Youth (Children’s and Young Adult) Services is an area of professional practice centered on serving the informational, recreational, educational, and cultural needs of children, young adults, and their caregivers within a public library setting. This diverse area includes library services to youth ages birth up to nineteen. The Graduate Certificate in Youth Literature & Services trains dedicated professionals with specialized knowledge and skills to support the informational and literacy needs of children, tweens, teens, and young adults. This certificate is advantageous to an information or education professional interested in fostering the literacy needs of youth in library and literacy environments.
The Graduate Certificate in Youth Literature & Services is a 15 credit hour program with courses that focus on drawing a connection between youth's educational and personal interests and a wide range of creative activities such as puppetry, traditional and digital storytelling, dramatic play, poetry slams, and spoken word performances. The certificate provides the expertise to enhance youth’s literacy skills and learning explorations to celebrate book joy and forge pathways to school, college, career, and civic readiness.
Certificate coursework may be combined with an MLIS or taken as a stand-alone certificate to complement other graduate work and degree in library and information studies and allied disciplines.
Admissions
Completed Bachelor's degree with a 3.0 minimum GPA.
Applications are accepted from students currently holding a Bachelor's degree, those pursuing graduate work in library and information studies and allied disciplines, or those already possessing graduate degrees in related disciplines.
Application Deadlines:
For Spring admissions, the priority deadline for all certificate applications is October 1 and the final completed application deadline is November 16. For Fall admissions, the priority deadline for all certificate applications is February 1 and the final completed application deadline is May 15.
Curricular Requirements
Students complete a total of 15 hours for the Graduate Certificate in Youth Literature & Services. Nine credit hours are selected from required youth services courses and six credit hours are from an approved list of youth services electives.
Double counting of courses in the required and elective areas is not permitted. If a course is selected as a required course, it cannot be used as an approved elective.
All 15 hours in the certificate can be applied as electives to the 36 hour MLIS degree program, if the student is accepted into the degree program. This allows students in other degree programs to apply their certificate coursework towards an MLIS degree, and offers the opportunity for MLIS students interested in youth services to have the youth services designation on their transcript, which is not accomplished by the youth services pathway in the MLIS. A description of the certificate can be found on UA Online’s Graduate Certificate in Youth Literature & Services page.
| Graduate Certificate in Youth Literature & Services | Hours |
| |
| LS 520 or | Early Child Lit & Story Prog | 3 |
| LS 521 | Matl & Serv Children |
| LS 522 or | Matl & Serv YA | 3 |
| LS 621 | Intercultural Youth Lit |
| LS 541 | Youth Programming | 3 |
| 9 |
| 6 |
| Matl & Serv Children | |
| Early Child Lit & Story Prog |
| Matl & Serv YA | |
| Intercultural Youth Lit |
| Trad. & Digital Storytelling | |
| Cultural Div Prog Youth & Fam | |
| Graphic Novels - Youth | |
| Total Hours | 15 |
Transfer Credit
Transfer credits are not allowed for the Graduate Certificate in Youth Literature & Services.
Time Limits for Degree Completion
Students completing only the Graduate Certificate in Youth Literature & Services have six years to complete the certificate.
Students completing the certificate along with the MLIS must meet all requirements for the master's degree with coursework completed in the six years (18 consecutive semesters) immediately preceding the date on which the degree is to be awarded. Additional information about time limits for degree completion for master's programs is available at the Graduate School.
Intended certificate duration in semesters for full-time students (9hrs): 3 semesters maximum; 2 semesters if additional courses are offered per semester based on student demand. Note: Full-time enrollment would be atypical based on historical data for students enrolled in the MLIS courses.
Intended program duration in semesters for part-time students (3 and 6 hrs): 5 semesters for students taking 3 hours per semester; 3 semesters for students taking 6 hours per semester.
Awarding the Certificate
Students are awarded the Graduate Certificate in Youth Literature & Services upon completion of the 15 required hours of coursework.
Academic Misconduct Information
Student academic misconduct is not permitted. In the event of perceived academic misconduct, the University's Academic Misconduct Policy will be followed. More information is available here.
Withdrawal or Leave of Absence Information
Students, who need to withdraw from a course at the university or take a leave of absence, should contact their academic advisor and the SLIS director. Additional information is available on the Graduate School website related to withdrawals and leaves of absence.
Academic Grievances Information
Academic grievances are addressed according to the "University-Wide Academic Grievance Procedures" outlined in the University of Alabama Faculty Handbook.
Grades and Academic Standing
See here for Graduate School Policy information
