Library & Information Science (Graduate Program)

Program Overview

The School of Library & Information Science offers the only Master of Library & Information Science (MLIS) degree in Louisiana. In 1926, LSU began offering summer courses in library science, and in 1931 the Board of Supervisors established The Graduate School of Library Science. The name was changed to the School of Library & Information Science (SLIS) in 1981. LSU’s departmental-level academic course plan in library and information science has been continuously accredited by the appropriate accrediting authority throughout its history. The Master of Library & Information Science degree program is currently accredited by the American Library Association.

Many careers are open to those who earn the master’s degree in library and information science (MLIS). Librarians, archivists, and information scientists are able to organize great amounts of disparate information for retrieval and to activate use of information for problem solving and policymaking. In public service positions, librarians and information scientists assist patrons in using material to enrich their lives and work. Our graduates are building print and digital library collections, providing face-to-face and online reference services, offering storytelling programs, studying human-computer interaction, and preserving archival collections. Some MLIS graduates hold positions in major research libraries, community college libraries, school libraries, and public libraries, while others are employed in the Library of Congress and the National Library of Medicine. Others are information specialists for business and industry, or work in federal government libraries such as the Government Printing Office or overseas in Army libraries, or in state government libraries. Still others manage archival materials in a wide variety of historical repositories, or work in hospitals, law firms, and museums.

The diversity of careers for which the MLIS degree is the requisite credential offers mobility and many opportunities for advancement. Graduates will be well prepared to pursue information careers that support their personal interests and skills. More than 170 graduate students are enrolled in SLIS and more than 50 MLIS degrees have been awarded in each of the last five years.

Administration

Admission

Applications and supporting materials for all graduate study must be submitted through the online application site for the LSU Graduate School. Official transcripts, official test scores, and other materials that come from third-party sources must be mailed to: Graduate Student Services, 114 West David Boyd Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803. These paper documents are stored electronically and departments have access to all materials submitted by and/or on behalf of a student applying to graduate study.

Applications for admission are received and evaluated by the department throughout the year, and students may be admitted to begin their studies in fall, spring, or summer. Applicants must adhere to the application deadlines established by the Graduate School.

Students seeking admission must submit satisfactory credentials from previous study, including a grade-point average of at least 3.00 (“A”= 4) for the last two years of undergraduate work taken and 3.00 for all graduate level work previously taken, based on all work for which a grade is given. Students must also have three letters of recommendation and a professional resumé. International students whose native language is not English must also submit an acceptable TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE score.

Students applying to the MLIS program may have the GRE/GMAT waived if they meet the following criteria:

1. A minimum of a 3.0 GPA in their last 60 hours of undergraduate coursework
2. A minimum of a 3.0 GPA on all previous graduate coursework
3. Three letters of acceptable recommendations
4. An essay of at least 1000 words that answers these three questions :
   • Why do you want to earn an MLIS?
   • What are your career goals and objectives?
   • How will an MLIS from LSU SLIS help you to achieve these goals?

Applicants who do not meet these criteria must also submit GRE scores.

Provisional admission may be considered for an applicant who appears to be admissible on the basis of credentials submitted, but who is unable to supply all of the required official records prior to registration. A student admitted provisionally must submit complete and satisfactory records within 30 days after the first day of registration. If these credentials are not received by the date specified or if they prove to be unsatisfactory, the student will not be permitted to register for other courses. Provisional admission does not guarantee subsequent regular admission.

Probationary admission may be recommended for an applicant who fails to meet the necessary admission requirements but who is, nevertheless, judged by the dean and the faculty to show promise for successful graduate work. Probationary admission requires that students maintain a 3.0 or better GPA for nine consecutive hours in order to convert to regular admission. Students who fail to maintain this average will not be permitted to register for additional courses. Applicants who have an unsatisfactory undergraduate record who have completed a minimum of nine hours of graduate coursework with at least a 3.33 graduate GPA and who have acceptable GRE scores will be considered for admission on probation.

Financial Assistance

Details about scholarships and assistantships for MLIS students, including application forms and deadlines, is available here.

Graduate Faculty

(check current listings by department by clicking this link)

Carol L. Barry (6A) • Information retrieval, relevance, library automation, abstracting and indexing
Edward Albert Benoit III (6A) • Archival access, participatory & community archives, archival education, and digital collections
Bert Boyce (EM)
Michael Carpenter (EM)
Alma Dawson (M) • Collection development, academic libraries, foundations of library and information science, information literacy instruction
Elizabeth Dow (M) • Archives management, TEI and EAD in an XML environment, preservation of historical materials, intellectual access to historical materials
Tao Jin (M) • Competitive intelligence, knowledge management
Boryung Ju (M) • Human-computer interaction, knowledge management
Shirley B. McDonald (3P) • School Libraries
Michelynn McKnight (M) • Health sciences libraries, information behavior of health care providers and consumers, research methods
Patsy Perritt (EM)
Suzanne Stauffer (M) • Print culture, history of children’s services in public libraries and school libraries, librarianship as a profession, education for librarianship, gender issues in librarianship
Jamene Brenton Stewart (6A) • Cataloging
Yejun Wu (M) • Information retrieval systems, digital libraries, knowledge organization

Programs

• Library & Information Science, M.L.I.S.