San José State University

SCHOOL OF LIBRARY & INFORMATION SCIENCE

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The Master's Degree in
Archives and Records Administration (MARA)

Professional Projects

Graduates of the MARA program are likely to find themselves in positions where they will be required to conduct a professional project, such as evaluating and selecting an electronic content management system, developing guidelines for records created by or residing in social media, or developing training programs for new hires. The Professional Projects course will allow each student to gain experience in completing an archives or records management project that has been submitted by an individual or organization. Students who enroll in this course will also be required to take an Internship course. The combination of both will be invaluable to the student with limited work experience or the student who wishes to explore new environments; for example, a records manager needing experience working in an archives.

Qualifying for the MARA Professional Projects Course [Top of Page]

To qualify for MARA’s Professional Projects Course, you must:

  1. Be matriculated in the MARA degree program.
  2. Remain in good academic standing.
  3. Have completed MARA 200, 202, 204, 210, 211, 248, 243, 249, and 256.

Completing the requirements [Top of Page]

If you meet the qualifications, you will be registered for MARA 293. Through consultation with the MARA Program Coordinator, you will identify a professional project submitted by an individual or an organization and supervised by a professional archivist or records manager that can be completed during one semester.

You and the client will agree upon deliverables which can be recommendations, proposals or other products (e.g., training manuals, instructional podcasts, and proposals for new services) that can be implemented or used by the client organization. A copy of or link to the completed project (or other documentation that the project has been completed), a form indicating satisfactory completion signed and dated by the client, and a final report discussing the project and your personal experience are required for satisfactory completion of the course.

You are expected to devote a minimum of 135 hours to this project during the term in which it is taken.

Evaluating the Experience [Top of Page]

Several instruments will be used to evaluate your participation in this course. The actual method or combination of methods used for evaluation will depend on the project selected, learning outcomes, and assignments. Some or all of the following will be requested upon completion of the course:

  1. Participation. You will be required to enroll in an online course (MARA 293) and contribute to the online discussion and participate in in-class exercises.
  2. Project log. You will be required to maintain an on-going record of the hours you’ve worked and your activities. Further information regarding the project log will be available through the online course.
  3. Project Report.You will be required to prepare a professional project final report (based upon the learning outcomes identified for the project) discussing how those outcomes were (or were not) accomplished. A copy of the final report must be submitted to the instructor through the D2L learning management system along with the final project or, in the case of a project that is not a document (e.g. an electronic records management system or database), along with access information or other documentation so that the instructor can access the final project.

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