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The working credential for a professional librarian is the MLIS, not a bachelor’s in library science. In most public, academic, and many special libraries, hiring for librarian-classified jobs expects a master’s in library and information studies from an ALA-accredited program. The standard undergraduate route is a bachelor’s in any field, then that master’s.
Some BA or BS programs in library science or information science do exist. They are real degrees. They are not the professional credential. Graduates typically move into technician or assistant roles, or they use the major as MLIS preparation – not, on the bachelor’s alone, into professional librarian jobs in ALA-standard settings.
The primary path is here: Online MLIS Programs
Not in most public, academic, and many special-library settings that follow ALA hiring norms. Those roles expect an ALA-accredited MLIS, MLS, or MSIS. A bachelor’s in library science, where it is offered, is preparation or a technician-level credential, not the professional one.
No. MLIS programs routinely admit applicants with bachelor’s degrees in English, history, education, communications, science, or almost any other field. There is no required undergraduate major.
Library technician and assistant work, circulation and access-services roles, and some paraprofessional positions in public, school, and academic libraries. Library technicians had a median annual wage of $44,580 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS). BLS projects employment in that occupation to decline 6.8 percent from 2024 to 2034 (BLS Employment Projections, 2024-34).
Some accredited institutions offer bachelor’s-level library science or information science coursework online. Treat those programs as technician preparation or MLIS prep, and confirm recognized institutional accreditation. ALA accredits master’s programs, not bachelor’s programs.
Any rigorous bachelor’s that builds research, writing, and comfort with information systems. Subject knowledge can matter later – history for archives, education for school libraries, a science major for a subject-specialist academic post – but it is not a substitute for the master’s.
Usually no. Finish the bachelor’s you are in, keep the GPA usable, and apply to ALA-accredited MLIS programs. Switching into an undergraduate library science major rarely shortens the path and does not skip the master’s.
For a full map of this program area, start here: Library Science Program Guide
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
This is the standard route and the one most working librarians took. ALA-accredited master’s programs are built for college graduates, not for a single undergraduate major. Admissions committees look at the bachelor’s, the academic record, a statement that shows you understand the work, and often a resume with library, archive, teaching, or customer-service experience. Volunteer or paid work in a library helps, but it is not a second major.
If you already hold a bachelor’s, you do not need another one. Go to the MLIS page.
These majors exist at some institutions. Coursework usually covers introductory cataloging or metadata, reference sources, collection basics, information technology, and sometimes a field experience. That can support technician hiring and make the first MLIS term more familiar. It does not confer ALA-accredited professional status, because ALA does not accredit bachelor’s programs. Do not evaluate them as a substitute for the master’s.
Students aiming at a school library often pair an education background with a later MLIS and state library-media certification. Public-service and digital-content work sometimes starts in communications. Subject bachelor’s degrees can help later in academic or special libraries. None of these choices replace the ALA-accredited master’s.
| Course Topic | What You Learn |
|---|---|
| Introduction to the Library and Information Professions | How libraries, archives, and information services are organized, and where technician work stops and professional work begins |
| Information Organization | Basic cataloging, classification, and metadata – enough to support technician work or MLIS prep |
| Reference and Information Services | How to find and evaluate sources, and how to help a patron without overstepping professional scope |
| Collection Basics | How materials are selected, acquired, and weeded in outline |
| Information Technology for Libraries | Integrated library systems, databases, and public-access technology at an introductory level |
| Field Experience | Supervised hours in a library or archive, when the program includes it |
This boundary is a hiring standard, not a suggestion. With a bachelor’s alone you should not expect to be hired into professional librarian classification in most public library systems, college and university libraries, or special libraries that require an ALA-accredited master’s. You also should not expect a bachelor’s to satisfy school library media certification on its own in states that require a master’s plus an educator credential.
What the bachelor’s can support is library technician and assistant work. Library technicians had a median annual wage of $44,580 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS). BLS counted 68,690 jobs and projects a 6.8 percent decline from 2024 to 2034, with 13,000 openings per year as the occupation shrinks (BLS Employment Projections, 2024-34). Librarians and media collections specialists – the MLIS-level role – had a median annual wage of $68,270 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS). Plan around that gap rather than hoping experience will substitute for the master’s in systems that have already written it into the job specification.
You do not need a library science major. You do need a completed bachelor’s from an accredited institution and an application that looks like you know the work. Confirm ALA accreditation in the ALA directory, get library or public-service experience if you can, and if you want a school library, read your state department of education rules now. To move faster than a four-year plan, see accelerated library science programs.
Transfer credit can shorten a bachelor’s, particularly for general education. Confirm maximum credits, minimum grades, whether they apply to a major core, and residency rules. At the MLIS level, transfer is much tighter – do not assume undergraduate library courses will knock courses off a master’s. See Affordable Online MLIS Programs.
The American Library Association accredits master’s programs in library and information studies, not bachelor’s programs. At the undergraduate level, verify recognized institutional accreditation through the U.S. Department of Education database.
The bachelor’s is preparation or a technician credential. The ALA-accredited MLIS is the professional credential – the expected entry requirement for librarian-classified work, not optional acceleration.
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Data verified: September 1, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
