The University of Texas at Austin School of Information (iSchool) is a premier research and education program for the 21st-century field of information. We are bridgers: connecting people to information, connecting the past to the present and to the future, and connecting different disciplines. Our students learn to design new tools, analyze human activities, organize information, and ensure technology serves its intended users. The iSchool offers a top-ranked master’s program, a research-intensive doctoral program, a certificate of advanced study and numerous joint degrees.
Our world-class faculty has expertise in a wide range of disciplines—from computer science, psychology, and engineering to anthropology, communications, English and more. Research at the iSchool transcends boundaries and crosses disciplines to understand the ways information and technology change the behaviors of individuals, organizations, and society. The iSchool is home to specialized research labs in User Experience (UX), Digital Archives, Conservation, Information Retrieval, and Virtual Reality
We are educating the next generation of information creators, innovators, brokers, designers, and researchers.
In honor of our 75th anniversary, we are fundraising for Student Support. By supporting our students, you are helping shape the future of information excellence at the iSchool and beyond. For many of our students, a degree at the iSchool would not be possible without the assistance of a scholarship. Our goal is to raise $75,000 in student support funds by Summer 2024. Your contribution will help support students in the following categories:
Student Scholarships: Your support will provide scholarships for undergraduate students majoring in Informatics, helping ensure UT can continue attracting the best and brightest from all backgrounds.
Graduate Fellowships: Your investment will provide teaching and research fellowships that will give graduate students opportunities to pursue professional development and research activities.
Experiential Learning Opportunities: Your generosity will help students step outside of the confines of the iSchool through experiential learning, giving them the chance to study information and technology from a different vantage point.
Contributions to this fund will also help to support our newly established iAmbassador program. iAmbassaors act as ambassadors for undergraduate informatics program. Students represent the iSchool on campus and to external partners:
· Introduce iSchool to prospective students through weekly info sessions, panels, activities, tabling
· Peer facilitators/advisors
· Represent Informatics at school-wide events
· Represent student program at alumni and development events
· Volunteer at campus events that connect to outer community and stakeholders
Program support funds will go towards:
· Event registration fees
· Travel and per diem
· Promotional items
· Brand development
· Student leadership polo’s
· Professional development and mentor events
Your Impact
Your gift to the School of Information is a direct investment in the education of the next generation of leaders in the library and information professions. Private philanthropy helps our students in many ways that would not be possible within the iSchool's normal operating budget. Financial aid from donors like you has "really allowed us to build a community of like-minded but disparate scholars that share information digitally really well and beautifully,” says master's student Carl Siegel. It provides funds that are vital to the iSchool's ability to attract and retain the most talented students and faculty members as well as establish and support robust undergraduate and graduate programs.
We are currently ranked #5 in the top schools of library and information science by U.S. News & World Report and this competitive ranking is due in part to individuals and organizations that support our mission of teaching, research, and service. And our alumni— current and future— are key stakeholders in the iSchool's reputation of leadership and excellence.