Professor at NEHU, Mawkynroh, Umshing, Shillong-793022

Employment Notice No. 1-4/Estt.II(B)/2011-2013  

Details of essential qualifications, experience, specializations etc. in respect of teaching and non-teaching posts may be seen as under

• Details of posts, number of vacancies, essential qualifications applicable and specializations
• Details of essential qualifications
• How to apply
• Other terms and conditions
• Download

TEACHING POSTS

• SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS MANAGEMENT,LIBRARY & INFORMATION SCIENCES

Sl. No.	Department	Post	No. of vacancies	Category	Specializations	Essential Qualification applicable
9.	Economics	(a)Professor	1	UR*	OPEN	E.Q-1
10.	Commerce	(a)Professor	1	UR	Accounting & Finance	E.Q-1
11.	Library & Inf. Science	(a)Professor	1	UR*	OPEN-(Desirable Proficiency in knowledge organization/ information Retrieval).	E.Q.-1
12.	Journalism & Mass Communication	(a)Professor	1	UR*	OPEN	E.Q-1
		(b)Associate Professor	2	UR*	OPEN
13.	Tourism & Hotel Management	(a)Professor	1	UR*	OPEN	E.Q-7
		(b)Associate Professor	1	UR*	OPEN
14.	Management(Tura)	(a)Associate Professor	1	UR	OPEN	E.Q-7
		(b)Assistant Professor	2	1-PWD** 1-UR	OPEN OPEN
15.	Agri-Business Management and Food Technology (Tura)	(a)Professor	1	UR*	OPEN	E.Q-7
		(b)Associate Professor	2	UR*	OPEN

**Persons with disability (Locomotor disability or Cerebral Palsy)

E.Q - 1
	Professor
		A.	(i) An eminent scholar with Ph.D. degree in the concerned/allied/relevant discipline and published work of high quality, actively engaged in research with evidence of published work with a minimum of 10 publications as books and/or research/policy papers.
			(ii) A minimum of ten years of teaching experience in university/college, and/or experience in research at the University/National level institutions/industries,including experience of guiding candidates for research at doctoral level.
			(iii) Contribution to educational innovation, design of new curricula and courses, and technology-mediated teaching learning process.
			(iv) A minimum score as stipulated in the Academic Performance Indicator (API) based Performance Based Appraisal System (PBAS)(refer to RX 1.4)
			OR
		B.	An outstanding professional, with established reputation in the relevant field, who has made significant contributions to the knowledge in the concerned/allied/relevant discipline, to be substantiated by credentials.

OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS In service candidates should invariably send their application(s) through Proper Channel. An advance copy of application may however be sent within the due date. Applications received after the last date, incomplete in any respect or violative of any condition shall not be  considered. The original application through proper channel of shortlisted candidates, if employed, should reach this University before the date of interview or alternately the candidates are required to submit a No Objection Certificate from the employer on the date of interview. Number of posts advertised may vary. A relaxation of 5% marks at Masters’ Degree level shall be applicable to a candidate belonging to SC/ST and PWD . Short-listing of candidates for interview shall be as per norms of the University. Mere fulfilling minimum qualification shall not entitle a candidate to be called for interview. The candidates having higher qualification shall be given preference. The University reserved the right not to fill up any post. Fees once paid is not refundable. Candidates who have applied in response to advt. No. F. 1-4/Estt.II(B)/2011-235 dated 7th December, 2011 for the posts indicated by asterisk need not apply again in the prescribed form and also not required to pay the requisite application fee. However, the concerned candidates are required to give in writing to consider their earlier application, failing which their candidature will not be considered. Candidates, applying for the reserved category of posts i.e. SC, ST, PWD and OBC, are required to produce the necessary documents issued by the Competent Authority so as to substantiate that they belong to the category as mentioned above. Further, it may be noted that the candidates, applying under OBC category, are required to produce a certificate from the Competent Authority that they do not belong to the creamy layer, failing which their application will be rejected outrightly. The candidates are required to submit the attested copies of marksheets and certificates concerning all the degrees including copies of publications and supporting documents relating to API scores, experience etc. If candidate desires to apply more than one post, he/she has to apply separately for each post alongwith prescribed fee.      Last date for submission of filled in application form is 10th August, 2012. DOWNLOAD Download the above details regarding essential qualification, specialization, experience, etc (PDF Format) Download Application Form for Teaching Posts (PDF Format) Download Application Form for Non-Teaching Posts (PDF Format) Download RX-1.4 : Academic Performance Indicators (API) for direct recruitment/career advancement scheme (CAS) promotion of teachers under Performance Based Appraisal System (PBAS) (PDF Format)

Faculty Positions (Library and Information Science) at ITM University, Gwalior

Source:  Times of India, 18th July 2012, Pg No. 42

1(SC) Post of Associate Professor at PONDICHERRY UNIVERSITY

RECRUITMENT OF FACULTY

The University is seeking highly qualified, dedicated and academically productive faculty members from Indian Nationals who have strong commitment in innovative teaching and high quality research in the following subjects/disciplines for appointment on regular basis.

Sl. No.

Name of the Dept.

Professor

Associate Professor

Assistant Professor

25

Library & Information Sciences

nil

1(SC)

nil

Applications received with reference to earlier advertisements dated 09.05.2011 & corrigendum dated 14.06.2011 but not called for interview so far, will not be considered for further process. Hence, candidates may apply again subject to fulfillment of eligibility conditions as prescribed in the UGC Regulations, 2010 as amended from time to time and also subject to availability of vacancies.

For further details of Application Form, Pro-forma for Certificate Verification, API Format, Terms & Conditions, Etc., please visit the University Website www.pondiuni.edu.in.

The Qualifications and other conditions prescribed in the advertisement are subject to the regulations/norms stipulated by the MHRD/UGC from time to time.  As regards the broad eligibility criteria, the UGC website www.ugc.ac.in may please be referred to.

The prescribed essential qualifications are the minimum and the mere possession of the same does not entitle candidates to be called for interview. Where the number of applications received in response to our advertisement  is large and it will not be convenient or possible to call and interview all the eligible candidates, the University, at its discretion, may restrict the number of candidates to a reasonable limit on the basis of qualifications/experience higher than the minimum prescribed in the advertisement.  The criteria for shortlisting and cut-off bench-mark depends on the number of applications. Being a Central University maintaining high standards of teaching and research, possession of Ph.D degree, good research publications, good communication skill, depth of subject knowledge and consistantly good academic record will be the main criteria for selections. For the positions of Professor, a candidate is expected to have successfully guided Ph.D candidates.

As the University has already fulfilled the reserved posts under OH category,  the post earmarked for Physically Challenged category in this advt. will be first considered for the Visually Challenged(VH)  candidates only. If suitable VH candidates are not available, these posts will be filled by OH candidates.

Last date for receiving the application is 31.07.2012.

For More Information: http://www.pondiuni.edu.in/news/recruitment-faculty-positions-recruitment-cell-0

Assistant Professor - Library Science in Tripura

Advt. No. 04/2012.

No. of Posts: 02

Scale of Pay: Pay Band of Rs. 15,600-39,100/- with AGP Rs. 6,000/- P.M subject to revision by the Govt. from time to time.

Educational & other Qualifications: 

(i) Good academic record as defined by the concerned University with at least 55% of the marks or equivalent grade where grading system is practiced at the Master’s degree level in a relevant subject from an Indian University, or an equivalent degree from an accredited foreign University.

(ii) Besides fulfilling the above qualifications, the candidates should have cleared the National Eligibility Test (NET) conducted by UGC, CSIR or Similar test accredited by the UGC like SLET/SET.

(iii) NET/SLET/SET shall not be required for such Master’s degree programme in disciplines for which NET/SLET/SET accredited test is not conducted subject to the conditions stipulated in the UGC Regulations, 2009 of 23-09-2009.

Desirable:- Knowledge of Bengali & Kok-barak.

Category- wise Reservation.: All the posts are grouped for the purpose of reservation and shall not be segregated subject/ Discipline-wise for identification of a particular post for a particular category against any subject/ Discipline.

Application in the prescribed form duly filled in by the candidate and 2(two) copies of recent stamp size photographs of the candidate affixed on the Application and Admit Card along with the copies of self attested certificates, self addressed envelope bearing postage stamp of Rs. 5/= (rupees five) is to be submitted to the Reception Counter of the TPSC Secretariat by 5.00 P.M. of the closing date (07-06-2012). Applicants may obtain the acknowledgement including Receipt Number from reception counter of the Commission.

For more details: http://tpsc.nic.in/050512.pdf

From football dreams to library science

His role model is India’s Pele, Bhaichung Bhatia, and he has played at the state and national level. T V Santosh Kumar is today a football coach and imparts special training to youngsters. 

Every day he comes to the Sir M Visvesvaraya district playground to train champions. He once played for the junior national football team.

Santosh was born in Chikkaballapur and studied at Sir M V High School and completed his PUC in Panchagiri College. At the junior level he represented in the state and national teams and won several championships and prizes. Santosh played football for pretigious clubs and organisations and he would have been a part of the national team if he had the timely opportunities.

He became interested in football when he was studying in PUC  and to achieve proficiency in this game he came to Bangalore. He got a place in the sub-junior national-level football in 1993. In the same year he played in the Mir Iqbal Championship.

“I developed friendship with the trainers and members of the Sports Authority of India (SAI) to find a place on the SAI hostel. I also joined the Mecons Football Club. Besides I joined the Government Science College and from 1995 to 1997  I represented the Bangalore University team. I played in the left wing back and mid-field position”, says Santosh.

“FC Cochin, a prominent football club was instrumental in setting up the United Bangalore Club. I became a member of this club and gained proficiency. In the hope of joining the Indian team I met well-known footballer Bhaichung Bhatia and Dinesh Kumar and sought their advice. However, I was not able to realise my ambition”, he says.

He obtained a degree and postgraduate degree in library science through the distance education mode from Alagappa University in Tamil Nadu. He is now doing his PhD. His thesis in on “Implementation of information technology in the libraries of Indian universities.” At present he works as a librarian in Government First Grade College in Chikkaballapur.

Source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/249097/from-football-dreams-library-science.html

Career avenues in library science

Library science today calls for candidates skilled in the art of managing information with the help of technology tools.

Indispensible: A librarian's job involves a wide range of reading and processing of information content through cataloguing, classification and indexing, storing documents, and retrieving the required information. Photo: G. RAMAKRISHNA

Libraries are repositories of knowledge and information and are indispensable in the information age. With the merging of information technology with library science, the nature of libraries and the scope of their services have radically changed. The job involves a wide range of reading and processing of the information content through cataloguing, classification and indexing, storing documents, and retrieving the required information and so on.

Those interested in this discipline can pursue their degree course in library and information science (B.LI.Sc. / B.LiS). At a higher level, one can opt for a Master's degree (M.LISc / M.LIS), M.Phil. or Ph.D. in this discipline. Most universities in India offer one year Bachelor's degree in library and information science or two-year integrated Master's degree in the same discipline. The Bachelor's degree course includes the study of library classification, library and science, library management, cataloguing, information sources, information systems and services and the basics of information technology.

After obtaining Bachelor's degree in library and information science, students can opt for one-year regular Master's degree course in the same discipline. Graduates in other disciplines with at least 50 per cent marks can pursue the two-year (four semesters) integrated Master's programme in library and information science. Both these courses provide equal opportunities for employment. Many universities in south India have introduced the two-year integrated Master of Library and Information Science course. Some universities also conduct the one-year Master's programme for B.LISc. degree holders with 50 per cent marks and above.

The Library and Information Science, Department of University of Kerala, conducts a two year regular integrated Master's programme. Any graduate with at least 50 per cent marks can apply for admission.

Applicants will also have to pass a two-hour long entrance test carrying 100 marks aimed at testing their general knowledge and aptitude for librarianship. Candidates should have to obtain at least 40 marks in order to qualify the test. The total number of seats is 20. The seats are equally allocated among the degree holders in science, arts, and commerce subjects. The course content of the integrated Master's course includes information knowledge and communication, library and society, library management, information sources, organisation of knowledge, information technology, information processing and retrieval, information systems, research methodology, bibliometrics, IT applications in libraries and information system management. A dissertation and viva-voce is also part of the course.

The department also offers one-year self-financing M.LISc. evening programme. Those who have passed B.LISc. with at least 50 per cent marks are eligible to apply. For the one year Master's programme, students can choose from the following options – science information systems, agriculture information systems, social science information systems, health information systems, industrial information system, academic library system and public library systems.

A one year M.Phil. course is also offered by the department. The minimum eligibility for admission is a Master's degree in library and information science with at least 55 per cent marks.

The selection is based on the marks scored in the Master's course and an interview. The department also offers research facilities leading to Ph.D. degree. The minimum eligibility is a Master's degree in library and information science with at least 55 per cent marks and a pass in the UGC-NET. Web site: www.dliskerala.org.

The School of Communication and Information Science under the Mahatma Gandhi (MG) University, Kottayam, offers B.LISc. and M.LISc. courses. The one year (two semester) M.LISc. course here is conducted on a self-financing basis.

The Department of Library Science under the SB College, Changanassery, affiliated to the MG University conducts B.LISc. (30 seats) and M.LISc. (30 seats) courses. Admission to M.LISc. course is open to graduates in library and information science with at least 50 per cent marks. (For details visit www.sbcollege.org).

The Department of Library and Information Science of the Calicut University offers an integrated two year MLISc course.

Graduates in any discipline are eligible for admission. M.Phil. and Ph.D. programmes are also conducted.

Eligibility for M.LISc. degree course is at least 50 per cent marks in the degree course.

Address: Department of Library and Information Science, University of Calicut, Calicut University Campus, Tenhipalam, Malappuram.

Majilis Arts and Science College, Valancherry, Malappuram, also conducts integrated M.LISc. / B.LISc. programmes.

Outside Kerala

The Department of Library and Information Science of several universities in the country offers higher education facilities including B.LISc., two-year integrated M.LISc., one-year M.LISc., M.Phil. and Ph.D. programmes in the discipline. The following are a few among them:

University of Madras, Chepauk, Chennai

Bangalore University, Bangalore - 560056

Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar - 608002

Andhra University, Visakhapatnam - 530003

University of Mumbai, Mumbai - 400098

Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi - 221005

Jiwaji University, Gwalior

Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh- 202002

The Documentation, Research and Training Centre in Bangalore and the Indian National Scientific Documentation Centre, New Delhi, offer associateships in documentation and information science to experienced graduate librarians. The associateship is recognised as equivalent to M.LISc. degree.

Distance learning mode

Many universities offer graduate and postgraduate course in library and information science through distance education mode.

The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) offers both these courses. Web site: www.ignou.ac.in.

The Institute of Distance Education of the University of Madras and the Directorate of Distance Educations of the Madurai Kamaraj University also offer graduate and postgraduate courses in library and information science. Web sites: www.unom.ac.in; www.mkudde.org.

Institute of Distance Education of the University of Kerala, Kariyavattom, Thiruvananthapuram, offers B.LISc. degree course through the distance education mode.

Directorate of Distance Education of Sri Venkateswara University, Tirupati, conducts B.LISc. course in the distance education mode. Web site: www.svudde.org.

Those who desire to get a government job should ensure that these distance learning courses are approved by the joint Committee of the Distance Education Council and UGC.

The list is only indicative. Details of more universities that offer higher education facilities in library and information science under the regular and distance education mode can be collected from the university handbooks published by the Association of Indian Universities which is available for reference in all University employment information and guidance bureaux functioning under universities.

Career prospects

Those who have passed B.LISc. and M.LISc. degrees are eligible to become second and third grade librarians or university library assistants.

Those who have obtained an M.LISc. or Ph.D. and have cleared the Junior Research Fellowship-National Eligibility Test (JRF-NET) can become lecturers in colleges and university departments.

To become a grade I librarian or assistant librarian in a college or university department, the requirement is M.LISc. and UGC- NET.

Job opportunities for postgraduate librarians are many in colleges, university departments, science and technology departments/ institutions, research organisations and so on. Scientific institutes appoint M.LISc. degree holders as scientific assistants/ officers
.

Library of the future - Sarah Hiddleston

Can the computer encourage critical thinking instead of passive reception? Brewster Kahle is trying to do just that with Internet Archive.

BREWSTER KAHLE:Facilitating the next generation library.
I magine everything ever written, posted, uploaded, filmed, recorded or broadcast available at the click of a mouse for free. Ideal or irreverent, it's Brewster Kahle's vision and he's making it happen while paywalls go up and rights arguments rage.
“We're building the library of Alexandria V2,” he gestures to academic publishers visiting his Internet Archive, located in a coincidentally neoclassical Christian Science church building in Funston Avenue, San Francisco. “Only this time anyone, anywhere can access it.”
Kahle, inventor of the predecessor to the worldwide web with an academic background in AI, believes that unless we put the best of what we have to offer in front of our children we'll get the generation we deserve.
“We're merging with the machine… Pretty soon we are going to be the computer. So let's make the computer an interesting companion. Let's teach it some good stuff. Otherwise it'll be an idiot and that's no fun,” he says.
Archival material
Kahle has archived over two million books, almost 3,00,000 movies, nearly 80,000 live concerts and over 5,60,000 audio recordings. He's mapped a complete record of every webpage every two months since 1996. It's called the Way Back Machine – if a page changes or an upload removed there's a good chance of finding the original on their search engine.
The idea, he hopes, is to encourage critical thinking instead of passive reception. Take TV, (they record 20 news channels 24x7) and take coverage of 9/11, which Internet Archive packaged and posted in October 2001. “What did the world see? CNN was saying that Palestinians were dancing in the streets. Were they? Let's look at Palestinian TV. Comes across very differently. I think we really know now that news comes with a point of view in this country (the U.S.),” he says. Kahle is showing off his newly relocated centre like Willy Wonka on a tour of his chocolate factory. He even has ompa lumpas, but that's another story.
“This [congregational hall] is the next generation library… Don't think of it in a row [of terminals] like an Internet café. Think of big screens where you might be collaborating with other people.” He and his team are still cooking up ideas. Awe-inspiring and interactive are the baselines.



We see the scanning centre, with their purpose built copiers complete with museum lighting and professional-grade digital cameras. Later on, in the old Sunday school, we see a machine about the height and width of a five-door filing cabinet, filled with rows of flashing slivers. It's a computer that stores 320 terabytes. Which is small. Their storage centre is made up of blocks of one petabyte (a million gigabyte) cabinets, named the PetaBox, which anyone can buy. “It's inexpensive because we designed it ourselves, even bent the metal. I think it's the first open source computer,” he says.
Kahle runs a tight ship. Internet Archive is non-profit making and runs off government subsidy and other donors. The goal was transparency. “We want people to know that we are not jet setting around on their material,” he says. There are 300 employees but only 40 are office workers, administrators and programmers. The other scanning centres are in Canada, the U.K. and Guatemala.
“What we want is more other people to be doing this stuff. They just aren't… What they are doing is often really ‘niche-y' or they just protect it. That's the Google problem,” he says.
Open access
Kahle is referring to the controversy over Google Books, which in 2002 set out to digitise millions of books and was sued for violating U.S. copyright law. In 2008 Google negotiated an agreement with the Author's Guild, so that over half Google's advertising and e-commerce revenues from the project go to copyright holders. Google can index the books but only display snippets in search results for free; any book downloaded must be paid for.
All things old enough not to have rights restrictions in the U.S., Internet Archive gives away. “The idea of downloading a million books is a good day for us. It's not something we are fighting against. Let's find out and do interesting things, non-traditional things, with our material,” he says.
Therein lies the rub. “We've got some structural problems with the web,” he says. “We gotta figure out how people keep publishing on the net and make money…We wish that capitalism would just work but it doesn't because it just goes to monopolies and kind of crushes everybody else.”
Rights issues, he says, are an artefact of power structures, and we are in the middle of a big transition. What it's really about, he says, is “institutional responsibility”; who is supposed to do what.
His ideal solution is open source at the core, with competition on services: “A distributed system for helping people set their own terms and have their own customers is the only way to make the Internet grow to the next level.”
Whatever that is, it's not the iPad. According to Kahle, instead of a shrunken general purpose Mac, the iPad is just a big iPhone - an environment that's too controlled by Apple. “That's sort of sick. It's not exploiting the better part of humans,” he says.
“I want to see these tablets prosper. But … it's the web-based applications that are the ones that are interesting. In terms of a publishing platform we have to make the web version of our for-sale products work. Because this app thing really favours a few power centres. If we want to keep power distributed let's go with open standards as mechanisms to distribute it. So that somebody in a garage can make a really cool tablet. And it doesn't have to be someone working at Google or Apple.”

Quick links

www.openlibrary.org is an online catalogue of books

www.archive.org for the Way Back Machine

http://www.capricorn-tech.com/to know more about the PetaBox

Paperless libraries

                                               

While electronic access has begun to redefine the roles of publishers, librarians and booksellers, it seems unlikely that e-libraries will make good old books redundant, says Akhila Seetharaman

A character from an imaginary future world in American science fiction writer Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451" remarks, "It's not books you need, it's some of the things that were once in books..."

Today, it's possible to get all the things you may ever need, sorted and edited, without physically opening a single book. Libraries without books, or e-libraries, make this possible.

Like with all things `e', the concept of the e-library is also hazy in the minds of most people. An e-library or an electronic library can either be on the Internet or simply in electronic format and shared in a limited way.

The first step to an e-library is digitising information. Several reputed university libraries in the country, including university libraries in Chennai have significant portions of their resources in electronic format.

This, coupled with subscription databases and online journals, give users wide access.

"While we subscribe to 130-140 journals in print, we receive as many as 2000-3000 journals online," said M.K. Jagadish, Director of American Information Resource Centre.

Not only does the electronic format widen access many times over, it also enables multiple users to access the same text at the same time and protects the valuable content from being lost due to accidents like fires and attacks.

Electronic access alters the way we look at information and knowledge altogether. In the beginning, libraries were sanctums of knowledge and librarians were the watchdogs.

"There was a time when librarians thought that a good library is a library full of books," said M.S. Ananth, Director of Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. "But if all the books are in, it means that nobody is reading," he pointed out, speaking to a gathering of librarians at a convention of the Society for Information Science. Even today, many old-style librarians guard their books both from and for the reading community.

With the sum total knowledge doubling every year, digitisation is the most practical way to save information in terms of both accessibility and storage, said Dr. Ananth.

After digitisation, putting electronic versions of books and journals on networks like the Internet, is the logical next step. This enables knowledge sharing, not just with those in the immediate environment, but also with people with common interests in other areas.

Apart from digitising existing information from books and journals, e-libraries offer potential for new forms of content with increased levels of interactivity.

E-libraries provide opportunities for educational materials to be reached to remote areas and provide access to a range of information materials to all students irrespective of their location.

The Ministry of Human Resource Development has initiated a few programmes to network information resources in universities in the country.

The National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) aims at developing web and multimedia learning content for undergraduate science and engineering students across the country.

INDEST, a consortium of 38 institutions, offers online access (by subscription) to vast electronic resources on science, engineering and technology.

Several non-governmental organisations are also experimenting with electronic educational resources. Vidyanidhi (vidyanidhi.org.in), is one digital library experiment that has catalogued and archived over 50,000 Indian doctoral theses.

With fonts being rapidly developed in Indian languages, literature in various languages, including Tamil, is being organised and archived in electronic format.

Electronic access has begun to redefine the roles of publishers, librarians and booksellers. Copyright issues lurk round every corner of the e-library. But it seems unlikely that paperless libraries will make good old books redundant. Many librarians feel that a mix of print and electronic resources is best.

"Although people talk of e-books, there's nothing like the comfort of reading a book in print," said Mr. Jagadish. "Books will never go, that is for sure."

Libraries: Food for the soul

                             

More and more attention is being paid to expand the field of library sciences, which is why it promises to be a good career choice. The shift from a physical/print model to virtual/digital one has created new opportunities and challenges for delivering information solutions to library user.

``Books are my balloons!

They lift me out of one world into another''!

LIBRARIES are repositories of knowledge, information and entertainment. The traditional concept of a library as a place to access papers, records or books, is being redefined to one that also houses the most advanced media, including CD-ROMs, the Internet, virtual libraries, and remote access to a wide range of resources. Librarians organise information by classifying, cataloguing, recording and storing books and materials in a manner that are easily accessible to the clientele. Librarians also compile, collect and organise lists of books, periodicals, pamphlets, articles, and audio-visual materials on particular subjects.

Librarians are classified according to the type of library they work in - public libraries, school libraries, media centres, academic libraries or archives and the type of work they do - classifier, cataloguer, reference librarian, assistant librarian, archivist, curator and so on. Librarians are also called information professionals in libraries maintained by government agencies, corporations and special libraries.

The work

The different tasks carried out by librarians are -- administrative services, technical services and user services. There are specialised areas where a librarian may choose to focus entirely on a particular topic, e.g technical writing, writing reviews, abstract writing, computation and data evaluation, bibliography and so on. A deputy librarian looks after administration, supervision and programming. A reference librarian researches, retrieves, and disseminates information; documentation librarian manages the library's online database- organisation, training, maintenance and assisting the information service.

The work of an assistant librarian is to acquire books, reference services, computer programming and supervising of assistants. Professional assistant help in ordering books, accessing, classification and cataloguing. Semi-professional assistants (candidates who have done a certificate course in library science after SSLC/intermediate) do charging and discharging of books, shelf arranging, maintenance of books etc. Certain libraries have specific jobs like an archivist in an archives library or a media librarian in a publishing agency etc.Courses

Library and Information Science is not a mere academic discipline. It is a professional course, which involves practical, observational and experimental study. Education and training in the discipline is imparted in India at various levels, ranging from semi- professional, professional to specialised courses and research programmes.

Certificate and diploma courses range from 3 months to one year conducted by colleges, universities, and professional library associations as well as by some women's polytechnics. These courses are open to students who have completed their matriculation or intermediate/higher secondary level studies.

Bachelor of Library and Information Science-

This one-year degree course is open only to graduates. In some cases admission is based on academic merit, in others an entrance examination determines selection.

Master of Library and Information Science

This is a one-year course for BLiSc students. Graduates from any other discipline have to undergo a 2-year course.

Distance education programmes or correspondence courses are useful for working professionals and for those who stay in places where full-time programmes are not available. It is always better to opt for a full-time course in this type of discipline, where there is as much to learn by observing and doing as there is from theoretical study.

Training

* Students with a professional degree can get hands-on- experience through apprenticeship in British Council Libraries and also in some special libraries that offer certifications by Board of Apprenticeship and Training.

* Master's degree holders in any discipline or anyone who has completed BLISc and has two year library/documentation information handling experience can avail of the opportunity and apply for:

*2-year Associateship in Information Science (equivalent to MLISc.) at Indian National Scientific and Documentation Centre (INSDOC), New Delhi

*2-year Associateship in Documentation and Information Science(ADIS) at Indian Statistical Institute, Documentation Research and Training Centre (DRTC), Bangalore.

Qualifications

Recruitment to jobs in university libraries is conducted through the University Grants Commission (UGC) and terms of work and remuneration are also offered as per UGC rules. However, there are many private libraries that offer challenging work and good prospects. A master's degree or at least a bachelor's degree in library science is necessary for a librarian's position in most public, academic, and special libraries. In addition, most special librarians supplement their education with knowledge of the subject specialisation, sometimes earning a master's, doctoral, or professional degree in the subject, like in law, engineering and MBA.

A Ph.D or an M.Phil degree in library and information science is advantageous for a teaching position, research work or for higher position in a university library or a large library system. In fact, with the information boom, qualified librarians can diversify to several new growth areas like database management, reference tool development, training of database users, systems analysis especially relating to computer work, as also documentation work, desktop printing and publishing, bibliography work and organisation and management of information units.

Consultancy

Entrepreneurial librarians sometimes start their own consulting practices, acting as freelance librarians or information brokers and providing services to academic libraries, businesses, or government agencies. Many companies turn to consultancies because of their experience, and knowledge of computer databases and library automation systems and organisational skills as per the company's specific needs.

Soft skills

In addition to the professional skills mentioned, a librarian must be equipped with a wide range of personal and transferable skills for successful interaction with users. A vital part of their role is to enhance their professional performance by improving their communication and interpersonal skills.

Libraries, being the primary source of information in our society, have had to keep pace with the rapid growth of information available through technology.

The Information specialist, for that is what a librarian is today, thus has to deal with a range of sources far beyond boos and other printed material and play a key role in the process of communication information.

The art of managing information - K. Lakshmi

    

Career opportunities for librarians have increased manifold in this digital era.

OPPORTUNITIES GALORE: Librarians need to keep themselves abreast of the latest technology to facilitate quick retrieval of information.

Libraries have come a long way from being mere storehouses of books and periodicals. And the work profile of librarians has also undergone a tremendous change.
According to librarians in the government sector, only a few chose library for a career a few decades ago and most of them were based in the public sector. Now, the number of libraries and the scope of the career have increased manifold.
Officials of the Public Libraries department said a degree or postgraduate degree in library science is a must to take up job as a government librarian. Knowledge in computer science has also become a necessity to keep up with the emerging trend of digitisation. Many universities offer library science courses in distance education mode and regular stream. A. Amudavalli, professor and head, Department of Library and Information Science, University of Madras, said it is a misconception that such courses are now being offered only through distance education. The regular college students have better opportunities than the students of distance education mode.
Various courses
The Department established in 1937 offered certificate and diploma courses. Over time, undergraduate and postgraduate courses were merged together as a two-year Integrated Course in Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS). Later, the course was renamed M.Sc. in Library and Information Science as a full-time (regular) programme, she said.
As the data is not limited to books anymore, the scope for careers in different fields has widened. Besides opportunities in traditional libraries, including those at schools and colleges, candidates could get placement in government department libraries and private sector libraries such as in IT firms and hospitals.
“We constantly update the curriculum with new topics based on the current trends. The students are exposed to latest concepts such as digital libraries, computer applications and soft skills. This provides required competence for employability in various fields,” she said. As the new courses train students in management information system, they could also apply for jobs in banks for record and data management. Another important aspect of the curriculum is the one-month internship training at various major libraries.
Career scope
Most institutions, including non-governmental organisations, research and development labs, defence organisations and media houses, now have library equipped with latest technology and need qualified candidates.
The department is also introducing P.G. Diploma in Digital Library Management in the coming academic year.
Students would learn about digital data preservation, management and retrieval through this evening college programme.

New vistas in Library Science

                         

 LIBRARY AND Information Science deals with the challenge of how to organise, control and access information. With the onslaught of information technology, libraries are making a rapid transition from card catalogues to digitalised services including making available information on CD-ROMs.

In the ever-changing environment, it is the job of the library and information science professional to ensure that the information gets to the right user in the right place at the right time. It is a course for people who have a flair for reading and keep a tab on the developments on the information front. A degree programme in Library and Information Science is intensive in nature, and thereby demands students who are highly motivated and dedicated to learning. Librarians and information officers are expected to be organised, with an inquisitive mind, have an appetite for unearthing information, and acquire and prepare materials for use. Outstanding communication skills, quick grasping ability, skill for organising facts, speaking and writing skills, diplomacy, and knowledge to evaluate technical material is required.

It is their responsibility to oversee the management of the library, supervise assistant librarians to prepare cards and computer records, and read book reviews, publishers' notifications and catalogues to be informed of current literature and other available resources. It is their endeavour to select and purchase materials from publishers, wholesalers and distributors, and arrange books and other library materials in an easily accessible mode.

Job avenues

Avenues for professionally qualified librarians are increasing. With computerisation and electronic storage systems, a course in library and information science has acquired a new look. Openings exist in information centres, which include public enterprise, industrial and commercial firms, public and institutional libraries, digital libraries, online libraries/archival services. There are opportunities in libraries run by schools, universities, colleges, professional bodies, libraries attached to embassies societies and research associations.

Undergraduate courses

Degree, diploma, vocational and specialised courses are available in library and information sciences. Undergraduate degree courses in library science and related disciplines include:

Bachelor's Degree in Library Science (B.Lib).

Bachelor's Degree in Library and Information Services.

Bachelor's Degree in Library and Manuscriptology.

Bachelor's Degree in Library and Documentation.

The duration of the courses is one year. Only graduates (from any discipline) are admitted. Subjects covered include cataloguing, bibliography, documentation, research methodology, information storage and retrieval, manuscriptology, preservation and conservation, information systems and computer applications.

Postgraduate programmes

Postgraduate degree courses in library and related sciences include:

Master's Degree in Library Science (M.Lib).

Master's Degree in Library Science and Documentation.

M.Phil and Ph.D in Library Science.

Master's Degree in Library and Information Sciences.

Only graduates with B.Lib are admitted to the Master's degree programmes. The courses are one year long. The eligibility for M.Phil and Ph.D. programmes is M.Lib.

Areas of specialisation available at the PG level are library planning; management of Information Service (MIS); translation; archives management; technical writing; reprography; special library services; electronic solution to documentation etc.

Vocational courses

Vocational courses in library science are also offered to non-graduates for which the eligibility is Standard X.

Specialised courses

Specialised courses, meant for librarians and other in-service personnel, are also available. These include:

Diploma in Medical Librarianship (by correspondence).

Fresher and Advanced Courses in Library and Information Sciences.

Postgraduate Diploma in Library Science.

Computer Applications in Library Science.

Some of the universities offering courses in Library and Information Science are:

1. Bangalore University, Jnana Bharathi, Bangalore-560 056.

2. Karnatak University, Pavate Nagar, Dharwad.

3. University of Mysore, Crawford Hall, P.B.No. 17, Mysore-570 005. 4. Gulbarga University, Jnana Ganga, Gulbarga-585 106.

4. Mangalore University, Mangalagangotri, Mangalore.

5. Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal.

6. Kuvempu University, Shankarghatta, Shimoga-577 451.

The National Centre for Science Information, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, offers a course in "digital library and information services in enterprises" as part of the Information and Knowledge Management training programme. The Indira Gandhi National Open University offers distance education programme in Bachelor Of Library & Information Science (BLISc). The duration is one year and the eligibility is graduates with two years experience in a recognised library.

A scholarly profession with promise

The coming together of books and information technology requires today’s librarians to be interested in both

Financial woes: Among Indian libraries, the digital movement is lagging far behind.
In the era of the global economy, the future of a country is tied to knowledge-leveraged growth. The prime movers to achieve such growth are education, research, and communication. A formidable infrastructure in education, reinforced by well-knit communication and dissemination systems is a sine qua non for knowledge-based growth.
Life and living all around is today virtually under the grip of information and communication technologies. The enormous, unlimited array of information has to be managed and systematically transformed into a useful input for instant use. As such, automation of libraries is the demand of the hour worldwide to provide online access to books, journals and allied material.
The work-culture in libraries is changing fast. Cyber libraries are opening, packed with digital documents, CD-Roms and talking books. Several libraries are being connected for resource sharing using the Internet. Information like research findings, data, databases, online yellow pages, electronic mail services, investment guides, travel guidelines with related maps, educational and career guidance and the like can easily be retrieved.
As publishing is now moving to digital-media-formats, a library likewise needs to advance its devices and networking to make use of the digital material. Here, the collection of the library is stored and maintained in computer-accessible-form and accessed digitally through computer networking, regardless of its location. The process makes well-ordered, instant information-retrieval possible, globally.
People are getting net-savvy and the demand for online digital information service is increasing manifold. Among Indian libraries, the digital movement is lagging far behind, primarily due to financial limitations.
The old systems of acquisition, storage, organisation and dissemination are becoming obsolete. With the onslaught of Information Technology and the Internet, the very anatomy and application of resource material have been revolutionised. The present-day library is a liaison in communication progression and so is more ‘service-adept’ and less ‘resource-oriented’.
Likewise, staff members have to be technically accomplished and skilfully proficient. Today, the librarian (or, Information Professional) functions as a “navigator”, an updater of information to intellectual reserves, with the help of search engines, e-resources, digitalisation and tools like Gopher, FTP, Telnet, Unix, MS-Office, Windows, Linux and so on.
Emerging challenges

Jobs in a library also consist of budgeting, accounting, acquisition of collection, organisation and management of the institution, besides rendering service to readers. IT, digitalisation, online global information, automation have added new dimensions. In the areas of self-education, distant learning and online schooling, the library is indispensable.
The library profession has truly perceived the diversified dynamics of its job paradigms and so the training courses have been designed and drawn up accordingly, to meet emerging requirements and challenges. Currently, the following courses in LI. Sc are conducted by universities.
• 10+2+3+1 Bachelor of Library and B.LI.Sc. Information Science (admission requirement: degree in any discipline)
• 10+2+3+1+1 Master of Library and M.LI.Sc. Information Science (truncated course, one-year M.LI.Sc.) (admission requirement - B.L.I.Sc.)
• 10+2+3+2 Master of Library and M.L.I.Sc. Information Science (integrated course) (admission requirement: degree in any discipline)
• 10+2+3+2 Master of Library and M.L.I.Sc Information Science (bachelor’s degree in any discipline with Library and Information Science as one of the optional subjects)
Universities are also conducting research and Ph.D programmes in Library and Information Science. Besides, certificate courses in Library Science of three to six-month duration are conducted at some places by Library Associations, for higher secondary students to work as semi-professional or librarian in a small library. Knowledge of foreign languages is an advantage in this profession.
A knowledgeable librarian works as a guide, making the reader aware of the relevant literature, like any other teacher. In academic libraries, library professional’s grades and status have therefore, been prescribed by the UGC on a par with those of teachers of the universities and colleges. University Librarian, Deputy Librarian and Assistant Librarian are placed in the pay-scales of University Professor, Associate Professor and Assistant Professor respectively, provided they possess qualification on a par with the teachers, as prescribed by the UGC. In the institutions of science and technology and scientific research, library professionals are treated on a par with those of the corresponding scientists. In public libraries, however, librarians’ grades are not uniform and satisfactory. Grades here differ from State to State and much needs to be done to improve the conditions of the staff.
With increased emphasis on spread of literacy and education, and a good number of new universities, IITs, engineering colleges, business and management schools and industrial establishments coming up, the job-market for library professionals looks green.
Regarded as a noble profession, it is well-suited to women, to work in a quite environment, assisting information-seekers, especially the children.
The librarian’s job is scholarly; it’s a career with promise of growth, meant for those interested in books and reading and keeping their knowledge abreast with contemporary literature and research.

SHRI NATH SAHAI

Retired University
Professor-Librarian