Specialist in Library and Information Science

Admission Criteria
Degree Requirements

Admission Criteria

A student holding a master's degree in librarianship and/or information science from an accredited university may apply for admission to the Specialist Degree Program. Application deadlines are the same as for the M.L.S. and M.I.S. degree programs. Additional criteria for admission include the following:

• A minimum grade point average of 3.2 (on a scale of 4.0) in previous graduate course work.
• A minimum of two years' successful experience in a library, media, or information professional position following award of the master's degree. (This requirement may be waived when it is deemed advantageous to the student and acceptable to the school for the student to enter the specialist program directly from the master's level of study.)
• Three letters of recommendation.
• A description of the applicant's area of interest and career plan.

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Degree Requirements

The candidate for the specialist degree must complete 30 credit hours of graduate course work, of which at least 15 must be taken from the SLIS curriculum. The additional 15 credit hours may be taken in another school or department of Indiana University. The student's program should be planned in consultation with the SLIS advisor to meet the student's academic and professional goals. Students must complete the degree requirements within a period of five years.

A maximum of 6 graduate credit hours from another accredited university may, in certain limited circumstances and with the permission of the dean, be applied to the Specialist degree. Outside courses are warranted only when they are relevant to the student's career objectives. Ordinarily permission for such outside course work must be obtained before enrolling in the course. The course must be completed with a grade of B or higher, must not be applied to another degree, and must be taken within the five-year time frame allowed for completion of the degree.

A research project or thesis is not required, but students may receive up to 6 hours of credit by completing such work. An average grade of at least B (3.0) must be achieved in all graduate work taken.

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