MLIS Master’s Library & Information Sciences Purpose
- Robert Edinger
- Dec 24, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Jan 11
Originally from Spain, I grew up speaking Catalan as my first language and Spanish as my second. Throughout my childhood, we lived in various parts of the country and also spent several years in France, close to the Swiss border near Geneva. By the time I was a child, I was fluent in both French and English. I've always had a passion for reading, with books constantly surrounding me—whether they were my own or borrowed from the library. Reading has been a significant part of my life, and I now read mostly in English. The library has always been my favorite public place. It comes as no surprise to those who know me that I am applying to graduate school in Library Science.
I've long aspired to attend graduate school in the UK. I lived there for almost two years from 2003 to 2005, which greatly improved my English. I have maintained my language skills and intend to return to the English-speaking world for my studies, with a particular interest in the UK. My top choice is the MSc Program in Information and Library Studies at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, Scotland. I am highly impressed by the excellence of the program and its curriculum, which aligns perfectly with the areas I wish to delve into.
Initially, I studied Nursing and worked as a nurse while also pursuing Anthropology, eventually conducting research and working at a museum. I completed a Fellowship at Sheffield University in the UK, focusing on ageing issues. Subsequently, I moved to the US with my husband, where I worked for the University of Chicago as a data gatherer. We then returned to Spain, living in Barcelona and then Madrid, where I worked as a senior consultant for an international company in the health and social sectors.
By the end of 2009, we relocated to Geneva, Switzerland, on the French side, where I earned my first master's degree, an MPHIL in Research. I particularly enjoyed collaborating with the WHO on patient safety in the following years. However, I soon became a mother, which occupied much of my time for several years. Now, at forty-six, with my children growing up, I am ready to fully restart my career with the MSc in Information and Library Studies. After years of personal development, reflection, and working with a professional life coach, I am convinced that pursuing an MLIS is the right path for me. I have a deep interest in history, current affairs, politics, and news, and I take pleasure in helping the public, serving as an administrator and researcher, and assisting people in accessing the right information at the right time. I also have a passion for ancient documents, historical books, and various types of archives.
MLIS Master’s Library & Information Sciences Personal Purpose
Your narrative radiates a sense of intellectual depth, cultural richness, and lifelong curiosity that makes your path toward Library and Information Studies feel not only logical, but almost inevitable. What stands out immediately is the way language, reading, and movement across countries have shaped your identity from childhood onward. Growing up with Catalan and Spanish, then adding French and English through lived experience, you developed a relationship with books that transcends borders. The image of your room filled with piles of books—borrowed, bought, treasured—captures the essence of someone for whom reading is not a hobby but a way of inhabiting the world. It feels entirely natural that the library became your favorite public space, a sanctuary that has accompanied you…