School of Library and Information Science

COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATION QUESTIONS
July, 2003

1. In Our Enduring Values, Michael Gorman has observed: "An ideal world of equality of access is out of reach, but a world in which librarians and library users have achieved a far greater state of fairness than now obtains is by no means impossible to achieve." Discuss. Include in your answer steps that librarians can take to promote equity of access, and elaborate on each of these steps.
2. Classification and controlled subject terms are two tools developed to organize print documents. Discuss how classification and controlled subject terms can be used in organizing Internet "documents" and compare the functions and uses of these two tools in a print environment and an electronic environment.
3. In the commercial sector, market researchers seek to determine potential clients' needs and also their ability and willingness to meet the costs of the product or service being considered. What special issues might arise in applying such an approach to libraries, and how do you think they should be addressed?
4. Many individuals and organizations are interested in creating digital collections, but not all of them understand that creating a digital collection involves many intellectual, technical, and managerial details. Discuss (in depth) four issues that must be considered to create a digital collection, facilitate user access, and ensure proper management of such a collection.
5. Libraries depend heavily on clerks, pages, and other non-professional staff. Such workers are trained to perform basic tasks but may lack orientation to the profession of librarianship as a whole. To what extent might library staff need training in professional standards, ethics, etc. to perform non-professional work in two of the following areas (your choice) and why? (a) Cataloging, (b) circulation, (c) reference, (d) systems.
6. With the advances of digital technology, the Internet, and the World Wide Web, the roles of library and information professionals have been changing. Identify and discuss what you consider to be the three most important changes, with an emphasis on new/potential roles in providing information services in digital environments.
7. A recent listserv question asked how to decide whether to add online versions of journals a library already receives. How do you decide if it is worth it to spend money on an online version of a journal you receive in print? The message sender went on to ask what to do when publishers offer both print and electronic formats for the price of one. When should a library decide to get both formats, and when just one? If they decide to select just one, how do they determine which format is most appropriate for them?
8. F. W. Lancaster in 1978 predicted that the world was moving toward a paperless society. Nearly 25 years later, paper abounds, and neither libraries nor other organizations seem any closer to Lancaster's vision. Explain, with references, why this is true.
9. Information systems have a purpose and a boundary, operate in an environment, and have inputs and outputs. In designing a user-centered system in a library or an information center, define these concepts (information system, boundary, environment, inputs, outputs) in the context of system design and discuss how to incorporate them into the design process.
10. The Minister of Canadian National Heritage announced late last year that the National Library of Canada and the National Archives of Canada would be merged to form a new Library and Archive of Canada. Discuss the advantages and problems that a merger of a library and an archive would raise.