Graduate Certificate in Public Library Services to Children and Young Adults

The Graduate Certificate in Public Library Services to Children and Young Adults (PLSCYA) was developed in response to a growing shift in public libraries towards creating children and youth services departments staffed with dedicated professionals who have a specific knowledge and skill set in this area. This certificate would be beneficial to any information professional who would like to support the literacy needs of children and young adults in public library settings.

We prepare future information professionals to serve the diverse literacy needs of children and young adults through culturally responsive, age-appropriate materials and programming. We encourage library programming built on the principles of connected learning, which forges links between youth's academics and personal passions to create new pathways to college, career, and civic pursuits.

The PLSCYA certificate program offerings are designed to cultivate the expansive skill set that today's youth services librarians must have including website development, programming, and children and young adult literature courses.

The Graduate Certificate in Public Library Services to Children and Young Adults is for:

Practicing library professionals who need to advance their competency in the field of children and youth services.
SIS graduate students wishing to pursue a professional career in children and youth services.
Graduate students from other disciplines and professions who wish public library and youth services skills to aid their organizations in meeting community needs.

Children and young adults comprise a high proportion of the patrons of public libraries from large urban library systems to suburban library districts to small rural independent libraries. Services to children and young adults requires specialized training in the development of programs, the creation of effective collections, and the skills necessary to collaborate with community organizations who serve children and young adults.

The certificate may be completed in conjunction with the MLIS degree or as a post-MLIS certificate. The 15-credit Public Library Services to Children and Young Adults Certificate program includes 9 credits of required coursework and 6 credits of electives.

Please note that the Public Library Services to Children and Young Adults Certificate is available to students in the online MLIS program.

Students interested in pursuing only the Public Library Services to Children and Young Adults certificate should review the SIS Certificate policy. Before enrolling in the certificate program, students must meet the program's technology requirements.

Required classes

To obtain the Public Library Services to Children and Young Adults Graduate Certificate, students must complete the following classes:

Elective classes

To fulfill the requirements of the Public Library Services to Children and Young Adults Graduate Certificate, students must choose two (minimum) of the following courses: