Student Snippets A Window Into The Daily Life & Thoughts of SLIS Students

Last semester… OH NO!

The semester is in full swing and I thought I would write about some of the classes I am taking. I have already finished my requirements and now I get to pick some electives! This is my last semester here at GSLIS (and I am devastated) and I am taking three (3) classes to close out my Masters of Science in Library and Information Science.
Class 1: Medical Libraries – I am very much interested in Special Libraries (my career goals involve government libraries). Medical Libraries sounded immensely interesting and was recommended to me by a number of GSLIS Alums. We are a few weeks into the class and I love it. Everything about Medical Libraries is interesting. We just took a field trip (yes this building is on the same street as the Palace Road building but still it was a grad school field trip!) to the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Library. There we spoke to the director of the library and its head of reference services. It was interesting to see a library with a small collection of books and a huge collection of online resources. The director anticipates not having a print collection soon and he is okay with that revelation. While I do love me some books I think in the medical world there is no longer a need to maintain medical print books, as digital copies fit better into a field that changes with discoveries made almost daily.
Class 2: Competitive Intelligence – This is an all online class and I was very hesitant to take it because I am an admittedly bad class blogger, but I decided it would be best if I blocked out time weekly to do the homework, and it is exactly like going to class. The professor also does lectures that we can listen to on our own time throughout the week. She also has her own knowledge management firm so it is interesting when she brings up her own personal experiences versus what the text book says. (Side note: she knows the author of the text and gets you a huge discount!)
Class 3: Digital Publishing – In this class our major project is to create a business plan for a business that does not have a digital presence. Our “client” this semester is the Cambridge Farmers markets. I am so excited about this project that I am sure I will blog about it later once we get started. The clients are coming next week to present their product to the class and our final is our presentation to the clients. Talk about real-world experience. I do not think I have ever been so excited to do class work.