Judaica Librarianship Certification

JTS and the Association of Jewish Libraries are pleased to offer a certificate program in Judaica and Hebraica Librarianship.

Certification is awarded on completion of six modules: five online courses, taught by experts in their fields, and an internship at a local AJL member institution.

This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services grant RE-254902-OLS-23. 

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How It Works

The certificate will be offered online as a 12-month series of modules, repeated in three cycles, consisting of remote online courses, taught by world experts in their fields.

Required Courses for Certification

  • Introduction to Judaica Cataloging
  • Collection Development for Judaic Studies
  • Judaica Reference
  • Internship
  • Elective
  • Elective

Electives (2 required for certification)

  • Judaica Manuscripts, Early Prints, and Ephemera
  • Judaica Archives
  • Digital Scholarship and e-resources in Jewish Studies
  • Intro to Judaic Paleography and Codicology
  • Jewish Libraries in Contemporary Contexts

Costs

$50 non-refundable registration fee (for the program) 
Most applicants, based on country of residence, will be exempt from tuition and fees or be eligible for scholarships. The program is free with zero charge to participants in US and Europe.

$350 per course for those living outside of the United States and Europe.

Upcoming courses

  • Judaica Reference (Tuesdays at 12 PM EST from October 17-November 28, 2023)
  • Jewish Libraries in Historical and Contemporary Contexts (Mondays at 12 PM EST from November 6-December 11, 2023)

Register now

For more information, contact librarianship@jtsa.edu. 

Internship

  • Internships for North American participants must be at an AJL-member library 
  • All Internships must be supervised by a professional librarian. 
  • The required time for an internship is 100 hours. This includes work on the actual project and meeting time. 
  • The internship can take longer than the general 6 to 7-week timeframe of the modules. 
  • Participants must successfully complete the three required classes prior to the internship and any relevant modules (ie. Archives for an archival internship).     
  • The parameters of the internship are as follows:
    • Action plan (intern, supervisor and Librarianship team) 
    • Mid-point review (intern and member of the Librarianship team) 
    • Final project and review (intern, supervisor and signed off by Librarianship team) 
  • Internships must be a finite project such as cataloging a collection, processing an archive, creating a collection development policy or weeding policy, etc. 

Frequently Asked Questions

How long are the classes?

The classes take place once a week, for six to eight weeks, and are between 90 minutes and two hours long.

When in the day will the courses take place?

To accommodate our global membership, we will be offering courses in the middle of the day EST.

What do you mean by modules?

Modules are all of the elements of a program – this includes courses as well as the internship.

How many courses are required to complete the program?

Four required courses (including the internship) and two electives, for a total of six.

Are scholarships available? Is there a separate application process for scholarships?

Scholarships are available for participants outside the US and Europe. Requests can be made as part of the application process. The program is free with zero charge to participants in US and Europe.

What does “a la carte” mean?

“A la carte” means you can take individual courses without committing to the whole certification. However, we expect there will be limited space in the courses, and priority will be given to students working on certification.

Can you explain the internship a bit more?

One registers for the internship like a course – the internship will vary based on the student’s location and interests. For North American participants, the internship must be at an AJL member institution and/or supervised by an AJL member. While we recommend that students take their internships in a location other than the one that they are currently working in, it must be with a discrete project that is supervised and evaluated by a professional librarian. 

JTS is grateful to the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) for their generous support.