The Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) is the master's degree that is required for most professional librarian positions in the United States and Canada. The MLIS is a relatively recent degree; an older and still common degree designation for librarians to acquire is the Master of Library Science (MLS), or Master of Science in Library Science (MSLS) degree. The MLIS and MLS degrees are widely considered to be equivalent. In some universities, these degrees are denoted as MLISc or MLSc, as in the case of M.S. for MSc. But in most commonwealth universities, both bachelor's program and master's program has been merged to provide MLIS/MLISc degree. Admission to MLIS programs normally requires holding a bachelor's degree in any academic discipline, and library schools encourage applications from people with diverse academic backgrounds.
In the United Kingdom it is more common for a vocational degree in library and information science to bear the standard designation M.A. or M.Sc.
Schools
The MLIS or MLS degree is usually acquired from an accredited library school. The American Library Association accredits programs across the U.S. and Canada.
Curriculum
The MLIS/MLS curriculum can vary widely. Typically, both practical and theoretical components are included, often along with a practicum or internship. Course work may entail traditional library topics, such as reference work, cataloging, school libraries, or archiving. There may also be a focus on information science and computer science topics, such as database and website design, as well as information architecture (thus leading to the "I" in MLIS). Other skills taught may include management or pedagogy.
A library school is an institution of higher learning specializing in the professional training of librarians. The first library school was established by Melvil Dewey (the originator of the Dewey decimal system) in 1887 at Columbia University. Since then many library schools have been founded in the United States and Canada. The development of library schools in other countries began in 1915, when librarians' schools were founded at Leipzig and Barcelona (currently, as a faculty of the Universitat de Barcelona, the latter is the oldest library school in Europe). Many others were founded during World War II. The University of Chicago became the first library school to confer a master's degree in library science, which is now the standard professional degree, and later became the first to give a doctoral degree in the field. Three other prominent American library schools are located at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Most library schools in North America offer graduate programs only. Accreditation of these programs is granted by the American Library Association. The bachelor's degree in Library Science (or Library Economics as it was called in early days) was, for the most part, phased out several decades ago. Librarians in North America typically earn a master's degree, either the MLS (Master of Library Science) or the MLIS (Master of Library and Information Science). This degree allows one to work as a practicing librarian in public libraries, academic libraries, school library media centers, and special libraries, while many individuals with the MLS title work with major library vendors. The degree is also applicable to related sectors such as publishing.
Master of Library Science programs are typically structured to offer a mixture of required and elective courses in library science and information science. The required courses focus on core library skills such as cataloging, reference, collection development as well as related areas such as the philosophy underlying the profession, information technology and management. Elective courses may include information management, children's literature, genealogy and archives as well as specialized courses related to different types of libraries.
In recent decades, many library schools have changed their names to reflect the shift from print media to electronic media, and to information contained outside of traditional libraries. Some call themselves schools of library and information science (abbreviated to "SLIS", hence the term "SLISters" for their students), while others, such as the University of Washington's Information School, have dropped the word "library".