Located in the heart of the beautiful UNC at Chapel Hill campus, the School of Information and Library Science (SILS) prides itself on providing high quality educational and research opportunities in a dynamic, interdisciplinary learning environment.
One of the nation's top-ranked schools of library and information studies by U.S. News & World Report, SILS consistently takes a leadership role in today's ever-changing information and library science landscape.
Located on the central campus quad, Manning Hall houses the School's classrooms, offices, computing laboratory and the library.
SILS educates innovative and responsible thinkers who will lead the information professions; discovers principles and impacts of information; creates systems, techniques, and policies to advance information processes and services; and advances information creation, access, use, management, and stewardship to improve the quality of life for diverse local, national, and global communities.
This mission is rooted in the values of our field, our university, and our school and seeks to achieve our vision as the leading information school in the world. It has four components: education, basic research, design and development and real world engagement. Our educational mission is manifested in our degree programs, in field studies and internships, and in the collaborative research our students do with faculty and other students. Our basic research mission is rooted in the recognition that data, information, and knowledge are the engines of science, industry, and the human experience. We study how information is created and flows among people and organizations, and how it is used and reused, managed, and preserved. Our design and development mission manifests in interacting systems that include computational components (hardware and software), organizational components (indexes, metadata, ontologies), access components (user interfaces), and policy components. We develop and evaluate these interacting components in principled and systematic projects and investigations. Our engagement mission is motivated by the recognition that information is socially embedded in culture and that real world problems are solved by people armed with knowledge of the past, contemporary information, and tools for exploration and decision making. Engagement means not only leveraging information and tools beyond the campus, but also that protocols, practices, rights, and responsibilities be defined and defended and that people learn about them in context.
The School of Information and Library Science seeks to advance the profession and practice of librarianship and information science; to prepare students for careers in the field of information and library science; and to make significant contributions to the study of information. Faculty members further these goals by teaching and advisory work; by research and scholarly publishing; and by service to the school, the university, the state, and the professional community. The American Library Association (ALA) accredits both the master of science in library science degree and the master of science in information science degree.The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools accredits the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
The School of Information and Library Science (SILS) stands among the leading research-intensive schools devoted to educating information professionals. In the past two decades SILS and its peers have broadened research and educational missions beyond scholarly publishing and libraries to the entire spectrum of human information activities. This trend is manifested in what is characterized as the international i-School movement and SILS is an exemplar in demonstrating this 21st century view of information theory, practice, and education. This strategic plan benefits from the advances and challenges of the first decade of the new century and provides a foundation for the SILS of 2020 and beyond.
The School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a member of an international group of iSchools. The iSchools are interested in the relationship between information, people, and technology. This is characterized by a commitment to learning and understanding the role of information in human endeavors. The iSchools take it as given that expertise in all forms of information is required for progress in science, business, education and culture. This expertise must include understanding of the uses and users of information, the nature of information itself, as well as information technologies and their applications.For more information about the iSchools, please visit: www.iSchools.org.
- Dean's Welcome
- SILS at a Glance
- Visiting & Directions
- The University and Chapel Hill
- Photo Tour
- Our History
- Statement of Diversity
- Conferences & Events
- SILS Human Resources
- Room Calendars