Frequently Asked Questions: Summer 2020 Admissions Cycles

Thursday, May 7, 2020

The iSchool has launched special summer 2020 admission cycles for both the Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) program and the Early-Career Master of Science in Information Management (MSIM) program to offer recent graduates and young professionals increased access to an advanced, high-quality education.  Prospective students can apply through Aug. 1 to be considered for autumn 2020 cohorts. Read the full announcement. Why is the iSchool adding these new admission deadlines?  We know that students’ post-graduation plans may be changing right now due to the imp

iSchool increases access to master’s programs for graduates and young professionals

Thursday, May 7, 2020

The University of Washington Information School has launched special summer 2020 admission cycles for both the Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) program and the Early-Career Master of Science in Information Management (MSIM) program. Prospective students can apply through Aug. 1 to be considered for autumn 2020 cohorts.  This decision supports graduating seniors and recent alumni who may be facing reduced job prospects by offering additional pathways to an advanced, high-quality education.  We have worked to increase access to the degree by making application fee

iSchool students make up 10 of the Husky 100

Monday, May 4, 2020

Ten iSchool students were recognized by the UW among the 2020 Husky 100, an honor awarded to graduate and undergraduate students who have demonstrated excellence inside the classroom and beyond. The Husky 100, now in its fifth year, celebrates students who take full advantage of the Husky Experience, showing a commitment to a set of criteria that include leadership, engagement and community impact. This year’s 100 honorees were selected from 1,767 nominations by peers, faculty and staff, and an additional 583 applications across all three UW campuses. “I am incredibly proud of the te

iSchool team's expertise helps remote courses succeed

Monday, May 4, 2020

When the University of Washington went to fully remote instruction in March, faculty and students might have had visions of a fire drill. But it was quite the opposite at the Information School, thanks largely to its secret weapon: an experienced and knowledgeable Learning Technologies Team. The four-person team helps faculty negotiate the technical challenges of teaching online and optimize their courses for remote learning. While it would be nice if faculty could simply deliver the same courses online that they would in person, the reality is more complex. Moving a class online means

Chirag Shah honored for his impact on information retrieval

Friday, April 24, 2020

Chirag Shah, an associate professor at the University of Washington Information School, was honored recently as the latest recipient of the Karen Spärck Jones Award, a career achievement award in the field of natural language processing and information retrieval. Shah is the 11th recipient of the award, given by the British Computer Society Information Retrieval Specialist Group in honor of an influential computer scientist and pioneer in the field who died in 2007. The award, which is sponsored by Microsoft Research, goes to a thought leader in either academia or industry who has made the

Allyson Carlyle remembered for generosity, dedication to students

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Allyson Carlyle didn’t hesitate to speak her mind. So when she first read Ph.D. student Joe Tennis’ writing, the iSchool associate professor was blunt. “She said she was going to have to rewrite every word in my dissertation,” says Tennis, now a professor at the school. She wanted shorter sentences, more direct statements, less high-falutin language and, above all, clarity. “She was very particular about accessibility. She wanted us to translate very complex concepts into clear English for a wide audience,” says Tennis. Carlyle, a beloved member of the iSchool family and

iSchool alum, professor team up on 'a better mousetrap' for patient records

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

As a practicing physician, Ari Pollack wants to spend less time searching for information and more time focusing on his patients’ needs. And he’s not alone; data show that Electronic Health Records, or EHRs, are a constant source of frustration to physicians. “I always thought there was a better mousetrap to build,” Pollack said. The Information School Master of Science in Information Management alumnus is working on one. He and iSchool Professor Wanda Pratt teamed up on a study of some alternative ways to present data to physicians using visualizations. The prestigious Journ

What technology helps parents in a pandemic? Researchers launch study

Monday, April 20, 2020

When the novel coronavirus pandemic struck, shuttering schools across the country, parents were thrust into an unexpected juggling act. All at once, many were working — possibly at home — or dealing with sudden job losses while simultaneously trying to keep their kids’ education on track. “Nobody was ready for this,” said Jason Yip, an assistant professor in the University of Washington Information School. “Teachers weren’t ready with the infrastructure, parents certainly weren’t ready, but now it’s time and everybody’s got to become an instructional designer and the

Statewide virtual summit tackles coronavirus 'infodemic'

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

The coronavirus pandemic isn’t the only viral problem currently afflicting the planet, according to experts from the University of Washington and Washington State University. We’re facing an “infodemic” as well. The UW Center for an Informed Public and WSU’s Murrow College of Communication joined forces for a livestream summit on April 9 to address the spread of misinformation about the coronavirus and offer advice on how to build healthier information practices. More than 2,000 people watched at least a significant portion of the event, which was streamed on YouTube and Facebook

‘I saw you were online’: How online status indicators shape our behavior

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

Some apps highlight when a person is online — and then share that information with their followers. When a user logs in to a website or app that uses online status indicators, a little green (or orange or blue) dot pops up to alert their followers that they’re currently online. Researchers at the University of Washington wanted to know if people recognize that they are sharing this information and whether these indicators change how people behave online. After surveying smartphone users, the team found that many people misunderstand online status indicators but still carefully shap

Supporting community well-being in unprecedented times

Sunday, April 5, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic crisis have been the most significant disruption of society since WWII. As I reflect on the past month, I could not be prouder of the iSchool community’s response.  Our students, faculty and staff have not only adjusted rapidly to this suddenly changed world, but they have reached out beyond the iSchool to provide leadership to faculty and staff across the UW who are less familiar with online teaching technologies, to slow the spread of the COVID-19 “infodemic,” and to support public health and well-being. They have exhibited i

Avoiding information overload during the pandemic: a Q&A with David Levy

Thursday, April 2, 2020

Since leaving Silicon Valley for the University of Washington Information School in the early 2000s, Professor David Levy has focused on the challenge of achieving contemplative balance. In his research and coursework, he investigates how we as individuals and a society can live healthy, reflective and productive lives in an information-saturated culture. Levy distilled his thoughts on information overload, stress and distraction in the 2016 book “Mindful Tech: How to Bring Balance to Our Digital Lives.” We asked him for his perspective on dealing with such issues amid the COVID-19 pand

CIP researchers promote trustworthy sources on COVID-19

Thursday, March 12, 2020

Center for an Informed Public researchers and affiliates have been prominent voices in the media in recent weeks as the COVID-19 pandemic has developed, demonstrating the type of public engagement envisioned for the University of Washington’s new center. “We are a research center with a public facing mission,” CIP Director Jevin West (pictured above, at left) said. “That means talking to the public around issues surrounding misinformation. The COVID-19 situation is no exception.” CIP affiliate Carl Bergstrom (pictured above, at right), a professor in the University of Washingto

iSchoolers celebrate information architecture at World IA Day

Wednesday, March 11, 2020

World Information Architecture (IA) Day recently brought individuals from all corners of the iSchool together to celebrate IA and connect with experts in the field. The Seattle portion of the Feb. 22 event consisted of a mini hackathon followed by a series of talks and panels at General Assembly, a global organization dedicated to technology education and training. A highly anticipated part of the day, the hackathon challenged participants — many Master of Science and Information Management (MSIM) and Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) students and alumni — to design a

iSchool alumna makes Dewey work for everyone

Monday, March 9, 2020

As Dewey editor at OCLC, Violet Fox is in a rare position of influence over the classification system that both rules the librarianship world and at times drives it batty. In her role, the 2013 Information School MLIS alumna is one of two people primarily in charge of creating numerical additions to the Dewey Decimal Classification, which was first devised in 1876. As powerful as it is, the system still contains outdated references that frustrate users and prompt calls for change. Part of Fox’s job is to facilitate ways to make those changes happen. “All of the things that I do a