Information and Library Studies

Why study Information and Library Studies at Aberystwyth University?

• Expertise from one of the UK’s leading providers.
• This course was one of the first qualifications in this important area and is still one of the market’s most well regarded.
• Aberystwyth University boasts library resources amongst the best in Europe.
• Situated next to the university campus is the National Library of Wales, one of the UK’s five copyright libraries, which houses more than 6,000,000 volumes.
• Develop theoretical knowledge that is applicable to the workplace, and develop skills that will place you in an enviable position in the jobs market.
• Undertake one of the best courses for professional practice.
• Graduates of this MA/Diploma will have a CILIP accredited qualification that is recognised for admission to the Register of Chartered Librarians (subject to the Institute’s chartership regulations).

Duration:

One year full-time or two years part-time. The academic year (September to September) is divided into three semesters: September to January; January to June; June to September. The first two semesters are taught and the third semester is devoted to individual work on your dissertation.

Contact Time:

Approximately 6-10 hours a week in the first two semesters, then mutually agreed contact time with your assigned supervisor.

Course Fees:

Please see the tuition fee pages for current tuition fees. Please note that all fees are subject to an annual increase.

Funding:

Funding opportunities may be available, please check our funding calculator for details.

Our alumni include a number of current and former national librarians (Scotland, Wales, Malta and Malaysia), the first black national librarian in South Africa, and the former Director of the Bureau for Library and Information Services at the United Nations.

In addition to the traditional library and information service sector, our graduates also go on to work as:

• Information Officers
• Information Managers
• Information Systems Officers
• Information Analysts
• Computer Systems Officers.

Companies also benefit from our graduates’ information skills when applied to the areas of management, sales, production or marketing.

Likewise, the wide array of transferable skills that are gained from this course can be used to pursue a diverse range of related careers, including media management and book publishing. Many of our graduates also undertake further postgraduate level research.

Skills

Throughout this course, you will develop:

• Subject-specific expertise, including a thorough understanding of factors affecting the flow of information in a range of important societal contexts and the challenges of organising, storing, and retrieving information.
• Confidence in the use of systems and their tools to order, store, and retrieve information.
• Key information handling skills, including the ability to analyse and control how information is transmitted to users, access to information, and measurement of its use.
• ICT, management, and interpersonal skills.
• Confidence in the use of system and their tools which you will use to order, store and retrieve information be confident in the use of system and their tools which you will use to order, store and retrieve information be confident in the use of system and their tools which you will use to order, store and retrieve information.
• Mastery of the practical applications of Information and Library Studies.

How will I learn?

This course is a one-year full-time course and is divided into three semesters. The first two semesters (September – May) consist of a taught element, whereby students complete 120 credits, at which point they are eligible for a CILIP-accredited Diploma. The final semester (June – September) allows you to complete a Master's dissertation (60 credits), and thus gain a CILIP-accredited MA (180 credits).

During the first two semesters, the course is delivered via a combination of lectures, seminars and workshops and contact time is approximately 10 hours a week. In the final semester you'll arrange your level of contact time with your assigned dissertation supervisor.

In addition to teaching input from Information Studies staff, you'll be exposed to guest lectures and visits to services local to the University.

What will I learn?

You'll study a number of core modules during the first two semesters and choose from a selection of specialist modules to tailor the course to your own interests.

Students wishing to complete the full MA course will then go on to undertake the individual dissertation, whereas those who do not wish to complete the dissertation can exit after successfully completing their second semester modules with a CILIP-accredited Diploma.

The 15,000 word dissertation allows you to research an approved topic within the information and library field, engage with central concepts, methods and techniques in the main streams of information and library research, and in doing so aim to contribute to the national understanding of data handling and information flow.

Assessment:

The taught part of the course, which is 120 credits, is delivered and assessed through lectures, student seminars, practical exercises, case studies and course work. Successful completion of 60 credits of taught modules makes you eligible for a Postgraduate Certificate, 120 credits gives eligibility for a CILIP-accredited Postgraduate Diploma, or successful completion of your postgraduate dissertation leads to an accredited Master’s degree.