Prospective Students
Thank you for your interest in the ALA accredited MLIS program at The University of Alabama’s School of Library and Information Studies (SLIS).
Students who complete the MLIS at UA go on to work as information professionals in a wide variety of careers including academic, school media, public and special libraries, archives, digital libraries, special collections, and more. For a glimpse of the range of career possibilities open to graduates of the MLIS program, you might want to take a look at national listings of jobs such as the ones found at LISjobs.com (use the Job Seekers tab) or ALA.org (use the Education & Careers tab).
SLIS students attend classes face-to-face and/or online.
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Students interested in attending class on campus are admitted on a rolling basis beginning with any semester. Students admitted for on-campus study – part time or full time – will take all required courses face-to-face in Tuscaloosa and/or Birmingham. Electives can be scheduled in any mode: synchronous online classes, face-to-face in Tuscaloosa, or in weekend format at The University of Alabama’s Gadsden Center. The application deadline for face-to-face study is 6 weeks prior to the first day of the semester in which studies will begin.
Our online study option is designed to accommodate working adult students who wish to study part-time. You can view an information session for prospective online students. Log in as a “participant,” type in your name, and enter. The presentation should start automatically. You can stop, pause, move forward to other slides, etc.
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Sixty students are admitted each fall term for the online cohort. Members of this cohort will complete studies online after a required on-campus three-day orientation session, the only on-campus requirement for the degree. Courses are offered in real-time, synchronous mode supported by BlackBoard web-based software. Most students in the cohort schedule two courses per semester, attending classes in the evenings from 6 to 8:45 PM central time. At this rate, the 36 credit hour program can be completed in 6 semesters or two calendar years. Apply by April 1st to begin online studies in the fall term.
Requirements for online cohort members include access to a personal computer, high-speed broadband internet access, a headset with microphone. Online courses at SLIS are synchronous, so students must have a quiet place to virtually “attend class” uninterrupted with the freedom to speak and listen online for about 3 hours (per class) each week.
Apply online by following instructions and accessing forms at the Graduate School website. Use the following checklist to gather and submit your application materials:
Statement of Purpose
Transcripts from all prior academic work
Admissions test score no more than 5 years old [either the GRE or the Miller Analogies Test (MAT)]. This requirement cannot be waived.
Application Fee
Three letters of recommendation via the Graduate School’s electronic form or sent directly to UA-SLIS, Box 870252, Tuscaloosa AL 35487-0252. For applicants who have been in school in the last 5 years, at least two (2) of the letters should be academic references.
Please also submit a resume to UA-SLIS at the address above.
Current tuition rates are posted on line (cost.ua.edu) and are subject to change without notice.
For information about departmental financial assistance as well as access to the electronic application form, please visit the SLIS Financial Aid page of the SLIS website. Information about scholarships offered through the College of Continuing Studies can be found on the CCS website.
Check the status of your application online by following these instructions.
A great deal of important communication at SLIS takes place through the list-serv. Subscribe to SLIS-L to become a part of this important communication channel.
Please feel free to contact Beth Riggs, Assistant to the Director (briggs@slis.ua.edu) with questions as you make decisions about graduate study.
Additional Information