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Mr. Ditchburn has certainly opened a Pandora's Box. The key point is that Librarianship is a profession being transformed in the digital age. Library Programs are also in flux. His experience has been a negative one. There are plenty people who have had positive experiences. Like Mr. Ditchburn, I have been working towards a MS in Library and Information Science (Palmer School, Long Island University) after a rigorous MA in Art History (IFA, NYU). The Library degree is a totally different beast. I also worked for ten years with a professional rank as a Slide Librarian before deciding to get the MLS. So, why get another degree when I was already a "professional?" The world of libraries and visual resources have changed with the advent of digital technologies. The library degree (at least the program I'm enrolled in) attempts to address some of these issues. Every course I have taken (except maybe the management course) have dealt with digital technologies and their effect on traditional librarianship. A requirement for the degree at LIU (and I believe most of the other Library programs in the NY City area) is an Internship. I can't get out of it even though I've been working as a professional for all these years. Perhaps Mr. Ditchburn's mistake was his choice of program, not the profession itself. I can't speak to dual programs. My instinct is that one would not get the as thorough a training in art history at a dual degree program. This is a supposition on my part. Is the MS in Library and Information Science still valid? Obviously I think so. The MS automatically confers professional status. Coming from the world of visual resources where professional status is not a given, I think this is important. Libraries and librarians are redefining what they do. Library schools are making the attempt to do the same. My husband got his MLS about 15 years ago from the same program I am attending. His coursework and experiences have been totally different from mine. I think it is an exciting time to be a librarian. Susan Melick Bresnan Associate Museum Librarian The Photograph and Slide Library The Metropolitan Museum of Art Phone: (212) 650-2331 Email: [log in to unmask] __________________________________________________________________ Mail submissions to [log in to unmask] Administrative matters (file requests, subscription requests, etc) to [log in to unmask] ARLIS-L Archives and subscription maintenance: http://lsv.uky.edu/archives/arlis-l.html Questions may be addressed to list owner (Kerri Scannell) at: [log in to unmask]