What information competencies matter in today’s workplace?

Authors

  • Alison J. Head Founder and Director, Project Information Literacy Research Fellow, Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet and Society Research Fellow, Library Innovation Lab at Harvard Law School Affiliate Associate Professor, the iSchool, the University of Washington
  • Michele Van Hoeck Michele Van Hoeck is an Instruction Coordinator at California Maritime Academy, within the California State University system, and a member of the Project Information Literacy Research Team.
  • Jordan Eschler Jordan Eschler is a doctoral student at the University of Washington's Information School and a member of the Project Information Literacy Research Team.
  • Sean Fullerton Sean Fullerton is a doctoral student at the University of Washington's Information School and a member of the Project Information Literacy Research Team.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29173/lirg557

Keywords:

information literacy, workplace information literacy, preparedness

Abstract

This is a qualitative study about the information competencies that employers seek in university graduates and the skills which graduates demonstrate when they enter the workplace. Included are findings from interviews with 23 US employers and focus groups with a total of 33 recent graduates from four US colleges and universities. Employers said they recruited graduates for their online searching skills but once graduates joined the workplace they rarely used the traditional, low-tech research competencies that their employers also needed. Graduates said that they used skills from university for evaluating and managing published content; yet most graduates still needed to develop adaptive strategies to save time and work more efficiently. A preliminary model compares information problems in the university with those of the workplace. Opportunities are identified for preparing students to succeed beyond the academy in the workplaces of today and tomorrow.

Author Biography

Alison J. Head, Founder and Director, Project Information Literacy Research Fellow, Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet and Society Research Fellow, Library Innovation Lab at Harvard Law School Affiliate Associate Professor, the iSchool, the University of Washington

Alison Head, Ph.D. is the Executive Director of Project Information Literacy (PIL), a public benefit nonprofit dedicated to conducting ongoing, large-scale research about college students and their research habits and strategies in the digital age. Alison is an Affiliate Associate Professor in the iSchool at the University of Washington.Since 2011, Alison has been a Fellow at Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet and Society and a Fellow at the Harvard Law Library Innovation Lab.

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Published

2013-05-10

Issue

Vol. 37 No. 114 (2013): Information Literacy and Lifelong Learning

Section

Refereed Research Articles

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