Educating Data Management Professionals: A Content Analysis of Job Descriptions

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study is to assess the current state of required and desirable qualifications and knowledge described in the job advertisements of data management professionals and related positions. Seventy unique job advertisements were collected from five academic and professional online job lists from January 1, 2015 to April 30, 2015. WordStat, a content-analysis software program, was used to analyze the word/phrase frequency of the job descriptions based on three key factors: the requirement of an MIS/MLS/MLIS degree; prior work experience (the number of years), and the status of job position (limited or permanent appointment). The preliminary results indicate that most job positions require that the successful job candidate must be able to serve faculty and students to collect, manage, and analyze research data with essential qualifications to carry out those tasks. The top phrases regarding expertise, working environments, and qualifications are social sciences, information science, higher education, research library, institutional repositories, and metadata.