Education and training for publishing in Britain prepares for the “information society”

Abstract

This article considers the British experience of developing education for publishers at the end of the 1990s. To introduce the subject, it briefly outlines recent trends in the UK in publishing and bookselling: the size and nature of the workforce as revealed in recent surveys; and what employers recently indicated that they are looking for in their employees. Then, it summarises some of the developments that are taking place in education and training, before outlining the courses currently available in the Universities, their growing emphasis on business management and Information Technology, and the benefits to employers of recruiting students from these courses. Finally, it raises issues that will become more significant in the future: new legal and ethical challenges, and the responsibility for preservation and conservation arising from technological changes; keeping existing staff up to date; the international dimensions of the industry; retaining links between the academic community and the industry; regulating standards of professional practice; and the development of research.