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University of Washington

University of Washington Information School

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Master of Library and Information Science

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Archiving, Special Collections, Records Management

  1. Programs
  2. MLIS
  3. Career Outcomes
  4. Archiving, Special Collections, Records Management

In library science, special collections is a specific repository or department within a library that stores materials of a "special" nature, including rare books, archives, and collected manuscripts. The primary function of a special collections department is to keep holdings safe and secure while remaining accessible.

iSchool Courses

Suggested

  • LIS 505 – Archival and Manuscript Services (3)
  • LIS 507 – Preservation and Conservation of Library Materials (3)
  • LIS 508 – History of Recorded Information (4)
  • LIS 526 – Government Information: Production and Access (3)
  • LIS 531 – Catalogs, Cataloging, and Classification (4)
  • LIS 534 – Indigenous Systems of Knowledge (3)
  • LIS 537 – Construction of Indexing Languages (4)

Also consider...

  • LIS 501 – History and Foundations of Libraries and Librarianship (3)
  • LIS 506 – Introduction to Digital Preservation (4)
  • LIS 521 – Principles of Information Services (4)
  • LIS 545 – Data Curation I: Fundamentals (4)
  • MUSEO 528 – Advocacy and Social Change (3)
  • MUSEO 560 – Museum Administration and Leadership (3)
  • All courses from the Textual Studies Certificate Program may also count toward the MLIS.

Professional Organizations

  • ARMA International
  • Library of Congress Preservation
  • National Association of Government Archives and Records Administrators
  • National Film Preservation Foundation
  • Society of American Archivists

Sample Job Titles

  • Archivist
  • Collections Archivist
  • Data Management Specialist
  • Document Specialist
  • Project Archivist
  • Records Management Specialist
  • Special Collections Librarian
  • “Subject Matter” Librarian
  • Video and Post Production Specialist

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News

Students (from left) Harman Zhang, Sara Duan, Justin Dong, Noa Avitan and David Pham

Informatics team helps music streamer earn money for artists

Thursday, May 22, 2025
For a music creator, getting paid by listeners around the world should be as simple as a fan clicking “subscribe.” But for many artists in less developed countries, existing streaming platforms make that difficult or out of reach.An...
Read more
Alex Heller, Alina Weseloh and Ilias Bowen-Sicalides

MLIS team preserves a piece of radio history

Friday, May 16, 2025
From 1973 to 2011, the Evergreen Radio Reading Service served blind and print-disabled listeners across the state of Washington. Now, with its recordings stored in a fragile audio archive and at risk of permanent loss, a team of MLIS...
Read more

Events

May 28
 
4:00-5:00PM

MLIS Law Librarianship Information Session

Zoom / Online
May 29
 
5:30-6:30PM

iSchool Library Leadership Spotlight Series: Melody Sky Weaver

Virtual
May 30
 
11:30-1:15PM

Faculty Meeting

Bloedel Hall 070
Jun 2
 
12:00-1:00PM

MSIM Mid-Career Last Chance Q&A

Zoom / Online
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