Organization for information education: contrasts in curriculum structure and administrative locus of control

Information degree programs offered by two different universities are contrasted. Those at Syracuse University's School of Information Studies with those of the School of Library and Information Sciences at the University of North Texas. The significant differences for comparison were at the master's and doctoral level. At the master's level, one university had different degree programs developed from a common core of courses, while the other had degree programs with separate core requirements but with shared electives. At the doctoral level, one institution had a relatively new, highly structured, interdisciplinary Ph.D. program which leveraged university resources by having faculty participants from five different academic units. At the other institution, a mature doctoral program with few set requirements was lead by an interdisciplinary faculty within a single academic unit. The author describes organizational and curriculum differences and circumstances and provides observations which may be helpful to the development of new information programs.