Abstract:

All aspects of human activity are permeated by the global circulating information from the sphere of communication, interactions, networks, technologies. It is becoming increasingly difficult to manage multidirectional information flows, which are difficult to structure, and work in the GLAM industry (is an acronym for "galleries, libraries, archives, and museums", and refers to cultural institutions with a mission to provide access to knowledge) is constantly changing in relation to technological, social, political, cultural, etc. changes and to meet the needs of the modern knowledge society.

The University of Library Studies and Information Technologies, Sofia, Bulgaria, has developed various methods and approaches that have been successfully included in the current educational process. Thus, for the second time the University takes an active part in the Student Internships - Phase 2 Project, as this is an exceptional opportunity to create an up-to-date idea of the needs of the modern work environment, as well as a great opportunity for students to test their capabilities and establish full contacts with potential employers.

In the Department of Library Management and Archival Studies, the activity of students is remarkable and this is due to both its management and the desire of all teachers to encourage students to engage in practical training, which is another opportunity to expand their ideas about the specifics of the working environment. The proposed announcements under the Project represent many of the leading archival institutions in the country, and at the same time present opportunities for practical training in organizations using the most modern systems for processing and archiving the information.

The report analyzes the programs of several of the offered trainings for the students in the specialty of Archival and Documentary Studies giving opportunities for gaining practical experience and improving the practical skills of university students in accordance with the needs of the labor market. The impressions of full-time and part-time students of the Bachelor's degree program, who have already joined the practical training, which stimulates the development of the Bulgarian university professional archival studies education in order to meet the requirements for the profession in the modern society of knowledge are presented.

The report presents the results of a survey on the topic of Education in Archival and Documentary Studies in the Modern Information Environment among students majoring in Archival and Documentary Studies at the Faculty of Library Studies and Cultural Heritage. One of the aims of the study is to examine, analyze and summarize the attitude and opinion of students on the offered training practices and internships. Questionnaires and statistical tools are used to achieve this goal. The questionnaire is structured in five parts, including the demographic information. The answers to several key groups of questions are sought. Respondents are first-to-fourth-year university students doing Archival and Documentary Studies as part of the Bachelor's, full-time and part-time degree education program at ULSIT. The rate of 91.3% of the currently studying students took part in the survey, which gives a high representativeness of the research. Some of the results of the survey are presented and interpreted in this report.

Keywords:

Higher education, archival and documentary studies, Bulgaria, student Internships, GLAM industry.