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  1. Graduate
  2. Knowledge River

Apply to Knowledge River

The Knowledge River offers a unique opportunity to prepare for a career as a librarian or information professional with a focus on BIPOC, Latino, and Native American communities.

Application Deadline

The Application for the 2022-2023 academic year is due March 13, 2022.

KR Application

Eligibility

  • You must be active (or accepted as a student) into the Master of Arts in the Library and Information Science program.
  • You must take a minimum of 6 units (2 courses) per semester.
  • You must demonstrate a strong combination of knowledge, cultural awareness, and commitment relating to serving BIPOC, Latino, and/or Native American populations.
  • You must be willing and able to be actively involved as a member of the Knowledge River learning and alumni community beginning with attendance and participation at the annual Knowledge River Orientation in Summer.
  • You must indicate an aspiration to seek employment in a library or information environment upon graduation, and as an Library and Information Science professional and Knowledge River alumnus, continue to consider the needs of BIPOC communities.

Admission Requirements

You must apply for admission to both the M.A. in Library and Information Science program and also apply to Knowledge River. Once accepted by the School of Information and the UA Graduate College, you will then be reviewed for admission into Knowledge River and considered for Knowledge River program benefits. 

You should reference your intention to apply to Knowledge River in your statement of purpose when applying to the M.A. program. See M.A. admissions information.

Knowledge River Application

We are now taking applications for the 2022-2023 academic year for Cohort 21 to begin Fall 2022. If you would like to be added to the contact list and receive updates about deadlines and opportunities, please email your contact information to kriver@email.arizona.edu.

KR Application - Apply Online

Financial Assistance

Scholarship funding is available for a limited number of Knowledge River Scholars. Most of this aid is in the form of tuition remission through a graduate assistant (GA) position. Scholarships cover tuition, but do not cover any additional program fees.

Criteria for Knowledge River scholarships are as follows:

  • Financial need (must complete the FAFSA form and the School of Information financial aid application)
  • Commitment to serving BIPOC, Latino, and/or Native American populations
  • Demonstrated academic excellence and writing proficiency
  • For Knowledge River graduate assistant (GA) positions: You must be available for and accept a 20 hour/week appointment in our partner libraries in the Tucson area and other information environments
  • For non-GA scholarships, you must indicate your reason for inability to participate in a GA position. This may be due to location, existing employment, or other reasons.
  • To remain eligible for a GA position, you must maintain a 3.0 GPA. You may indicate your preferences for your GA location based on the streams described in the application. The Knowledge River program will work to place accepted students in their preferred location, but the program cannot guarantee specific placements.

To be considered for a Knowledge River scholarship:

Graduate Assistantship Areas of Interest

There are several areas of interest, or streams, for Knowledge River Graduate Assistants:

  • Public Librarianship
  • Special Collections / Archives
  • Academic Libraries
  • Health Science Librarianship

Applications for Current M.A. Students

If you are a current student in the M.A. Library & Information Science program, you do not need to complete the entire application process above. Instead, submit your Knowledge River application including responses to essay questions via the online application. Admission to Knowledge River for current M.A. students is subject to approval by the Knowledge River admissions committee.

We recommend that you save the confirmation email received after submitting your application.