My Favorite Course: Palaeography

By Cheryl Levy, Student The  Palaeography: Reading & Understanding Historical Documents course is compulsory for almost all certificates, and with good reason. My initial expectation for this course, was that it would be mostly learning how to write various old scripts, using the pen and workbook provided. To my surprise, this aspect was only included in the first module. The detailed course notes and excellent companion workbook will stretch your knowledge and transcription skills. The extensive, customized exercises are a valuable component of this learning experience. The course description states: A number of topics linked to palaeography are covered to ensure participants have sufficient background to tackle unfamiliar documents that span the past five hundred years. The primary goal involves transcribing the unfamiliar writing in old documents to the modern day hand. A secondary objective is to provide the student with a feeling of success and achievement when new skills are learned. As Britain had a major influence on the cosmopolitan development of North America, examples will be taken from British and Canadian resources. Canadian resources will focus on The Hudson’s Bay Company Archives, which are British in origin, and are now held at the Hudson’s Bay Company Archives in Winnipeg. These materials reflect the profound influence of British language, culture and economics on the development of North America. Module 1 featured practical handwriting exercises, and a brief introduction on the relevant materials required for experimenting with scripts. Website URLs  were given for a variety of specific scripts and alphabets, as…

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My Favorite Course: Career Development – Choosing a Niche

By John Boeren, Student The first thing I did when I decided to become a professional genealogist, was to register for a membership of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG). Quickly, I found out that (ongoing) education and certification are extremely important to the (international) professional genealogy business. It worried me at first: would I be able to get some kind of degree in genealogy? In the Netherlands professional genealogy is still a rare phenomenon. Genealogy is very popular, but most people consider it a nice hobby and nothing more. The consequence of this line of thought is that we have lots of courses for beginners, but we lack education for Dutch professional genealogists. After a while I started to see the challenge. I was convinced that I wanted to take courses to improve both my research and business skills. So I searched the Internet for information on genealogical studies. I found a couple in the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. After reading all the available information and reviews on these courses, I was still doubting between two. In the end I chose for the National Institute for Genealogical Studies. Why? Mainly, because I was very excited about the Professional Development Certificate, a rather new program that “will benefit those who wish to pursue a career in genealogy, create a genealogy business or to augment their income potential by adding niche areas to their business plan.” After a good conversation with Louise St. Denis I registered for this…

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My Favorite Course: Methodology

By Lisa-Dawn Crawley, Student Greetings from Nerdville and the geek who picks the Methodology series as her favourite offering (so far!) from the National Institute for Genealogical Studies! It’s only logical, (said Mr. Spock, from Star Trek) that we start with the first course in the series, right? Right. Methodology Part 1: Getting Started was my first peek into the world of practical genealogy study. In fact, it was only the second course I took through the Institute! I had been doing my own thing for a couple years at that point, climbing and pruning my trees in a consistent though haphazard manner. As such a typical beginner, I knew there must be better, more efficient ways to manage what I was doing and I was eager to begin learning Proper Techniques for researching and organization. I was not disappointed. I get excited just going back to the outline for this course on the website and reading through my submitted assignments (which you can do by clicking the S beside any completed course in your Student Briefcase). I remember how new and wondrous it all was at the time. So much to wrap my little brain around! Fortunately, this course (and the series, for that matter) took it slow and steady. Not only did it give me a realistic idea of “how far back you can go” and of the caveats involved in most human interaction versus what is recorded and/or remembered, it introduced and explained frequently used and helpful…

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Updated: Analysis and Skills Mentoring, Part 1

Looking to get serious about your genealogical research? The Analysis & Skills Mentoring Program has been designed to promote the quality of the work that every family historian and genealogist should strive to achieve. Analysis and Skills Mentoring, Part 1  allows you to implement the training you have received throughout your Basic Level courses. Enriching your researching skills, this program provides practice to improve your problem solving capabilities. Analysis and Skills Mentoring, part 1 is one of three courses offered by the National Institute for Genealogical Studies that includes consultation appointments with an instructor and in-depth analysis of a peer-reviewed journal article. Recently updated, topics covered in the course include the Genealogical Proof Standard and  evidence analysis. Learn more about Analysis and Skills Mentoring, Part 1  by visiting our website.

My Favorite Course: Geography and Maps

**My Favorite Course is a new blog series where students and graduates write about their favorite National Institute for Genealogical Studies course. Do you have a favorite course you want to write about? Leave a note in the comments! By Shirley L. Sturdevant, PLCGS, Graduate of The National Institute It is hard to believe that I have finally graduated with my certificate in Canadian Studies. I am so thrilled to be able to place the post-nomials PLCGS behind my name. My adventure took longer than planned due to other commitments and also to the fact that I spent a lot of time at the end of each course making detailed outlines and notes for myself as well as deciding how best to share my new-found information with other genealogists and family historians. Many of the courses were very interesting but I think my favourite was Canadian: Geography and Maps written by  Althea Douglas, UE, MA, CG.  Much of the reading for this course came from her book entitled Genealogy, Geography and Maps (©2006 The Ontario Genealogical Society).   The course description reads: Genealogy, geography and maps are inextricably entwined, particularly in a country like Canada where almost everyone has ancestors who came here     from somewhere else. If you are looking for their records you must travel across geographic boundaries as well as across time. Wherever you travel, maps are essential. Can you read a map? Did you hate geography in school? You know what road maps tell you, but are you…

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