I am kind of wavering between going to Queens College or Palmer LIU in Manhattan. Applied and got into both (RA!) Queens is a hell of a lot cheaper so I'll probably wind up there whatever the answer, but I am a bit worried about the quality of the program, and doing a web search don't find a lot of Queens graduates in prominent poistions?

Any Queens people out there to reassure me? Does it matter that much where you get the degree?

As a professor at Queens, the main difference between Queens and Post as far as I know, besides cost, is work, and the necessity of taking our required exit course where you have to do a research project (not just a paper). We try to work your butts off and are generally happy with our reputation as a "grind" school, because we want people able to do entry level work leaving us as graduates. We also love the diversity of our student body by age and ethnicity.

While all our grads may not be distinguished, one was recently written up in the New York Times arts section recently as the NYPL's "Librarian to the Stars" because of all the writers he has helped. Another distinguished alum who is recognized as such is Joyce Valenza who is nationally known in school library circles.

In terms of the intellectual "challenge" of LIS school, much of it is socialization to a new profession, or for those working in a clerical or paraprofessional level in a library, an in-depth introduction to the "whys" rather than the "hows" of the profession. Like many, I thought it was intellectual crap, but I can't tell you how often I have used what I learned as an MLS student. The LIS field is also increasingly technical, with many humanities and social science majors find daunting, but thinking about 21st century information and communication offers a great many challenges, believe me.

Mary K. Chelton
Professor, GSLIS
Queens College

Hi, someone sent me a message about this post, it seems like a million years since I made it. In case anyone's interested, thought I would share the response. The below is just one person's opinion of course..

Hi,

I am amazed you are responding to the post on LS jobs, it seems like I was on there years ago. I decided to go to Queens even though I also applied and was accepted to Palmer, and am pretty happy with that decision. I can't really believe that I am this far along on the degree... it seems like I just started here!

I can't give you that much of a comparison, but I can tell you about Queens if you like. Generally, the courses here are very down to earth, with a big emphasis on the practical aspects of the profession. In other words, Queens offers very few fancy courses on the philosophy of Information Science or on theory of librarianship. Instead, the Queens program is very strong on Public Librarianship and School Librarianship, which is what most of the people here go for. If that is what you are interested in, this is the place for you! They also have an Archivist Certificate program (which I am in). The computer courses are kind of basic here, nothing that advanced or super cutting edge. Pre-requisites are not enforced either, which can slow down the classes they do have. You will have to take an introductory technology class - 701. Everyone here hates this course with a passion. I guess my point is that if you want to become a rare-book specialist, information theorist, or library technologist, other schools may be a better choice, though we do have some people interested in those aspects of librarianship here as well, and they seem to find their niche.

I wouldn't say most of the classes here are that difficult, but the Professors love to be very thorough in giving out lengthy time-consuming exhaustive projects. Although these projects will try to prepare you for the real world, sometimes it seems quantity of work is regarded > quality here. Be prepared. Group work and in-class presentations are the norm. In my experience, almost all of the Professors here are excellent, know their field well and can give you lots of real world advice. The faculty who run the department and the staff people whom you have to deal with are just "meh" in my opinion though. Ironically, the college library and the library program don't seem to communicate at all. On the positive side, the school does a great job in letting you know about internships, paid positions and volunteer projects.. there are tons of these opportunities available if you are interested.

For me, the biggest negative about Queens is the commute, though they do offer some classes in Manhattan now. Truthfully, if money was no object, I may have chosen another school, but as it is, I am quite happy with the education here, and feel well prepared for that first professional position (RA!)