Berkeley School of Information, I School

About The School of Information is UC Berkeley’s newest professional school. Located in the center of campus, the I School is a graduate research and education community committed to expanding access to information and to improving its usability, reliability, and credibility while preserving security and privacy. This requires the insights of scholars from diverse fields — information and computer science, design, social sciences, management, law, and policy. Roughly 120 graduate students and two dozen faculty members are based on campus, in UC Berkeley’s historic South Hall, with another 500 students online. Together they form a multi-disciplinary collective of scholars and practitioners collaborating on initiatives at the intersection of people, information, and technology. The I School offers three professional master’s degrees and an academic doctoral degree. Our MIMS program trains students for careers as information professionals and emphasizes small classes and project-based learning. Our MIDS program trains data scientists to manage and analyze the coming onslaught of big data, in a unique high-touch online degree. Our MICS program prepares cybersecurity leaders with the technical skills and contextual knowledge necessary to develop solutions for complex cybersecurity challenges. Our Ph.D. program equips scholars to develop solutions and shape policies that influence how people seek, use, and share information. Welcome to the I School Welcome to the UC Berkeley School of Information. We are a community of scholars, practitioners, and students working together to advance knowledge and practice everywhere people interact with information and digital technologies. THE COMMUNITY Students are the heart of the I School. We welcome you to join our community of more than 600 students who come to us from a wide range of backgrounds, nations, cultures, and experiences. Our four degree programs, two on campus and two online, combine academic excellence with the intimacy and camaraderie that foster successful learning and discovery. Our multi-disciplinary faculty includes world-class scholars, as well as experienced professionals from leading Bay Area companies — all focused on understanding and shaping the technologies that are transforming our world. Our alumni network is a source of invaluable connections to policymakers, businesses, and nonprofit organizations. THE SCHOOL I School faculty and graduate students work together on cutting-edge research in areas ranging from cybersecurity and biosensing to digital humanities and information policy. As is appropriate for a professional school, our curriculum emphasizes teamwork and project-based learning. We provide students with the conceptual understandings that allow them to apply knowledge and skills in concrete contexts, and prepare them to master new skills in fast-changing domains. We are committed to training leaders in the ever-evolving and expanding fields that are being transformed by information technology. We believe students should know not only how to solve problems, but also how to define the problems that need be solved. Our programs and classes are small enough to support intense student engagement; and we encourage collaboration among the students, faculty, and staff in the I School community. OUR LOCATION & REGION We are fortunate to be part of a world-class research university, with access to the tremendous breadth and depth of the intellectual resources at the University of California, Berkeley. At the same time, our proximity to Silicon Valley and the wider San Francisco Bay Area has helped to shape the I School culture: we are nimble and well-networked internally and externally, and we believe in learning through experimentation. Of course we can’t conclude this welcome without mentioning the advantages of the wonderful climate and natural beauty of the greater Bay Area. Please come and visit us in South Hall.