Legal standing
NILIS was established by an ordinance published in 1999 under section 18 and 24 of the Universities Act No. 16 of 1978 as an institution affiliated to the University of Colombo. NILIS is vested powers to establish standards for training of Library & Information professionals and to accredit Library & Information Science programmes.
Management
The principle academic, administrative and accounting officer is the Director. NILIS Board of Management (BoM) is the executive body consisting of University Professors, library & information professionals, representatives from the Ministries of Higher Education and Finance. The Academic Committee oversees academic matters and provides advice whenever required. This consists of the Director, representatives from the Sri Lanka Library Association, National Library & Documentation Services Board as well as reputed IT personnel.
NILIS academic staff includes three Senior Lecturers and one Assistant Librarian. The Senior Assistant Bursar and the Senior Assistant Registrar heads the administration and finance sections. A team of support staff backs the activities of NILIS.
Educational programs
It is NILIS’s mandate to train the human capital in information studies. There are three types of programmes conducted.
- Short-term programmes (workshops, seminars, lectures, short training courses and certificate courses) for which, certificates of participation are awarded by NILIS.
- Part-time Certificate/Diploma courses
- Postgraduate programs (Degree awarded by the University of Colombo).