University Education of Information Professionals: Challenges and Possible Step Towards

Abstract

Following changes in the field of the university education and a series of new tasks for modern information institutions this paper considers possible steps towards a systematic university education and continuous professional development of information professionals. It is indisputable that it is possible to compare and find common characteristics of educational programs in the fields of information science, library science, library and information science, and programs offered by the so-called i-schools. In addition, there are a number of new providers of education programs in, for example, information economics, digital libraries, big data management, where content in librarianship (such as information organization, information retrieval, information behavior, information literacy) can play a significantly more significant role. The aim of the paper is to highlight the trends in the European university area from the perspective of educating librarians and other information professionals, and to encourage educators to find optimal solutions within local circumstances (such as Bosnian and Herzegovinian). We intend to point out the need for systematic reflection and action that would respect traditionally understood competencies and critically look at new opportunities with the aim of designing attractive and sustainable university programs and programs that upgrade the acquired competencies with new ones. These programs should be flexible enough to respond to the needs of new challenges such as managing a new University Library in Sarajevo. Based on the experience of the recently completed Erasmus + EINFOSE project, we aim to single out key issues for future discussions and decisions.