KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, 26 August 2018. OCLC and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) are now accepting applications for library professionals to participate in the 2019 Jay Jordan IFLA/OCLC Early Career Development Fellowship Program.
The Fellowship Program, sponsored by IFLA and OCLC, is a four-week program based at OCLC headquarters in Dublin, Ohio, USA, that provides education and professional development opportunities for early career librarians from countries with developing economies. The 2019 program will run from 16 March to 12 April 2019.
A description of the program, along with dates for applications, selection and participation were announced today during the World Library and Information Congress: 84th IFLA General Conference and Assembly in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Details about the program, guidelines and applications are now available on the website. Deadline for applications is 28 September 2018.
The IFLA/OCLC Fellowship Program offers advanced continuing education and exposure to a broad range of issues in information technologies, library operations and global cooperative librarianship. To date, the program has welcomed 90 librarians and information science professionals from 39 countries.
"The IFLA/OCLC Fellowship Program continues to impact the professional lives of the librarians who have participated," said Skip Prichard, OCLC President and CEO. "The program also continues to impact the profession around the world as these outstanding librarians become library leaders in their home countries. We are proud to host these exceptional professionals as they begin their careers, and we will continue to be inspired by them as they help to shape the future of librarianship."
The Fellows gain professional knowledge, visit leading institutions as models of collaboration and make contacts in the international library community that will help them progress for many years to come. Fellows also have opportunities to share their home customs and cultures with other Fellows, with colleagues they meet during the program, and with their hosts.
"This experience will help me be a better professional," said Patience Ngizi-Hara, 2017 Fellow from Zambia. "It has been life-changing."
"I like the program's focus on collaboration, and its focus on global librarian leadership," said Arnold Mwanzu, 2018 Fellow from Kenya.
Watch a brief video interview with Rashidah Bolhassan, from Malaysia, who was part of the very first IFLA/OCLC Fellows class. She is now the CEO of the Sarawak State Library in Malaysia.
About IFLA
The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) is the leading international body representing the interests of library and information services and their users. It is the global voice of the library and information profession. Founded in 1927 in Edinburgh, Scotland at an international conference, we now have more than 1,400 Members in over 140 countries around the world. IFLA was registered in the Netherlands in 1971. The Royal Library, the national library of the Netherlands, in The Hague, generously provides the facilities for our headquarters. More information can be found at www.ifla.org.
About OCLC
OCLC is a nonprofit global library cooperative providing shared technology services, original research and community programs so that libraries can better fuel learning, research and innovation. Through OCLC, member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat, the most comprehensive global network of data about library collections and services. Libraries gain efficiencies through OCLC's WorldShare, a complete set of library management applications and services built on an open, cloud-based platform. It is through collaboration and sharing of the world's collected knowledge that libraries can help people find answers they need to solve problems. Together as OCLC, member libraries, staff and partners make breakthroughs possible.
