In this Master thesis interest is directed towards approaches to information literacy (IL) and critical thinking in the educational activities of university libraries. The aspiration of university librarians to promote the critical abilities of students is problematized. At the center of attention is the project “Lärandemål för informationskompetens” [Learning outcomes for information literacy], which in 2006 was carried out in collaboration between the Swedish university libraries, in response to the educational reforms connected to the Bologna Process. Through the discourse analytical framework of Norman Fairclough, documents related to the project “Lärandemål för informationskompetens” are studied in order to identify dominating approaches to IL. The purpose is to investigate and discuss the possible implications of the dominating perspectives, with regard to the development of critical thinking among students. The study results in the identification of two main discourses, the standardization discourse and the discourse on employability. Both of these discourses are seen to be connected to two overarching discourses also identified in the study, the market discourse and the discourse on information overflow. In conclusion, it was found that the objectivist and positivist epistemology underlying the dominating perspectives, in several respects is counterproductive to the aspiration to promote critical thinking among students. A social constructionist approach is suggested as an alternative.