SWOTDominican University

GSLIS Experience

Jennifer Cox, Joel Machiela, Mary Morgan Ryan

GSLIS Mission Statement

The mission of the Graduate School of Library and Information Science is to educate excellent library and information science professionals.  This education is carried out within the larger context of Dominican University's institutional commitment to values-centered intellectual development, both personal and professional for students and faculty alike.

StrengthsAdmissions- good information on website (admission deadlines, requirements, etc.) Orientation- helpful in general (faces and names, intro to services, financial aid, career planning, intro to specialty pathways).    Registration- online registration for students past the core classes.  Registrar office staff is friendly and helpful. Curriculum- curriculum review in near future, with input from students. Regimented curriculum school library media program.           Faculty- lots of real-world experience represented by the faculty.  faculty can serve as a valuable networking resource 

Weaknesses

Admissions:  Lack of public awareness/marketing Orientation:  Little to no mention of practical aspects like the                        location of the bookstore, where important                        offices are, parking rules, etc.   Registration: Limited availability of class sections.                           cumbersome online registration. Curriculum:  Very few classes offered at satellite locations Faculty:  Little uniformity between sections.   

Weaknesses

Advising: underutilizedAlumni:  Connections for students to alumni                Connection for alumni back to school Career Development: Only introduced at orientation and in                                         select classes.   Continuing Education: Lack of awareness of offerings.     

Opportunities

Admissions: word of mouth, recommendations from those in                         the field or from former students. Opportunities: alumni may come in and speak about the                            program. Faculty: visiting lecturers. Career Development: libraries/schools contact career                                        development office with job openings. New Technology: new developments in Web 2.0 and/or                                  Library 2.0.

ThreatsAdmissions: state of economy, program competition Orientation: inability to attend, either potential students or                       pertinent faculty/staff Registration: number of students Faculty: personal issues, other responsibilities Resources: availability

Recommendations 1. Interfolio: transcript availability 2. Registration: Amount of course offerings  - Update technology 3. Diversity of classes: i.e. specialization other than school library media                                          program 4. Integrate Technology Competencies into Core Curriculum

5. Tech competencies that build upon each other as technology develops  6. Create a learning organization environment at Dominican between     departments, especially computer science.   7. Encourage student to use free software/other items 8. The satelite locations should offer more classes, especially the     downtown classes 

Recommendations continued

9.  Continuing education: technology workshops available for alumni 10. Career Development: -additional visiblity to students                                             -increase ease access/availability-online11.  Mentorship relationship to expand current advising program

Plan for Evaluation1. Market and track the use of Interfolio 2. Evaluate professors' syllabi to ensure integration of required    tech competencies.   3. Annually look at other universities and organizations that are    leading in innovative use of technology and decide if     Dominican students and faculty could benefit from these     ideas or programs. Determine feasibility of budgetary     constraints and implement the top choices. 4. Develop online poll for current students as part of     registration process, and for graduating students as an exit     interview.   5. Keep statistics on mentor/student contacts.