Master of Library and Information Studies Library and Information Studies (MLIS)
Library Science and Information Studies
4101 Educational Building
Hampton Boulevard
Department of STEM and Professional Studies
757-683-4305
Elizabeth A. Burns, Graduate Program Director
General Description of the Library and Information Studies Program
The purpose of the Master of Library and Information Studies is to prepare students with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills that will enable them to become highly proficient librarians, media specialists, and information authorities. This includes, but is not limited to, professional positions in academic libraries, public libraries, school libraries, and special libraries such as health sciences, law, or business libraries as well as positions for information specialists in health environments, museums, businesses, government and other agencies.
Graduates of the program will be prepared to manage libraries, select and organize library collections, and interact with library patrons to determine and fulfill information and media needs. Further, librarianship has become a technology-based career and the proposed program reflects this focus. Through specific skills taught in the courses contained in the program of study, individuals will engage in the collection, organization, retrieval, preservation, management, and dissemination of information resources to enrich cultures within society. Thus, MLIS graduates will also be trained to perform tasks such as analyzing patron information requests, assisting in finding information sources including print, audio-video, and virtual information, and teaching information literacy skills.
We offer a concentration in school librarianship leading to endorsement for licensed teachers. Other students are advised through a plan of study completed with an advisor and filed with the program director in the semester when their 12th credit hour is completed. Coursework may focus on a type of library: academic, public, or special or area of library and information work such as youth services or evaluation & assessment.
Coursework for the MLIS is offered asynchronously and online. Coursework is project-based and students are expected to spend time in a library or other information setting for most courses. All students complete an internship. This program is available online.
The Master of Library and Information Studies Program at Old Dominion University is accredited by the American Library Association Committee on Accreditation, with the status of Initial accreditation. The next comprehensive review visit is scheduled for Fall 2028.