MettaSutta

I’ve just been accepted to the Woodenfish Summer 2019 Humanistic Buddhist Monastic Life Program in China!

No, I did my undergrad here in New York. I went to Oklahoma for grad school and can't say enough terrible things about the place. That being said, I ultimately was the one who made the decision to go there, so I think I'm apprehensive about choosing programs this time around. I messed myself up so badly last time by picking OU. This time I'll be asking for plenty of advice and input from other students and this forum before sending out applications and making decisions. 
I noticed you are in NJ. Will you be attending Rutgers or another area school in the fall? 

I was accepted to Pratt for Fall 2020 but declined. I wasn't offered any funding or any on campus work and was told the number of transfer credits I could bring over was less than listed on their website. For context: I have a 3.8GPA, a year of ALA accredited grad school completed, and experience in the field. I was happy to be accepted, but pretty bummed on the acceptance terms. Furthermore, seemingly no plan of action for Fall 2020 in the wake of COVID-19? As an international student... this was not ideal. 

I've contacted NYU/LIU about their dual degree MA/MSLIS program. There are emphasis streams for special collections and archives at LIU, and NYU has museum studies (as well as conservation programs, but I don't think you can mix that into dual degree). These programs also have links to institutions that seem v intriguing. Not the same as Pratt's fellowships, but those are also very competetive and only available second year. CUNY also has a well reputed (straight forward) MLIS program. 

 

Hi, thanks for this! It helps.I have not looked at Rutgers yet and I definitely want to stay in the NYC area. I'm such a newbie, I don't know how to figure out which programs are best for what I want to do.  Thanks again.

Hey! Do you guys know anything about the Pratt MLIS program? I already have an MA in Medieval History and want to do special collections. It seems like they have really good internship opportunities at NYC institutions but I've heard some negative things. I have to stay in NYC for the next couple years if you guys know anything else about any other MLIS programs in the area. Thanks!

I'm almost positive I'm going to defer. In my case, the university I accepted is in London (which for me is overseas), and the main reason for me wanting to go there was the networking/work placement part of the course...it wouldn't make sense to do half of the year online if I'm choosing to pay the international student fees to study abroad.

Yes. I have psychiatric disabilities, and they have really held me back academically and professionally.  It took me double the amount of time to finish law school-6 years instead of 3-due to taking multiple mental health leaves.  However, unlike most recent law grads I ended up graduating with a job lined up that's full-time, long-term and JD required.  So I did pretty well for myself in spite of it all.  

I'm not a news or law librarian (yet!) but I am aspiring to law librarianship. To address your concern about the availability of jobs: there is just as much whining about the job market for law librarians as there is for librarians in general and academic jobs at large. I did a lot of research before I decided to pursue this. I am not sure if it will pay off, so I can't help you with that, but I would recommend you check out articles online by the Library Journal, read the section on librarians in the Occupational Outlook Guidebook (BLS.gov). Any job in an academic environment is tough to get. The employers of law librarians, like universities, governments, and law firms, are all strained right now. You need to look at the jobs people are qualified to do with that training if and when they do not get the specific professional job they hoped for. To me, working as a paraprofessional in a firm that did work I supported or in a small-town public library is acceptable, even if it's not my first choice. Depending on what school you go to, the MLS/MLIS/MIS degree equips you with technology skills and service training that is transferable to many different positions.

I completed an MA in history after undergrad. I was fortunate to be allowed to take graduate courses as an undergrad, so the MA was not a significant expense or hardship. I do think it was tremendously helpful. Graduate research was on a completely different level than undergraduate research. I also found that the MA gave me more time to talk to professors about their research, work in the department, and work closely with librarians, archivists, and academics. I don't think I could have proceeded confidently into such a specific professional program before the MA, but you may be more mature than I was. I would recommend an MA if you love the subject, are interested in the coursework, and it does not pose a financial hardship. Even if you decide to pursue librarianship afterwords, you will be a more competitive applicant and once you are done you will be more desirable candidate if you have a subject area specialty.

Thanks, @ravenclawace! That's good to know. The person I work with did her MLIS at San Jose, so I'll ask her about their offerings, too. I'll have to look for more programs that have a better archives selection. I really appreciate the feedback!

Rutgers, because of the low cost; UCLA, because it seems like a better option if you want to stay in SoCal, and if are in-state, it's quite affordable. You've already explained why not SJSU. I think you'll pay a minimum of around 31,000 per year at Simmons, plus a very high cost of living, so it seems silly to do that vs. Rutgers (20k for year 1, 12k each year after as an in-state resident), especially if you are going to get JD (or even not, with the poor job market for MLIS).

Rutgers or reapply next year to UCLA. You can be an in-state resident at Rutgers after the first year, and they sometimes give money to current students as they get grants. Also, if you want to be a law librarian, are you planning on also getting a JD? If so, keeping your debt for your MLIS low should be a priority.

Bump.  Also interested!

I think I've made my decision, going to UWashington online! I just decided at the end of the day I'm going to school to learn so I should pick the program in my budget with the most classes I'm interested in.

My application changed to  under graduate school review last Wednesday and I have not heard anything.  I know that in some iSchool departments, they contact the applicant if they recommend the applicant to the graduate school. I have know clue if the MLIS program does.  That being said, I'm not sure why it would go to the graduate school unless a recommendation by the department was made? I'm definitely overthinking everything at this point!!

No, I'm in the exact same boat! I also had that thought, but I don't want to assume anything. I actually emailed them on Friday to ask whether the status change meant that a decision was forthcoming, but they didn't respond. This info from the grad school website implies that we won't hear anything until after the grad school review.

Ugh! I'm checking my email/portal nonstop just in case anything updates (going crazy!!) Did you email the graduate school or the MLIS Program?

Ugh! I'm checking my email/portal nonstop just in case anything updates (going crazy!!) Did you email the graduate school or the MLIS Program?

The MLIS program. I was hoping that if they didn't respond, it would be because they were about to send out decisions...ugh!

Aw man Well let me know if you hear anything!

Will do! And same for you!

I did! I like the 100% synchronous nature of the program, as well as the youth services and school media electives offered.

Nothing at all. Still "under review". What about you?

My application status changed yesterday from "under departmental/program review" to "under graduate school review." I'm hoping that's good, but I don't know for sure. Haven't heard anything else from them.

Has anyone applied to/heard back from Maryland?

Congratulations! Looks like we'll be classmates!