PROGRAM PRESENTATION

Appendix I: PLAN FOR SURVEYING CURRENT EMPLOYERS OF SILS GRADUATES


Purpose of Data Collection

According to the Standards for Accreditation of Master's Programs in Library & Information Studies (adopted by the Council of the American Library Association January 28, 1992; effective January 1, 1993), employers should be involved in the evaluation of the library program goals and objectives and its curriculum (pages 10, 12). In accordance with these guidelines, the faculty members responsible for coordinating development of the 1999 Program Presentation to the Committee on Accreditation of the American Library Association, determined to collect data from employers and use the information gleaned from these surveys in creating the Program Presentation. By collecting these data on an annual basis, the School will have a collection of information for future program developments and future accreditation reviews.

Method of Data Collection

A survey instrument was created in 1999 titled, "Survey of Current Employers of Graduates of the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina" for use in collecting the data on employer evaluation of the school's goals, objectives and curriculum. It was derived from the survey titled "Survey of Current and Potential Employers of SILS Graduates" which was distributed at the 1999 Carolina Information and Library Science and Career Fair. The later survey will continue to be distributed annually at each Career Fair with data collected in a Career Fair Survey Database.

The "Survey of Current Employers" will be mailed out to at least twenty employers each year. The employers to be included will be selected on a three year rotating basis, so that a variety of responses are received. Therefore an employer surveyed in 1999 will not be eligible for another survey until 2002. The employers selected should be diverse in the following areas (at a minimum): type of library setting, type of information technology setting, geographic location, number of SILS graduates employed and currency of graduates. (Note: there is a core group of approximately 13 institutions which are located in the Raleigh-Durham area and which hire multiple SILS graduates. These institutions will probably have representatives at the Career Fair each year who complete the "Survey of Current and Potential Employers" survey, so we do not want to "double-survey" them often by including them in this list as well).

The employers will be selected from a Master List of SILS Alumni (using the Business Address column) which should be updated at least every two years. (Note: if a survey is returned with an explanation that the institution no longer employees any SILS graduates, that information should be noted on the employer database and a new employer selected for a survey). The Alumni List may be obtained from the UNC-CH General Alumni Association.

An employer database will be created which will contain the following information: names and addresses of the employers surveyed, type of library or information environment, number of SILS graduates employed there and the year surveyed. (Note: the responses may remain anonymous if the employer does not note the organization's title on the document). The database should be consulted when selecting the next years group.

The survey will be mailed out in the Spring, at approximately the same time the "Survey of Current and Potential Employers" is distributed to the Career Fair attendees. The mailing will include a return addressed envelope to facilitate a higher response rate. Each survey will be coded so that SILS can connect the data to the Employer. A coding system such as the following may be used: "A-122" where the last digit is actually attached to an Employer. This coding system should be built into the Employer Database. A form letter will accompany the survey. It may be addressed generically to the "Human Resources Personnel" or the "Hiring Partner" or it may be addressed to the name of an individual responsible for managing SILS graduates. The later option requires contacting the institution to obtain the name of an individual and may ensure more helpful responses.

Responsibility for Task

A faculty member will be appointed annually and given oversight responsibility for collection and tabulation of the data. A staff member or graduate assistant may be responsible for mailing the documents, updating the Employer Database and tallying the data in a Current Employer Survey Database.



Revised 7/30/99