LIS 438: Overview
An integral part of of LIS 438 is the 60-hour archival field experience.
We recognize that our students juggle many commitments; and offer the field placement in two modalities: an in-person field experience at a repository near you or the online practicum. Each of these opportunities affords you the ability to arrange and describe archival materials under the guidance of a professional archivist.
Student Profiles
After you have registered for the course, and before the semester begins, you will receive two emails from the Field Experience Team; both to your Simmons email address. One email is an automated email from our Field eXperience Management System (FXMS) notifying you as to your username and asking you to reset your password. The second is an email from our team with directions on how to complete your profile. We ask that you check your Simmons’ email regularly (including your spam folder), and complete your profile as soon as possible.
When completing your profile, we will ask you to share the location you will be in when taking the course, your transportation needs, your schedule, and any accessibility needs you may have. This information is used to match you to a host site in your location.
If there are any significant changes to your circumstances after you submit your profile, or you need to update your student profile after initially submitting it, please email us at [email protected] as soon as possible.
Placement
Once your profile has been saved, the Field Experience Team begins their work to match students with sites that best match their location, transportation, and accessibility needs. During the placement process we give these factors priority over individual interests.
It is important to note that you should not secure your field placement on your own without first consulting with one of the members of the Field Experience Team at [email protected].
You will receive notification of your placement by the third week in the semester. Some sites have longer background check processes and so some students may receive their placement during the second week. You will need to log into FXMS to access your site supervisor’s contact information. Your site supervisor will not contact you – you will need to reach out to your supervisor in order to schedule a first meeting. All students will begin their field placements the fourth week of the semester.
Online Practicum
If you are placed in the online practicum, you will be notified by one of the practicum supervisors in the third week of the semester to sign up for the practicum’s virtual orientation.
Questions?
First, please check out the FAQ’s for answers to some commonly asked questions.
Otherwise, please reach out to the Field Experience Team with further questions at [email protected].