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National Academies Study on Digital Curation
Workforce Iss
The National Academies released the report "Preparing the
Workforce for Digital Curation" last week. The commitee was
chaired by Professor Margaret Hedstrom of the University of Michigan's
School of Information and operated under the oversight of the Board on
Research Data and Information (BRDI). (Disclosure: I currently
co-chair this board).
The direct link to the page for a free download is
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/18590/preparing-the-workforce-for-digital-curation
I have included the Academies' press release, which
includes report highlights, and the full committee roster
below.
For those at the recent Spring Membership meeting in Seattle,
this was the report that Carole Palmer (also a committee member)
mentioned in her closing keynote.
Clifford Lynch
Director, CNI
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Digital Curation Policies and
Well-Trained Workforce Needed to Handle Fast-Growing Collections of
Digital Information
WASHINGTON -- From distant satellites to medical implants, sensors
are collecting unprecedented quantities of digital data across the
scientific disciplines. Other sectors -- government, business, and
health - are collecting huge amounts of data and information as well.
If accurate and accessible, such information has the potential to
speed scientific discovery, spur innovation, inform policy, and
support transparency.
However, the policies, infrastructure, and workforce needed to manage
this information have not kept pace with its rapid growth, says a new
report from the National Research Council. The immaturity and ad
hoc nature of the field of digital curation - the active management
and enhancement of digital information assets for current and future
use -- so far has led to vulnerabilities and missed opportunities for
science, business, and government.
There is an urgent need for policies, technologies, and expertise in
digital curation, said the committee that conducted the study and
wrote the report. It recommends that the White House Office of Science
and Technology Policy lead policy development in digital curation and
prioritize strategic resource investments for the field.
Research communities, government agencies, commercial firms, and
educational institutions should work together to speed the development
and adoption of digital curation standards and good practices.
The report also offers several recommendations for strengthening the
digital curation workforce. Currently there is little data available
on how - and how many -- digital curation professionals are being
trained and the career paths they follow. Moreover, it is difficult to
estimate current and future demand because digital curation takes
place in many types of jobs. The primary source of statistics on
employment in the federal government, the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
does not track digital curation as a separate occupation. However, the
committee could estimate the current demand for digital curation
professionals by examining data on job openings for related
occupations -- enterprise architects, data stewards, librarians and
archivists, among others. Openings for almost all of these professions
at least doubled between 2005 and 2012, the committee found.
Government agencies, private employers, and professional associations
should develop better mechanisms to track the demand for individuals
in jobs where digital curation is the primary focus, the report says.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics should add a digital curation
occupational title to the Standard Occupational Classification when it
revises the SOC system in 2018; this recognition would also help to
strengthen the attention given to digital curation in workforce
preparation. Tracking employment openings for digital curation
professionals, enrollments in professional education programs, and the
career trajectories of their graduates would help balance supply with
demand on a national scale.
In addition, OSTP should convene relevant federal organizations,
professional associations, and private foundations to encourage the
development of model curricula, training programs, and instructional
materials that advance digital curation as a recognized discipline.
Educators in institutions offering professional education in digital
curation should create partnerships with educators, scholars, and
practitioners in data-intensive disciplines and established data
centers. These partnerships could speed the definition of best
practices and guiding principles as they mature and
evolve.
The study was sponsored by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the
Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the National Science
Foundation. The National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of
Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council make
up the National Academies. They are private, independent
nonprofit institutions that provide science, technology, and health
policy advice under a congressional charter granted to NAS in 1863.
The National Research Council is the principal operating arm of the
National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of
Engineering.
Roster
Committee on Future Career Opportunities
and Educational Requirements for Digital Curation
Margaret Hedstrom (chair)
Robert M. Warner Collegiate Professor
School of Information
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor
Lee Dirks (Deceased 9/4/2012)
Director of Education and Scholarly Communication
Microsoft Research
Redmond, Wash.
Peter Fox
Professor and Tetherless World Research Chair
Earth and Environmental and Computer Sciences Departments
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Troy, N.Y.
Michael F. Goodchild*
Professor Emeritus (retired)
Department of Geography
University of California
Santa Barbara
Heather Joseph
Executive Director
Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC)
Washington, D.C.
Ron Larsen
Dean and Professor
School of Information Sciences
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Carole L. Palmer
Professor
Information School
University of Washington
Seattle
Steven Ruggles
Director, Minnesota Population Center
Professor, University of Minnesota
Minneapolis
David E. Schindel
Executive Secretary
Consortium for the Barcode of Life
National Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian Institution
Washington, D.C.
Stephen Wandner
Visiting Scholar
Center of Labor, Human Services, and Population
The Urban Institute
Washington, D.C.
STAFF
Paul F. Uhlir
Study Director
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