Collection Development Strategy
Purpose
The Collection Development Strategy sets out the direction and principles underpinning the collection development activities of UNSW Library. Through these principles, UNSW Library ensures:
- the stewardship and advancement of the collections to support the overall aims of both the University and the Library.
- barrier-free access to information, to enable knowledge discovery, creation, innovation and translation.
Strategy
UNSW Library identifies, collects and provides access to a broad range of scholarly resources and scholarly tools on behalf of the whole UNSW community. The use of these collections facilitates UNSW's innovative research, distinctive education, and commitment to the public good, to deliver progress for all.
Scope
This strategy document covers identification, selection, evaluation, negotiation and acquisition processes related to collection development and applies to any scholarly resource or scholarly tool intended for use by the UNSW community. Collection maintenance is out of scope of this strategy. UNSWorks is out of scope of this strategy.
UNSW Library supports the unique and distinctive research and educational strengths of excellence. However, it is unable to collect comprehensively and, in some circumstances, resources to support specific research projects or teaching materials on restricted commercial platforms may need to be acquired independently. Contact the Collection Development & Policy Unit as early as possible to commence discussions on resourcing strategic research and educational initiatives.
Principles
The Library will deliver on the purpose of this strategy in line with the University's Values in Action.
Demonstrates excellence
The Library is fiscally responsible and conducts effective negotiations to procure resources in support of this strategy and that achieve excellent value for money in the short and longer term. Further, the Library Information Resources budget will reflect and advance collection activities that support societal impact initiatives and inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility (IDEA) principles.
The Library delivers service excellence to support the ethical use of emerging technologies including immersive technologies and AI in alignment with UNSW’s assurance frameworks.
The Library is digital first with its collection development activities. Digital/electronic formats support our multi-campus context and maximise equitable access to resources for students, teaching academics and researchers.
Builds collaboration
The Library works in close partnership with sector peers, the Council of Australasian University Librarians Consortia (CAUL), external relevant communities of practice and UNSW stakeholders to progress collection activities that reflect UNSW values and aspirations.
The Library works with commercial publishers, open access publishers, publishing agents and vendors with the aim of having mutually beneficial relationships that support the purpose of this strategy whilst understanding the limits of the commercial aspects of these associations.
Drives innovation
The Library will lead in transforming scholarly publishing and scholarly communication and will continue to work with commercial and open access publishers to transition to sustainable open access models for research publications and monographs.
The Library does not support the repackaging of open access content by commercial publishers and will not knowingly acquire or subscribe to content or tools that are underpinned by business practices that on-sell open access content.
The Library works with Faculties to deliver leading practice in library collections that support teaching and learning to maximise students' access to their prescribed course resources. Resources with unlimited user electronic access and use-friendly digital rights management and open education resources (OERs) are prioritised.
Embraces diversity
The Library embraces the diverse needs of our communities and recognises these differences constitute a strength in what it acquires, collects and makes discoverable. There are inherent biases in much academic publisher content and the Library aims to broaden and balance this with its ongoing purchase of both commercial and independent publisher content.
This strategy aims to recognise local Indigenous voices and knowledges, and the value they bring to the Library's collections and collection activities. This includes using the Guidelines for First Nations collection description created by Tui Raven (2023) for guidance, and engaging with the local community for advice about collections. The Library is also mindful of Indigenous intellectual property and restricted cultural materials in context of its current collection.
The Library proactively evaluates scholarly resources and scholarly tools with respect to IDEA principles and review licence terms and conditions accordingly.
Through the Library's collection activities, it advances the importance of supporting student belonging and engagement beyond academic materials and leverages bibliotherapy to enhance student wellbeing.
Displays Respect
The Library supports UNSW's commitment to accelerate the transition to a sustainable society and progress for all, and takes into consideration UNSW policies that support basic human rights and sustainability, and wider Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) initiatives. The Library is in alignment with ALIA code of ethics and IFLA code of ethics which influence the delivery of collection services.
Procedures & definitions
Acquisition recommendations
Recommendations for acquisition may be made by members of the UNSW Community as per the guidelines for UNSW Sydney resource recommendation or the UNSW Canberra suggest a purchase. Recommendation does not automatically equate to acquisition and specialist collection development librarians will review recommendations for alternative resources already held.
Approval to renew subscription resources requires a written recommendation from the Collection Development & Policy Unit and written approval from the University Librarian or Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic Quality.
Approval to acquire resources can be made through:
- pre-approved profile plans including Demand Driven Acquisition
- request for teaching resources directly via a Leganto course resources list
- resource recommendations (where the request is in line with the Collection Development Strategy)
- Collection Development & Policy Unit for any other items.
Selection guidelines
Format
Electronic/online is the default format for acquisition. Physical resources will only be acquired with an accompanying valid business case or when the electronic version has restrictive conditions. Formats in risk of obsolescence will not be acquired.
Duplication
UNSW Library does not acquire duplicate copies of material in the same format.
Course resources
UNSW Library acquires or provides access to required course resources and supplementary materials in accord with TEQSA guidance. The Library does not acquire course material for a restricted number of users and will favour the acquisition of scholarly monographs that are Digital Rights Management (DRM) free in order to provide improved equity of access for students.
The Library reviews and applies copyright for all course materials on a library managed course resource system and works with course coordinators to provide access to course resources that meet copyright requirements.
Price
Acquisition of excessively priced resources will require a justification by the requestor. Alternative funding sources may be required. The definition of excessively priced is related to the scholarly publishing market and can include the average cost of resources in the subject area, prohibitive access conditions accompanying the price, and in the case of subscribed resource consideration is given to the trend of expected incremental price increases.
The above criteria are not comprehensive.
Licence terms
Materials will not be acquired where licence terms cannot be adhered to by UNSW Library or where acceptable licence terms cannot be negotiated. For example, the Library will not acquire resources that have licence agreements specifically restricting interlibrary loans, cannot be included in Course Resource systems, or provides access that is different to or more restrictive than the students' experience.
Donations
The Library does not encourage or accept unsolicited gifts of material (2 exceptions are noted below). Unsolicited material may be disposed of at the Library's discretion without reference to the donor.
The exceptions to the above are:
- donations by UNSW Press of new titles
- donations by UNSW authors of their newly published work.
In both of these cases, donations are welcomed and encouraged. Electronic versions can be deposited in UNSWorks in line with copyright requirements.
In all other cases, exceptional donations including donations of unencumbered funds can only be approved by the Director & University Librarian and will be maintained or discarded in accordance with Library requirements without reference to the donor or their descendants.
UNSW corporate publications
UNSW Library is not the University archive and therefore does not collect UNSW corporate publications.
Digitisation
Collection materials may be digitised by the Library subject to copyright. Titles considered for future digitisation but not yet acquired must first be approved for acquisition by the Scholarly Resources Committee.
Interlibrary loan services
Access to items not held in UNSW's collections may be supplied through interlibrary loan services subject to client eligibility and availability.
Definitions
Collection maintenance: Ongoing conservation, preservation and deselection of collected materials.
Scholarly resources: Digital resources that contain content directly or include records that describe and point to resources (that contain content) or tools, relevant to the UNSW community. Resources or tools that manipulate content, including bibliographic content, are not collected. Resources collected reflect the broad and comprehensive range of courses and research activities at UNSW and collecting will be targeted at advanced academic-level resources.
Scholarly tools: Integrated scholarly platform functionality that enhances the search capabilities in interrogating scholarly content. This includes text and data mining, AI layers and API tools. Tools that manipulate content, including bibliographic content, are not collected.
Teaching, learning, and research functions: Functions related to research and educational pursuits and excludes commercial and administrative functions including staff training resources.
UNSW community: Anyone with a valid and current zID.
UNSWorks: The online institutional repository of UNSW research and HDR outputs.
November 2024