The Committee on Information Studies Programme and Industry Needs (CISPIN) was formed in Jan 2011 by the Council of Chief Librarian (CCL) and endorsed by the Library Association of Singapore (LAS).
The impetus for the formation of the Committee came from feedback by chief librarians over the years that there should be better alignment between the skills and knowledge acquired by graduates of the information studies programme with the current and future needs of libraries. In addition, there is a noticeable change in job and experience profile of new entrants and potential entrants to the profession which requires us to review other alternative ways for them to obtain professional qualifications without incurring high opportunity costs.
Finally, members of CCL agreed that there should be a formal accreditation process for library and information science (LIS) professional qualifications to facilitate continuous feedback to professional schools or other educational bodies to achieve long-term goals for creating and sustaining a vibrant pool of library and information professionals
Reports Published
- CISPIN Report-1-R – Date Published: 1 Feb 2012. Revised 1 Apr 2012
The above goals can be summarised in the 3 terms of reference of CISPIN :
- Provide library education institutions with industry views of desired competencies and professional knowledge of graduates.
- Explore alternative routes to obtaining professional library qualifications that meet the requirements and expectations of libraries in Singapore
- Recommend and set up an accreditation process and body for the endorsement of professional library qualifications.
Committee members of CISPIN are drawn from all the major sectors of the library industry to ensure good representation of various interests.
Universities
- Choy Fatt Cheong , University Librarian (Chair), NTU
- Lee Cheng Ean, Associate University Librarian, NUS
- Rajendra Munoo, Head, Instructional Services, SMU
- Wan-Yeoh Seok Kwan, Head, NIE
- Caroline Loh, Director, NP
- Esther Ong, Director, NP
- Judy Ng, Director, NLB
- Veronica Boudville, Deputy Director, NLB
- Susan Song-Lim, Head, MAS
Time Frame For Action
The Committee plans to work on each of the terms of reference in the sequence stated and issue at least 3 reports related to each matter. This report focuses on knowledge and skills that library employers considered to be essential for new entrants to the profession. It is submitted to the Council of Chief Librarian Council and the Library Association of Singapore in Jan 2012. The second and third reports are scheduled to be issued in Aug 2012 and Jan 2013 respectively.
The Committee is grateful to the Division of Information Studies (DIS) at WKW School of Communication in NTU for their presentation, papers and discussion at our meetings which were valuable in our deliberations. We are also appreciative of some members of the profession, particular alumni of DIS who also submitted their views on the topic.
Copyright Information
The copyright of a work published in CISPIN Report is held by both committees of CISPIN & LAS. Authors may post the work on personal or institutional Web sites and in other open-access digital repositories. The authors must warrant that their article is original and the original work of the authors. The authors must also obtain relevant permissions from any third-party copyright holders and intellectual property owners.
The Library Association of Singapore (LAS) reserves the right to permanently maintain open access to all published articles, to maintain permanent archival copies of all submissions, to provide print or electronic copies to appropriate services for indexing and to use all published materials in various formats for LAS’s exclusive non-commercial purposes.