Up and Moveable Book Structures
108:156 Boxes and Enclosures
108:153 Studies in Bookbinding: (various courses on specific binding areas)

Calligraphy:

Courses on Specific Hands
108:141 Calligraphy: Gothic Hands
108:143 Calligraphy: Foundational Hands
108:144 Calligraphy: Italic and script Hands
108:141 Calligraphy: Expressive Forms

Papermaking:

108:111 Advanced Papermaking
108:210 Individual Instruction in Papermaking

Printing:

108:164 Digital to Letterpress Workshop
108:165 Innovative Letterpress

Associated Courses:

019: 241 Publication Design Workshop
019: 247 Book Design Workshop
019:243 Typography Workshop
01D: 082 Computer Graphic Design I
01D:128 Computer Graphic Design II
01D:125 Typography
01L:140 Digital Imaging

Participating faculty

SLIS tenure track faculty:

David Eichmann
James Elmborg
Marc Light
Christine Pawley
Padmini Srinivasan

SLIS adjunct instructors:

Nancy Baker (University Librarian)
Gary Frost (University Conservator)
Nancy Kraft (Head of Preservation, UI Libraries)
David McCartney (University Archivist)

UICB tenure track faculty:

Matthew Brown
James Snitzer
Cole Swensen
Katherine Tachau
Jonathan Wilcox

Other UICB instructors:

Timothy Barrett
Julie Cobb Smith
Glen Epstein
Cheryl Jacobsen
Kathleen Kamerick
Craig Kelchen
Julia Leonard
Emily Martin
Penny McKean
Sara Sauers
Emily Wilson