While the scope and nature of a librarian’s academic responsibilities may differ from their faculty colleagues in other disciplines, the scholarly obligations remain. The Master’s degree is a professional qualification: with it librarians enter the field but not necessarily the academy. Does this suggest that, like faculty in other disciplines, those wishing to pursue a career in academic librarianship might benefit from acquiring an advanced research degree to help prepare them for their academic role?
This session will focus on a discussion of questions such as:
Why get a PhD and how will it advance or impact a career?
What are the personal costs and gains of further graduate education?
Should the PhD be the terminal degree for academic librarians?
What advice would you give to a librarian considering a PhD program?
What structural conditions do organizations need to encourage librarians to embark on and succeed in a doctoral program?
Outcomes:
– Discover value, benefits and costs of the PhD to academic librarians
– Consider the complementary librarian roles of professional and academic
– Explore insights into the nature of a PhD program
