This presentation highlights the numerous professional development and continuing education opportunities for information professionals offered at the School of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University. The school’s director, Dr. Sandra Hirsh, reviews the skillsets today’s employers seek in applicants, discusses the growing need to re-tool and update skills, and addresses why information professionals should choose the SJSU information school for their career development needs. Professional development opportunities highlighted include a fully online Post-Master’s Certificate in Library and Information Science program that features seven career pathways, fully online graduate-level courses open to everyone, virtual colloquium presentations (FREE online seminars), and MOOCs (FREE online courses), and more! This presentation was originally given on March 25, 2014, during a virtual meeting of corporate librarians.

1. SJSU School of Library & Information Science
Professional Development for
Information Professionals
Dr. Sandra Hirsh, Professor and Director

2. 2
Agenda
• Expanding New Opportunities for LIS
Professionals – Essential Skills for Success
• Investing in Your Future:
Professional Development Opportunities for LIS
Professionals
• Why Choose SJSU’s School of Library &
Information Science for your Career
Development Needs
• Questions and Answers

3. 3
Expanding Opportunities
for LIS Professionals:
Essentials Skills for Career Success

4. 4
Essential LIS Skills:
Results of SLIS’s Employer Survey
• Technological skills
• Project management skills
• Marketing and advocacy skills
• Interpersonal and collaborative skills
• Ability to organize physical and digital items
and collections
• Ability to create and deliver instructional
programs
• Ability to facilitate the provision of information
to various audiences

5. 5
• Reference skills
• Networks, metadata, digital assets, database
management, website development
• Management-level positions
• Statistics/analysis skills
• Teaching/instruction
• Knowledge of emerging trends/technologies
• Digitization projects, integrated library systems
and others
http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/about-slis/
publications/emerging-career-
trends-information-professionals-
snapshot-job-titles
Top Employer-Requested LIS Skills and
Knowledge

6. 6
“Technical or technological skills have
always been important elements for
long-term career success, but growing
your soft skills – such as management,
interpersonal relations, listening,
influencing skills, and empathy – can
make the difference between a
competent professional and a great
leader.”
(Stephen Abram, 2013)

7. 7
• Strategic knowledge and advantage
• Results driven problem solving
• Research and analysis
• Competitive intelligence
• Provide “value-added” solutions
• Thinking outside the box
LIS Career Skills:
Beyond Reference Services
There’s a Pathway for that:
Information Organization,
Description, Analysis and Retrieval

8. 8
• Marketing and Sales
• People management
• Public speaking and presentations
• Decision making
• Financial and budget management
• Meeting and event planning
• Project management
LIS Career Skills: Managerial Skills
There’s a Pathway for that:
Leadership and Management

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Invest in your Future!
Professional Development
Opportunities for LIS Professionals

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Post-Master’s Certificate
Offering 7 Exciting Career Pathways
• Digital Archives & Records Management
• Digital Services & Emerging Technologies
• Digital Curation
• Information Intermediation & Instruction
• Leadership and Management
• Web Programming and Information
Architecture
• Youth Services

11. 11
Student Perspective
“There is a growing need for librarians
to expand their advocacy and
leadership skills, and to strive for
long-term relationship building with
decision-makers,” said Thomas
Knutson, who earned his MLIS 15 years
ago at the University of British Columbia
in Vancouver.
The fully online delivery model of the
certificate program has worked well for
Knutson. “Communicating and
collaborating online creates an
interesting dynamic, particularly in
group work. You have to be organized
and prepared with the information you
put forward, but this ultimately leads
to stronger team-building.”
Thomas Knutson
Youth Services
Coordinator at
Saskatoon Public
Library in
Saskatchewan,
Canada

12. 12
San Jose Gateway PhD Program
• Research focused
• Individually tailored program for each
student
• International setting
• Exceptional faculty support from both
SJSU and QUT teams
• No course work required

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NEW! i.School Open Classes
• Professional development opportunities for
future and current information professionals
• Enroll in graduate-level courses
• Earn college credit
• No course pre-requisites
• Interact with students and faculty in SLIS”s
MLIS, MARA, and post-MLIS certificate
programs.

14. 14
Customize Your Learning Experience
Action Research
Award Winning YA Titles
Children and Information Technology
Consumer Health Librarianship
Data Librarianship
Digital Humanities
Ethnography with a focus on technology
Evaluating Programs and Services
Library Services for Distance Learners
Film & Media
Infomatics
Information Visualization
Information Literacy Instruction
Legal Resources
Maps & GIS
Medical Librarianship
Music Informatics
Music Librarianship
Oral History
Photographic Preservation
Special Collections
Services for Older Adults
Patents
PHP/MySOL
Psychology of the Information User
Publishing for the Profession
Readers Advisory
Resources &Services for Patrons with Disabilities
Science & Technology Resources
Storytelling
The Hyperlinked Library
Understanding Content Management Systems
Virtual Services
Web 2.0
XML
Virtual Worlds
Web and Social Media Analytics
Web Search

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Courses Offered Summer 2014

16. 16
Courses Offered Summer 2014
And more!

17. http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/colloquium-series-1
SLIS Colloquia Events and Recordings

18. 18
MOOCs for Professional Development
• All coursework is completed online
• Enrollees can live anywhere
• No application or course fees
• Open to anyone
• Explore emerging trends
• Engage in a collaborative learning environment
• Earn a certificate of completion

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Library 2.0 Virtual Conferences
Access Free Online Presentations
Library 2.011 – Library 2.012 – Library 2013
• Available online 24x7
• Available in multiple languages
• More than 3 years of content
Participate!
Library 2.014 – October 8-9th
• Become a presenter
• Engage in live conference sessions
• Volunteer
• Participate in a learning community
http://www.library20.com/

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Why Choose SJSU’s
School of Information &
Library Science?

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48 States &
17 Countries
Students
Around
the World

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What Does 100% Online Look Like?
• Everyone is online – students and faculty
• Coursework and instruction designed for online
learning
• Online access to faculty office hours, academic
advising, and student support services
• Rich online learning environment and
technology (Blackboard IM, Collaborate, D2L,
Panopto)
“Using these communication technologies in the
learning environment was fun, and it was also part of
my training as a real-world information professional.”
Kate Tasker (Alumni)

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Communication is Both
Asynchronous & Synchronous
Asynchronous
• Discussion Forums
• Video Messaging
• Email
Synchronous
• Web Conferencing (Collaborate)
• VoIP (Skype)
• Virtual Worlds (Second Life)
• Blackboard IM

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SLIS offers a
variety of
Professional
Development
opportunities
that are…
ü 100% Online
ü Convenient
ü Attainable
ü Customizable
Why SLIS?

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Questions?

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Thank you for attending!
Dr. Sandy Hirsh, Professor and Director
sandy.hirsh@sjsu.edu
Facebook: facebook.com/sjsuslis
Twitter: twitter.com/sjsuslis
Pinterest: pinterest.com/sjsuslis/
YouTube: youtube.com/user/sjsuslis
Let the learning begin:
slisweb.sjsu.edu