Graduate Certificate in Archives and Special Collections

The Southern Miss School of Library and Information Science is offering a Graduate Certificate in Archives and Special Collections.  The 18-credit hour certificate combines online coursework related to archival history, theory, methods, organization, and ethics, with an archival practicum.  This course of study can be taken as part of a student's MLIS degree or as a post-master's certificate for those holding an MLS from as ALA-accredited program.  Non-LIS graduate students are required to take LIS 505: Cataloging and Classification as a prerequisite.

Program Goals/Objectives: To prepare students for careers in archives and related fields such as special collections, museums, and digital libraries.

Required courses:
.    LIS 646: Special Collections and Archives (3 credits)
.    LIS 647: Introduction to Archival Organization (3 credits)
.    LIS 648: Archival Practicum (3 credits)
.    LIS 675: Seminar in the Organization of Material: Introduction to Digital Libraries (3 credits)
.    LIS 675: Seminar in the Organization of Material: Metadata (3 credits)

Elective (choose one)
.    LIS 506: Advanced Cataloging and Classification (3 credits)
.    LIS 558: Internet Resources and Applications (3 credits)
.    LIS 631: History of Libraries (3 credits)
.    LIS 634: History of Children's Literature (3 credits)

Certificate Assessment
After completing the required coursework, students are required to write a 2500-word paper on an approved topic related to archives, special collections, or digitization that is approved by faculty teaching archival-related courses.

Recommended but not required: British Studies Program in London and Edinburgh.
    LIS 580/587: British Libraries and Information Centers (6 credits)