Library and Information Science Education and Job Opportunities in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Library and Information Science is a career focused subject discipline. The fundamental is to organize the information related to all the other subjects, and provide them to the users in a way they expect, at the time they need. The main aim of Library and Information Science is to create professionals capable of performing these tasks. The success of this discipline depends on the acceptance gained from Library and Information centers Moreover, it also depends on providing suitable job opportunities for those who qualify in the area. If a job focused subject is not given required recognition, or if those who studied the subject do not receive suitable job opportunities, one cannot expect improvement in that profession. Sri Lanka has an age-old library tradition. However, due to British influence, a more democratic literary tradition expanded in the country. This tradition which runs back to the 1st half of the 19th century has immensely expanded. The latter half of 1950s marks the start of training professionals to function the information services in a more effective manner. It was commenced as a short term certificate course, and now is being offered as degree courses. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the impact of the discipline Library and Information Science and related job opportunities. It becomes a timely topic because one could get a clear understanding on the recognition of the subject and whether those who studied it have gained expected jobs. A mixed method was used in the study, and the sample was selected from those who studied Library and Information Science and from the Institute of Library and Information Science. Data was collected via questionnaires, interviews and primary observations. Secondary data was collected from the Literature Review. The findings revealed that there is no recognition for Library and Information Science as a profession in relation to other professions, and those who have studied this, do not get the expected jobs.