Great expectations: how libraries are changing to meet

student needs

Sarah Thompson & Liz WallerUniversity of York

April 2013

University of York• Founded 1963• UK top 20; RAE 8th;

World top 100; now Russell Group; WUN

• 15,265 students• >30 departments in

humanities, social sciences, science

• Campus growth• Heslington East

• Collegiate and inclusive

Background - York

• New student fees - £9k pa from 2012/13 • National Student Survey (NSS)• Key Information Sets (KIS)• Institutional surveys– Student Experience Survey (Students Union)– PRes (University)– PTes (University)– Module surveys

• And Library surveys (LibQual+)• And you?

= The student experience is very important

"The £9k a year that students are paying for their course should be all inclusive and

include everything that is necessary to fulfil the course" "The York Student Experience: shaping the future" report

Student as Customer Student as Partner

Have student attitudes changed?Students from all years are flocking to the library

in record numbers according to statistics released by the University Library Services.

University Registrar, David Duncan, conjectured it was “perhaps an indication that new students on the higher fees regime are taking their studies even more seriously than previous generations, or possibly a reaction to adverse economic conditions and the increasingly competitive jobs market for graduates.”

Have Student attitudes changed?Disgruntled third year Politics student

“I’m always noticing freshers wandering around looking lost in the library, ‘cramming’ the reading for their first seminar and saving spaces whilst they have two hour long lunch whilst I’ve got assessed work due in soon and can’t find a quiet seat!“You’re freshers – act like it! The new students need to know their fresher priorities. I didn’t even know the library had a second floor until summer term of first year.

With thanks to YorkVision http://www.yorkvision.co.uk/news/youre-freshers-act-like-it/

The questionnaire

1. Please give the name of your institution (We will not name any institutions in our presentation without express permission)2. Has your library or university purchased any information resources in 2012/13 which are specifically directed towards improving the undergraduate student experience?3. If Yes, to what extent was the new fees regime a driver for these purchases?4. Are you deploying new strategies to deliver content to students? Examples might include: PDA of e-books; print PDA; e-textbook platforms like VitalSource or CourseSmart; giving students their own device/books5. If Yes, to what extent was the new fees regime a driver for these new strategies?

The questionnaire6. Have you introduced any service improvements in 2012/13 which are specifically directed towards improving the student experience? Examples might include: free printing; abolishing fines; longer opening hours; improved facilities7. If Yes, to what extent was the new fees regime a driver for these improvements?8. Has your library received any additional funding from your University in 2012/13 in order to improve the student experience?9. Do you have any other comments about the response of your library, or other libraries, to the changes in student needs and expectations?10. Please give your name and email address (we might contact you to find out more about some of the initiatives you have mentioned)

The Results

• 23 institutions responded (questionnaire sent to various lists and groups)

• Wide range, across all the main mission groups• 17 have purchased information resources• 16 are employing new strategies to deliver

content• 22 have introduced service improvements• 15 libraries have received some additional funds

from their university

The Results: New resources• Q2 - Specific resources purchased for

Student Experience• Q3 - Extent of fees increase being a

factor

Yes No0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

Main Driver6%

Part of the reason59%

Coincidental 35%

Main Driver

Part of the reason

Coincidental

New resources: typical responses• Reading list materials• Reading list budget increased and ring-fenced• Drive to get more reading lists from academics -

senior University management support• Reading list processes re-engineered to get more

books on shelf for start of term• More being digitised under the CLA licence• Reading list software purchased• Print textbooks given to students

New resources: typical responses

• Introduced a Fast-track student request system for ordering a book or additional copies ('More Books', 'Books on Time')

• More e-books (PDA, evidence-based selection, packages)

• Targeted purchases to support specific subject areas

• Additional licences to permit franchise and international collaborative provision access

New Resources: further comments

"We had lower numbers of e-books than our benchmark group"

"We had planned many of these initiatives anyway"

“The main driver for the University was NSS and fees

weren’t mentioned (by me or the higher powers)”

The Results: new strategies• Q4- New strategies to deliver content • Q5- Extent of fees increase being a

factor

Yes No Plans next year0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

Main driver19%

Part Reason50%

Coincidental 31%

Main driverPart ReasonCoincidental

New strategies for content delivery

• 16 libraries are deploying new strategies to deliver content to students - almost all mentioned PDA

• 2 institutions have bought print textbooks for 1st year students and may use e-textbook platforms from next year

• 3 institutions mentioned pre-loaded devices• 4 institutions have implemented a resource

discovery tool this year

Content strategies: further comments“We recently undertook a pilot of PDA of e-books & are reviewing outcomes with the intention of implementing a long term approach"

"The new fees regime is the driver for academic departments to give devices/books. The library developments are continuous service improvements"

"The English department,

independently of the library, provided

students with Kindles”

"We've been moving to e-books wherever possible

for some time now"

The Results: Service improvements• Q6 - Introduction of Service

Improvements• Q7 - Extent of fees increase being a

factor

Yes No0

5

10

15

20

25

14%

59%

27%

Main Driver Part of the reasonCoincidental

Service improvements: responses

• Longer opening hours• Refurbishment projects• Improved wireless• Free/reduced printing• Considering abolishing fines• Improved IT support in library buildings• Working towards Customer Service Excellence

accreditation• Improved student-library liaison

Service improvements: comments

"We continue to ask for additional resources as we have always has done, but with the emphasis across the University on the student experience, it is conceivable that such requests are now more favourably received. Service improvements made are usually at the request of students so securing extra funding for these (e.g. extended opening hours) ties in with the student experience agenda."

"These changes were overdue"

"NSS is the other main driver (apart from our underlying philosophy

of continuous improvement)”

The Results: Additional funding• Q8 - Has your Library received any additional funding?

£0 £1 - £49,999 £50,000- £99,999 £100,000 - £499,999 £500,000+0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

# of responses

Case studiesUniversities of Durham, Newcastle and York

What they didWhy they did itImpact it had

Durham – What?

• 24/7 – exam term• More books – student led• More PCs• More study spaces (Library extension)

Durham – Why?

Durham – Impact?• Use of PDA is strong - usage stats analysed• Use of existing statistical sources for

benchmarking (ISB, SCONUL Stats)• Using entry statistics• Planning to develop other measures focussed

on particular services and provision

Newcastle – What?

• 24/7 opening– 2011/12 revision and exam

periods– 2012/13 all term time weeks

• Space development programme (main library and medical library)– Removal of stock to offsite

storage– Added 300 extra study spaces

(including increase in silent study)

• Introduction of Primo (branded as Library Search)

Newcastle - Why?

• 24/7– Explicit student demand– Competition

• Space development– Increasing student use of

the Library– Demand for more silent

study– Fit with strategic shift to

"e"– Space design driven by

students

Newcastle - Impact

• Excellent student feedback– NSS score 85% to 90%

(2011-2012)– International Student

Barometer rating 2012• Physical Library 94%• Online Library 92%

York - What?• Refurbished buildings and 24/7 • Improved comms and marketing• Increased digitisation of chapters and

articles• Subject specific resources • Fast track purchase of heavily

requested materials• “More books” initiative• Service developments

– Flexible loans– Room booking systems– LibGuides– Web developments– LibAnswers

York - Why?• 24/7 on the student agenda and

taken into consideration during refurbishment

• Using existing understanding of issues for customers to drive changes

• Need to understand more about the customer experience and to become quicker in our response to issues

• Put the money in the hands of the customer

• Not basing expenditure on assumptions about customer needs

• Develop the Library, its collections and services rather than “give away” the investment

Flexible loans: Changes• No fines unless an item

is requested and not returned

• 4-week rolling loan period throughout the year

• Situational borrower categories

• Dynamic loan periods

York - Impact• Improved NSS (74% to 82%) and

LibQual+ (7% increase overall) scores

• MoreBooks please!– Student-led: extra copies bought on

demand

• Fast Track orders– Library staff monitor numbers of

requests on items and buy extra copies in response

• E-book turnaways– Additional e-book copies purchased

• Electronic Texts Service– More chapters and articles digitised

And yet to come: the York student manifesto• Increase awareness of study spaces across campus other than in the Library and

Harry Fairhurst• Maximise the use of study space in the Library and investigate the room booking

system• Ensure sufficient study space at Heslington East• Research the possibility of a monitoring system for remotely checking the

availability of study spaces across campus• More books should be available online as e-books including all key texts for courses• There should be free inter-library lending for books that are essential for the course• All mandatory course costs should be subsidised including clothing, software,

course booklets etc• Students should be provided with sufficient print credits and all printing should be

"not for profit"• Essential travel for courses should be free e.g. travel between Heslington East,

Heslington West, and King's Manor as well as travel to and from placements

Next steps....• Cluster into small groups• Post-it notes– Comments– Questions

• Website– https://sites.google.com/a/york.ac.uk/uksg/

• Comments and questions will be uploaded• Planning to continue looking at this area – look

at the website

Some thoughts• We do this stuff anyway – but perhaps this has given us

leverage?• Are students more demanding?• Has student behaviour changed?• Do we understand the impact of the things we are trying?• Are we “giving the money back” or are we “investing in the

future”?• Students as “partners” rather than “customers” or

“consumers”?• More with less? “conflicting pressure to reduce recurrent

costs across the University”

• "The York Student Experience: shaping the future" report http://www.yusu.org/your-union/you-run-us/research

• s.thompson@york.ac.uk• liz.waller@york.ac.uk• UKSG “Great expectations” website

https://sites.google.com/a/york.ac.uk/uksg/