The Faculty of Information (or the iSchool at the University of Toronto) is a graduate school that offers the following programs: a Master of Information (MI), a Master of Museum Studies (MMSt), and a PhD in Information Studies, as well as diploma courses. As a member of the iSchool movement, the Faculty of Information takes an interdisciplinary approach to information studies, building on its traditional strengths in library and information science, complemented by research and teaching in archives, museum studies, information systems and design, critical information studies, culture and technology, knowledge management, digital humanities, the history of books, and other related fields. It is located on St. George Campus, in the Claude Bissell building, at 140 St. George Street, which is attached to the John P. Robarts Research Library and the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library.
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History
The Faculty of Information was founded as the University of Toronto Library School within the Ontario College of Education in 1928 and was housed at 315 Bloor Street. In 1965, the School was designated as an independent unit within the university and became known as the School of Library Science and thus moved it quarters to 167 College Street and 256 McCaul Street. In 1971, SLS moved again to its present location at 140 St. George Street. In 1972, the name changed to the Faculty of Library Science (FLS), as the school attained faculty status. The name changed again to the Faculty of Library and Information Science (FLIS) in 1982 and then the Faculty of Information Studies (FIS) in 1994. In 2004, FIS joined the iSchool Caucus and accordingly in 2008, it was renamed the Faculty of Information (FI), also identifying itself as "the iSchool at Toronto".
The faculty has offered a variety of degrees since its inception, which at the same time reflect the changing requirements of entry into librarianship and more recently, into other information professions. Between 1928 and 1936, it offered one-year university Diploma in Librarianship, and from 1936 to 1970, a one-year Bachelor of Library Science degree, which was accredited by the American Library Association in 1937. The late 1960s saw the emergence of the Master of Library Science (MLS) degree as the first professional degree in librarianship, which was introduced in the School in 1970 and required four semesters to complete. Doctoral program, leading to a Doctor of Philosophy was established in 1971, with Claire England holding the first Ph.D. in library science that was awarded in Canada in 1974. In 1988, the faculty began to offer a Master of Information Science (MIS) degree. In 1995, the MLS and MIS degrees were both replaced with the Master of Information Studies (MISt) degree, which had three areas of specialization: archival studies, information systems, and library and information science. The name of the degree was changed to Master of Information (MI) in 2009.
Since 2006, when the Department of Museum Studies became part of FIS, the faculty began to offer a Master of Museum Studies degree.
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Programs
The Faculty of Information currently offers two master's degrees: Master of Information (MI) and Master of Museum Studies (MMSt), which are also offered together as a concurrent option (CRO). In addition, students can also enroll in a Ph.D. program and Graduate Diploma of Advanced Study in Information Studies (DAIS).
Master of Information (MI)
The MI degree is accredited by the American Library Association and those pursuing this program have the option of enrolling in one of five areas of specialization: Archives and Records Management (ARM), Critical Information Studies (CIS), Information Systems and Design (ISD), Knowledge Management and Information Management (KMIM), and Library and Information Science (LIS). Students are also able to create their own areas of specialization in consultation with their academic advisors or enroll in one of the eight collaborative programs. The degree also allows for a thesis option and for enrolling in Specialization in Identity, Privacy and Security. Starting in the Fall of 2013, the Faculty will be adding two new paths in Culture and Technology, and Knowledge Media Design.
Archives and Records Management (ARM)
This path concentrates on the social, institutional, and personal practices affecting the creation, use, and re-use of recorded information. The ARM path explores the multiple perspectives that inform documentary practices over time, and draws on diverse foundational disciplines, including management theories for organizational records, archival theory of arrangement and description, appraisal theories and practices for diverse organizations, preservation principles and technology migration management, and history of records and record keeping.
Critical Information Studies (CIS)
In the CIS path, information is understood not as a pre-existing entity to be stored, managed, or accessed. Instead, students will become familiar with methods and theories that address how information is created, used, and transformed, in practice and in context. A focus on the material processes and practices of contemporary society is intended to promote engagement and intervention in these practices, from a variety of professional and social positions.
Information Systems & Design (IS&D)
The aim of the IS&D curriculum is to provide a framework for understanding and managing important aspects in the interplay between information and communication technologies (ICTs) and information practices, in the context of the needs and nature of various participants in informational activities. Students learn how to create and enhance innovative, accessible, and adaptable solutions to problems of information practice, in constantly changing digital environments.
Knowledge Management & Information Management (KMIM)
Knowledge Management and Information Management (KMIM) studies the concepts, tools, and practices that enable the systematic, imaginative, and responsible management of information in an organization or community. The goal is to promote social learning and innovation, and to provide groups and individuals with the information they need to perform their work and to develop themselves.
Library & Information Science (LIS)
The largest of the approved paths, the LIS curriculum educates students in the information life cycle, including information creation, representation, organization, management, dissemination, and preservation. Within the LIS concentration, students can choose to focus on certain types of librarianship, such as public librarianship, academic librarianship, government documents, and special librarianship.
Master of Museum Studies (MMSt)
The iSchool provides graduate education in museum studies, which is both academic and professional program, and students are awarded a Master of Museum Studies degree upon graduation. Core courses examine museological scholarship and its practical application in different environments. Individual projects and internships offer opportunities for students to develop practical skills and pursue special interests, in preparation for careers as museum professionals. The program allows students to complete a summer internship between the first and second years of study.
Concurrent Registration Option (CRO)
This program permits graduate students to complete a Masters of Information (MI) and a Masters of Museum Studies (MMSt) concurrently within the span of three years.
PhD Program
The Faculty of Information also offers a PhD program in information studies. The program of study is developed by each student on an individual basis, in conjunction with a faculty advisor. There are seven fields of information specialization (fields of study) available at the faculty: Critical Information Studies, Library & Information Science, Archives & Records Management, Information Systems, Media, & Design, Cultural Heritage, Knowledge Management & Information Management, and Philosophy of Information.
Collaborative Programs
Collaborative programs are open to all students enrolled in the MI and Ph.D. programs. They are designed to allow students to focus on specialized subject interests and since they are a result of cooperation between different graduate units at the university, separate admission process is required of those who wish enter them. Currently, there are eight collaborative programs available: Book History and Print Culture, based at Massey College, Knowledge Media Design, Addiction Studies, Aging, Palliative and Supportive Care Across the Life Course, Centre for Environment, Knowledge Media Design, Sexual Diversity Studies, Women's Health, and Women and Gender Studies.
MMSt students are allowed to enroll in Book History and Print Culture, Jewish Studies, and Sexual Diversity Studies programs.
Graduate Diploma
The iSchool offers a Graduate Diploma in Advanced Study in Information Studies (DAIS), which is for information professionals who want to add to their knowledge without taking a full PhD program. The diploma is only open to those who have a related Master's degree.
Undergraduate Program
Along with the Institute of Communication, Culture, and Information and Technology (ICCIT) at the UTM campus, the iSchool offers the Bachelor of Arts degree in Interactive Digital Media (IDM). In addition to core courses, students must also take two modules in two areas of specialization: Knowledge Media Design, and Immersive Digital Media.
Facilities
The iSchool occupies all seven floors of the Claude Bissell building, which is attached to the John P. Robarts Research Library and the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library. The building houses classrooms, administration, faculty offices, as well as the Inforum.
Inforum
Inforum is the library as well as a styled "academic and community hub" at the FI. It contains a specialized collection devoted to the studies at the FI, including library and information science, knowledge management, information systems and design, and other related areas. It also includes a special collection on subject analysis system.
Critical Making Lab
Created in 2008 by Professor Matt Ratto, the critical making laboratory is a shared space for opening up the practice of experimentation with embedded and material digital technology to students and faculty. The lab provides tools, materials, and training for building devices such as wearable computers, RFID systems, ubiquitous computing networks, and other physical computing technologies. However, while the critical making lab organizes its efforts around the making of material objects, machines themselves are not the ultimate goal.
Semaphore Lab
Semaphore Lab is a research cluster dedicated to inclusive design in the area of mobile and pervasive computing. Launched in 2012, it shares space with the Critical Making Lab in Robarts Library.
ThingTank Lab
The ThingTank lab originated in 2009 as the Designing Digital Media for the Internet of Things (DDiMIT). In 2010, the lab was funded and renamed to ThingTank. The lab is located off-campus, on Bathurst Street in Toronto. The lab offers workshops, idea jams and roundtable events aimed at supporting activity in exploration and development of internet enabled "things." The lab use is not restricted to University of Toronto faculty and students, but open to other universities, and those in the public and private sectors.
Institutes
Knowledge Media Design Institute
The Knowledge Media Design Institute (KMDI) was founded in 1996 as the University of Toronto's first virtual institute. The purpose of the institute is to explore, design, and critique the knowledge media that enable people to communicate, create, learn and collaborate. KMDI offers one of the collaborative programs available to graduate students at the University of Toronto. The current Director of KMDI is Mark Chignell.
The McLuhan Centre for Culture and Technology
Located in the historic McLuhan Coach House, the Centre was first launched in 1963 as the Centre for Culture and Technology. The Centre joined the Faculty of Information as a distinct research and teaching unit in 1994, and was renamed as The McLuhan Centre for Culture and Technology in June 2016. The McLuhan Centre is the home of the McLuhan Program in Culture and Technology, which aims to encourage understanding of the impact of technology on our culture and society. The Interim Director of The McLuhan Centre for Culture and Technology is Seamus Ross and the Director of the McLuhan Program in Culture and Technology is Sarah Sharma.
Digital Curation Institute
The Digital Curation Institute (DCI) is headed by Christoph Becker, an iSchool faculty member. The DCI promotes research projects that involve collaboration among faculty, students, practitioners, and researchers. It encourages research that utilizes multi-methods approaches from several fields within information studies.
Deans
- 2016-Present Wendy Duff, PhD
- 2009-2015 Seamus Ross, BA, MA, DPhil, CorrFRSE
- 2003-2008 Brian Cantwell Smith, BSc, MSc, PhD
- 1995-2003 Lynne Howarth, BA, MLS, PhD
- 1990-1995 Adele M. Fasick, BA, MA, MSLS, PhD
- 1984-1990 Ann H. Schabas, BA, AM, BLS, MA, PhD
- 1979-1984 Katherine H. Packer, BA, AMLS, PhD
- 1972-1978 Francess Georgina Halpenny, CC, BA, MA, LLD, DLitt, FRSC
- 1972 R. Brian Land, BA, MA, BLS, MLS
Directors
- 1964--1972 R. Brian Land, BA, MA, BLS, MLS
- 1951--1964 Bertha Bassam, B.A., B.L.S., M.S., LLD
- 1928--1951 Winifred G. Barnstead, B.A., LLD
Faculty of Information Quarterly
The Faculty of Information Quarterly (F/IQ), is a scholarly, peer-reviewed, open-access e-journal founded and operated entirely by students at the FI. The mission of F/IQ is to create an intellectual space for the information community to analyse and critically assess the divergent topics that comprise the field's study and practice, and to define and direct the iSchool movement through scholarly and professional communications as a means to fostering collective identity among students, faculty and practitioners of the field. F/IQ was first published in October, 2008.
The journal accepts submissions from both established and emerging scholars and practitioners in information-related fields, such as archival science, information systems, library science, museum studies and others.
Published four times a year, F/IQ includes original research, guest editorials, interviews with senior scholars and professionals in the field, and book reviews. It uses Open Journal Systems (OJS), an open source software for the management of peer-review journals, created by the Public Knowledge Project, released under the GNU General Public License.
Alumni Association
The Faculty of Information Alumni Association (FIAA) was first founded in 1929 and represents over 6,700 graduates of the FI. It sponsors a number of events and programs, including Job Shadowing and publishes an online magazine, Informed, dedicated to news about the FI, faculty and alumni.
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