History

The UC Berkeley School of Information was created in 1994 to address one of society’s most compelling challenges: enabling people to create, find, manipulate, share, store, and use information in myriad forms.

Originally known as the School of Information Management and Systems (SIMS), this research-and-learning enterprise became the School of Information in 2006. The I School traces its roots to the 1920s, when UC Berkeley founded its School of Librarianship, ensuring universal access to information and educating knowledge professionals well before the age of the Internet. In 1976, the School of Librarianship became the School of Library and Information Studies.

The I School proudly carries forward its library school heritage through its alumni, and through an enduring commitment to making information accessible, useful, and relevant.

Timeline

1902 – Coursework in library science is offered for the first time at UC Berkeley during the summer session. Courses are offered by the University Library.

1918 – A full-time program in library science is organized by the University Library and offered under the College of Letters and Science.

1921–22 – UC Berkeley establishes a department of library science in the undergraduate College of Letters and Science.

1926 – The department of library science becomes the graduate School of Librarianship, with associate university librarian Sydney Mitchell as its founding dean. Initially the school offers a one-year certificate of librarianship; in 1947, the bachelor of library science degree is authorized. In 1955, with an expanded curriculum, this became the master of library science. In 1954, the university authorized advanced programs for the degrees of doctor of library science and doctor of philosophy.

1974 – In light of “the challenges posed by the advent of the computer age,” a Graduate Council committee report (the Wheeler Report) proposes a broader vision of information science, including computer networks, digital information processing, and networked information.

1976 – The School of Librarianship is renamed the School of Library and Information Studies (SLIS).

1994 – The university establishes the School of Information Management and Systems (SIMS) on the foundation of the previous School of Library and Information Studies. The school offers a new professional master's degree, the Master of Information Management and Systems (MIMS), as well as an academic Ph.D. degree. The first students in the new master's program are admitted in Fall 1997.

2006 – The School of Information Management and Systems is renamed the School of Information.

2013 – The school begins offering a new professional master’s degree, the Master of Information and Data Science (MIDS). The first MIDS students are admitted in January 2014 and graduate in August 2015.

2018 – The school begins offering a new professional master’s degree, the Master of Information and Cybersecurity (MICS). The first MICS students are admitted in May 2018.

Reference: University of California Digital Archives