Feature Story – Inside the SILS Field Experiences

SILS is proud to partner with many local organizations and companies who provide field experiences for our students through industry-focused and hands-on learning and development projects.

There is no better way to learn than to do. Each year, SILS students participate in a variety of field experiences that immerse them in hands-on learning opportunities in professional settings that interest them. The number of field experience programs at SILS is growing to allow even more students the opportunity to engage and apply the knowledge they acquire in the classroom to professional work and bolster their portfolios.

The Environmental Protection Agency – Research Triangle Park Library Internship

For over 45 years, SILS has partnered with the Enivronmental Protection Agency (EPA) - Research Triangle Park (RTP) Library to provide internship experiences for SILS students. In its fifth decade, the EPA – RTP Library internship program has employed over 400 SILS interns to work in rotations that provide experience in reference, serials/e-resources, interlibrary loans, cataloguing and more. The experience allows SILS students to learn more about managing libraries and archives.

“In only a few short months, working at EPA has already underscored to me that no two libraries are the same: the purpose of an institution informs the values of its library, and those values in turn inform the daily practices of the institution’s librarians,” Current EPA Library Intern Alanna Natanson (MSLS) said. “In my current rotation shepherding new documents from the government agency through publication, I have seen how the federal government carries out its responsibilities to the public through research and policymaking. As an added bonus, EPA has already informed some of my class projects for the semester and potentially even my thesis paper topic.”

Interns are funded through a federal contract granted to SILS, which also allows SILS to hire a full-time staff to oversee and manage the library. The EPA – RTP Library supports approximately 3,000 researchers and contractors at the RTP site and other EPA locations.

“Every May, our graduates leave the program telling me how much this experience has improved their ability to land coveted professional positions in their chosen fields,” EPA-RTP Library Director Anthony Holdereid said. “I am often told by students that the EPA internship, and the opportunities it provides, is one of the key considerations for why they chose SILS over another program.”

Second year CaTAs (left to right) Andrew Price, Brianna Thompson, Darvin Heo, & Vamsy Marni with SILS Dean Gary Marchionini (center).

Carolina Academic Library Associates (CALA) program is a collaboration between University Libraries at UNC-Chapel Hill and SILS. CALAs are selected each year from UNC SILS’s incoming graduate class and are assigned to different departments within UNC-Chapel Hill’s libraries. Selected students work for two years in the program through the duration of their graduate degree work at SILS. During their time as CALAs, the students not only work within the campus libraries but also receive mentoring through career strategy sessions and networking opportunities. The opportunity to work in large-scale academic libraries has inspired alumni of the program to develop as young library professionals.

The Carolina Academic Library Associates (CALAs)

Another long-standing field experience offered to SILS students, the

The Carolina Technology Associates (CaTAs)

Carolina Technology Associates (CaTAs) work in Manning Hall

directly providing support to SILS and SILS students. Through this experience, CaTAs have assisted in managing the SILS Help Desk, which supports all IT functions at SILS.

CaTAs work closely with SILS IT staff in assisting the SILS faculty, students, and staff with their information technology needs. The duties include staffing the VR Lab, working on special technology-related projects, and answering questions at the Help Desk about a wide variety of software packages and IT services. Lab Assistants gain valuable first-hand knowledge of computer applications and technologies while learning customer service, troubleshooting, and communication skills.

Each CaTA takes on long-term and various short-term information technology projects during their appointment, providing them with a range of hands-on experiences providing a deeper understanding of the IT field.

“As a CATA, we get to work on projects that align with our interests and career goals,” Current CaTA Vamsy Marni (MSIS) said. “On top of that, we get to handle various situations that might arise in our future careers. Thus, the experience and training we’re getting is invaluable.”

The CaTAs typically hold their appointment for two academic years, which strengthens their ability to work together as colleagues, according to Marni.

“I applied for the CaTA role as I found it to be a dynamic role where I can hone my skills in the field of Information Science,” Marni said. “Also, the role was promising to me as it provided me with an opportunity to serve my peers and members of the SILS community, who have become an integral part of my life.”

The Ally Tech Scholars

The Ally Tech Scholars program recognizes outstanding SILS students and provides an immersive educational experience.

The Ally Tech Scholar field experience first started in Spring 2021. At the start of each semester, Ally Financial presents various information and data-focused projects to SILS students. Students apply to the project that they are interested in working on with Ally Financial. Once scholars are selected, they are placed into work groups with fellow SILS interns to complete the project.

This scholarship provides an experiential learning environment in which students can work on real-world industry projects as part of their coursework. During the field experience, SILS students receive mentorship from a SILS full-time faculty member as well as a supervising professional at Ally Financial.

“My time as an Ally Tech Scholar was one of the highlights of my senior year at UNC. Not only did it allow me to gain real-world experience in the tech industry, but it also helped me connect with incredible people at Ally and within SILS,” Hafsah Tajammal (MSIS ‘22), an Ally Tech Scholar in Fall 2021, said. “I experimented with different software tools, participated in weekly stand-up meetings, and gained a hands-on understanding of project management. These technical and interpersonal skills were invaluable in preparing me for job applications, and I was able to graduate with an offer for a role at Accenture as a Tech Architect Delivery Analyst.”

The partnership between Ally Financial and SILS is currently in its fourth semester as SILS students continue to work on data collection and information organization projects with Ally.

The EBSCO Scholar Experience

This semester, EBSCO Information Services (EIS) established the EBSCO Scholars Program, a new funded field experience partnership with SILS. MSLS student Flannery Fitch was selected as the inaugural scholar and will work on a new research database product being developed by EIS to increase understanding of the impacts of racism and support the development of strategies to combat it. This resource will be made freely available and will be aimed at supporting instruction at the college and high school levels. EIS also anticipates that it will be used by others beyond the primary audience.

“We are grateful to EBSCO Information Services as they provide this immersive learning opportunity for our students,” SILS Associate Dean for Development Anne Webb said. “We look forward to this next chapter in our continued partnership as we bring the EBSCO Scholars field experience to life,”

Are you or your organization interested in partnering with SILS to fund a field experience?

Please reach out to SILS Associate Dean for Development Anne Webb via email at Anne_Webb@UNC.edu for more information.