Collection Development
My experience with collection development began as a coordinator for access services at Denison Library. Working at the public service desk, handling reserve requests and overseeing stacks maintenance gave me a solid grounding in how to get familiar with a collection. I learned the value of circulation statistics and the importance of not relying solely on numbers to make decisions. While working with the subject librarians on weeding and relocation projects I discovered the importance of looking at the collection from different perspectives (faculty, students, administrators) when making decisions.
In my collection development course at UW I expanded that knowledge by giving context to the pieces of information I'd picked up over the years. As part of the coursework I had the opportunity to work on two collection development projects. The first was a group project evaluating image databases and documenting our findings in a video. The video was intended to inform faculty of impending changes to subscriptions due to budget concerns. The second was an annotated collection of free web resources on 20th century European Architecture. Both projects allowed me to put the skills learned in the course to practical use and were designed around scenarios where librarians are forced to deal with budget cuts or even no budget at all.
In my collection development course at UW I expanded that knowledge by giving context to the pieces of information I'd picked up over the years. As part of the coursework I had the opportunity to work on two collection development projects. The first was a group project evaluating image databases and documenting our findings in a video. The video was intended to inform faculty of impending changes to subscriptions due to budget concerns. The second was an annotated collection of free web resources on 20th century European Architecture. Both projects allowed me to put the skills learned in the course to practical use and were designed around scenarios where librarians are forced to deal with budget cuts or even no budget at all.
Collection development policy - Data services
As a Directed Fieldwork (DFW) course I worked with the Data Services Coordinator to research and create a draft collection development policy for purchased datasets. Data Services does not currently have a budget for purchased datasets but this policy is designed to assist the ongoing discussion of creating a stand-alone budget for the unit.
In researching policies regarding datasets I contacted other academic libraries to see what kind of collection development policy. I was surprised that only one institution from the initial list of contacts (15 medium to large institutions) had a formal policy. I also spent time familiarizing myself with collection development policies for the UW Libraries. There are some policies available on the libraries' site, but I was also able to access older policies through the staff intranet. In the end the most useful policy came from the UW Libraries Media Center Policy (UWMediaCenter-CDP). While dated in some respects its focus on non-print materials was ideal for a policy on purchasing digital datasets.
The completed draft policy will continue to be refined as we receive feedback from other selectors and as it is prepared for presentation. (Data Services Collection Policy.)
In researching policies regarding datasets I contacted other academic libraries to see what kind of collection development policy. I was surprised that only one institution from the initial list of contacts (15 medium to large institutions) had a formal policy. I also spent time familiarizing myself with collection development policies for the UW Libraries. There are some policies available on the libraries' site, but I was also able to access older policies through the staff intranet. In the end the most useful policy came from the UW Libraries Media Center Policy (UWMediaCenter-CDP). While dated in some respects its focus on non-print materials was ideal for a policy on purchasing digital datasets.
The completed draft policy will continue to be refined as we receive feedback from other selectors and as it is prepared for presentation. (Data Services Collection Policy.)
Collection development - philosophy
As part of the required culminating experience (known as Capstone) for the MLIS program at the University of Washington I completed an in-depth collection development project. I worked with two other students to create a new collection development policy for Philosophy at the UW Libraries.
The project came about because of the retirement of the Philosophy liaison, who managed selection for the subject for over 25 years. The librarian inheriting the subject does not have time to do an in-depth evaluation of the subject so our group provided the new selector with information on the current state of the collection. We created a user needs assessment that focused on graduate students and faculty in the UW Philosophy department, an assessment of the print collection and current electronic resources, and developed an updated collection development policy based on our findings.
Beyond the assessment and policy created for the new liaison the group will present a poster at the UW iSchool Capstone event. Our group has been approached by the other subject librarians at UW to outline our process so they can have other students perform similar assessments for their collections.
The project came about because of the retirement of the Philosophy liaison, who managed selection for the subject for over 25 years. The librarian inheriting the subject does not have time to do an in-depth evaluation of the subject so our group provided the new selector with information on the current state of the collection. We created a user needs assessment that focused on graduate students and faculty in the UW Philosophy department, an assessment of the print collection and current electronic resources, and developed an updated collection development policy based on our findings.
Beyond the assessment and policy created for the new liaison the group will present a poster at the UW iSchool Capstone event. Our group has been approached by the other subject librarians at UW to outline our process so they can have other students perform similar assessments for their collections.
Moving Forward
The capstone project will allow me to put what I've learned about collection development into practice. The scenario of taking over a particular collection and its users with no knowledge of the preceding librarian's approach is one that many new librarians will face during their career. And having the opportunity to work with a good team and a significant amount of time to work on the project will give me a strong set of skills to take with me into my next position.
In the long term my goal is to keep up with discussions in the literature on collection development and the world of electronic resources as it continues to evolve. One of the things I like about librarianship is that nothing we do happens in a vacuum and as I move into a position that requires subject specific collection development I know that I can seek out a mentor in my field to assist me in my transition.
In the long term my goal is to keep up with discussions in the literature on collection development and the world of electronic resources as it continues to evolve. One of the things I like about librarianship is that nothing we do happens in a vacuum and as I move into a position that requires subject specific collection development I know that I can seek out a mentor in my field to assist me in my transition.