This document outlines the Portfolio Assessment Requirement for students entering the Master of Information Science (MIS) program at the University of California, Los Angeles in the fall of 1997 and after who have the option of preparing a portfolio or writing a thesis. First, the two general and three specific goals of the portfolio assessment…

Describes a study done by Herbert White that resulted in rankings of library and information science programs based on perceptual assessments by faculty and library directors. Problems with this methodology are discussed, and further findings based on extensive interviews with subjects of the White study are reported. (CLB)

Questions the future of the Master of Library Science (MLS) Degree in a field which in the past has criticized and doubted its professionalism. At a conference sponsored by the Association for Library and Information Science Education, educators and librarians discussed problems of the field and projected areas of change. (CDD)