The following is a summary of University of Waterloo (UW) Library information resources and services in support of the Liberal Studies program in the Faculty of Arts. The report was prepared by Annie Bélanger, Head of the Information Services and Resources Department in the Dana Porter Library.
Information resources for Liberal Studies are available through collections developed to support academic programs in the Faculty of Arts. Decisions to purchase Library materials for the Faculty are the responsibility of Liaison Librarians in consultation with Faculty Library Representatives from each department. There are seven Liaison Librarians for the Faculty of Arts and each one typically works with two to four departments. Selection is guided by Collection Development Policies, developed by Liaison Librarians in consultation with faculty members in each department. Materials are obtained in a variety ways including firm orders, open orders, approval plans, and subscriptions.
In response to user preference, the Library obtains resources in electronic format whenever it is possible and practical to do so. Some electronic resources are obtained directly by the University of Waterloo Library and some are obtained through membership in the Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL) and the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN). Access to and use of electronic resources is generally governed by licence agreements with the publisher or vendor.
The UW Library, along with the libraries of the University of Guelph (UG) and Wilfrid Laurier University (WLU), is a member of the Tri-University Group of Libraries (TUG) consortium. Collections from the University of Guelph and Wilfrid Laurier University enhance the depth and breadth of local materials available in subject areas of interest to English.
The Library’s print collections for the Faculty of Arts are housed primarily in the Dana Porter Library. Access to the entire Library collection, as well materials held by UG and WLU, is available through the Web accessible search tool known as Primo (http://primo.lib.uwaterloo.ca/).
The Library's automated circulation system allows users to charge out materials during the hours that the Library is open and to renew items online anytime. With the exception of the current issues of print journals and reference materials, most of the material in the Library’s collection circulates.
Books and journal articles not owned by the UW Library but held by UG or WLU may be requested for use at UW. Books and copies of journal articles are delivered to faculty, students and staff within three working days. The cost of these services is absorbed by the Library.
In partnership with UG and WLU, the Library owns a facility, known as the Annex, which is used to house low-use research material. In keeping with the University’s research intensive status, an agreement among the TUG libraries ensures that a last copy is maintained in perpetuity. The Preservation of Last Copy Agreement can be found at: (http://www.lib.uwaterloo.ca/staff/irmc/
last_copy_agreement_sept06.html). As with material from UG and WLU, books and copies of journal articles housed in the Annex are made available to faculty, students and staff within three working days. The cost is absorbed by the Library.
Books and copies of articles from print journals will be sent, upon request, to students living some distance from the campus. With the exception of return postage for books, the cost is absorbed by the Library.
The primary tool for accessing electronic resources selected by the Library is its Web site (http://www.lib.uwaterloo.ca). This site organizes and provides access to licensed resources available to only UW faculty, students and staff, as well as Internet resources freely available to anyone. The site also provides access to electronic resources hosted by the OCUL Scholars Portal program (http://www.scholarsportal.info/index.html) and available to the UW community through the Library's participation in consortia purchasing through OCUL.
In addition, many of our electronic resources can be found through a search of Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com/).
The Library uses linking technology (SFX) to enable users to link directly from research databases to the UW Library full text electronic journal subscription or to the TRELLIS catalogue record for holdings and call number information. The Library also provides access to bibliographic management software (RefWorks).
UW faculty, students and staff may access electronic research databases and full text electronic journals from off-campus via the Library’s Proxy Server / Connect from Home feature.
The Library has purchased or subscribes to a range of electronic resources including research databases, full text journals, monographs, numeric data, and government publications. In addition, the Library identifies and provides access to select material freely available through the Internet. Such material includes open access journals, catalogues of libraries around the world, dictionaries, encyclopaedias, and style guides.
The Interlibrary Loan/Document Delivery (ILL) service provides faculty, students and staff with books, copies of journal articles, theses, and government documents from libraries within Canada and elsewhere. The UW Library uses OCUL’s RACER Web based interlibrary loan system (http://racer.scholarsportal.info/vdx/index.html) to facilitate ILL access and service for users. With minor exceptions, the cost for this service is absorbed by the Library.
Canadian university libraries extend in-person borrowing privileges to faculty, students and staff from across the country. Faculty, students and staff are entitled to borrowing privileges at participating libraries (http://www.coppul.ca/rb/rbindex.html).
Reference assistance is available in person or by telephone at the Library's Information Desks, which are staffed by professional librarians and specially trained library associates. Alternatively, UW faculty, students and staff may get reference assistance via e-mail and online chat available through the Ask a Librarian service. (http://www.lib.uwaterloo.ca/asklib/index.html)
The Library also offers general orientation programs including tours, workshops on database searching and using the Web, and seminars for graduate students. In addition, each fall the Library participates in a campus-wide orientation program for international students.
Liaison Librarians are available for consultation with individuals or small groups of students. They may be contacted directly in person, by phone, and by e-mail if a personal visit to the Library is not convenient.
Liaison Librarians are also available to work with faculty to develop course integrated library instruction in the form of lectures, hands-on instruction, Web pages, or online courseware modules. The Librarians also develop and maintain web-based subject guides (http://subjectguides.uwaterloo.ca/).
Table 1. Summary of Expenditures for the Faculty of Arts
Year |
Journal Expenditure |
Book Expenditure |
Approval Plan Support |
Total Expenditure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2003/04 |
$400,060 |
$227,145 |
$343,635 |
$970,840 |
2004/05 |
$275,085 |
$213,435 |
$344,260 |
$832,780 |
2005/06 |
$209,875 |
$233,660 |
$389,430 |
$832,965 |
2006/07 |
$220,195 |
$199,855 |
$383,240 |
$803,295 |
2007/08 |
$212,195 |
$209,085 |
$406,085 |
$827,370 |
2008/09 |
$224,025 |
$101,695 |
$312,680 |
$638,400 |
2009/10 |
$206,720 |
$160,385 |
$440,580 |
$807,680 |
Total |
$1,748,155 |
$1,345,260 |
$2,619,915 |
$5,713,330 |
In the current fiscal year, the library funds for departments within Arts spent $143,000 on book purchases (firm and open). As well, an additional $274,720 was spent on books through the approval plan.
I believe that a high level support for undergraduate programmes in the Faculty of Arts has been provided by the Library, both in information resources and services. More detailed information including lists of print and electronic journals purchased and the number of monograph titles in specific subject areas can be provided if required.
I would be pleased to discuss the Library's holdings and services with the appraisers at the time of a campus visit.
Annie Bélanger, Head, Information Services and Resources, Dana Porter Library.
Reviewed by Susan Routliffe, Associate University Librarian, Information Resources and Services for Mark Haslett, University Librarian.
University of Waterloo Library
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Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2L 3G1
519 888 4883
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