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Collection Development Policy

PART 1

Purpose

The purpose of METU Library Collection Development Policy is;

·           To represent the rules and principles about the selection, supply and the access of the information sources conducted in METU Library with the aim of providing access to qualified, accurate and universal information that serves to research activities within both METU and public.

·         To address the needs of the users,

·         To ensure the collection to be updated and well-balanced,

·         To use the budget effectively,

·         To highlight the criteria and principles about improving the pattern and content of the collection

Definitions

Collection: A set of information sources which are provided purchase, subscription, exchange and donation according to a predetermined Library policy. (Bayram, t.y.).

Selection: A process and form to determine which information sources will be provided to Library collection. (Evans, 2005, p.9).

Supply: A process that involves incorporating information sources into Library through purchase, subscription, exchange and donation. (Evans, 2005, p.9).

Audiovisual Information Sources: Digital information sources that include audio, motion and visual. (Royan, 2004, p.7)  (e.g. DVD, VCD, CD, videocassette recorders, voice tape, etc.)

 

PART 2

Audience

METU Academic and Administrative Staff (employee/retired), additional-charge staff, researchers within Postdoctoral Research Program, graduate, undergraduate and associate students (including international exchange students), METU Development Foundation and Technopolis Staff, Academic Staff of protocol universities and government agencies skilled stuff can have a membership of METU Library and use the sources and services of Library. (See also Library Instruction Article 1). Only METU Academic and Administrative Staff and students can propose purchasing books and other information sources.

Responsibility Statement

Library administration and units are in charge of creating, applying and keeping the Library collection development policy updated. 

Librarians are in charge of ensuring the subject distribution to be balanced and updated according to users’ feedbacks and collection analysis that is conducted during the year.

 

PART 3

Printed Book Collection

METU Library printed book collection is classified according to U.S. Library of Congress Classification System and available through open shelf system.

Book Selection Practices

METU Library develops collections through purchase and donation. Whichever method is used, provided information sources are developed in terms of quality and quantity in parallel with academic needs of both Library users and the university.

The book purchase request and recommendation is transmitted to the METU Library in various ways:

·         Book/Course Book Order Form[1] on the library web page,

·         E-mail[2],

·         A collaborative work is being conducted between the Librarians and the Lecturers representing the Departments in necessary situations to meet the existing and changing needs of METU members and students and that the collection is developed in a conscious and balanced manner.

 

Book Selection Criteria

  • Copyright

Books to be provided must conform to the Law of Intellectual Property Rights (Annex 1) No. 5846.

Information sources produced as pirate books or copies reproduced by photocopying are not included in the collection.

  • Content

It is aimed to develop the book collection in a balanced way according to the education, research areas, cultural and intellectual requirements of ODTÜ.

  • Currentness

The most up-to-date and current information sources relevant to METU’s education and research fields are followed. Particular attention is paid to the fact that the information sources to be selected in the fields of science, technology and engineering have been published in the last 5 years. In the field of Social Sciences, the old printed books are also evaluated and included in the collection according to the feedback of the instructors.

  • Level

It is important to select books published by reliable, competent publishing houses recognized in their areas in order to support undergraduate and graduate programs and research areas of the university.

In addition to supporting the teaching curriculum, it is also considered that the books are supposed to promote thesis, project and independent research activities carried out in the research centers affiliated to Rectorship.

  • Extra Copies

The requested printed book is not provided in hard copy if full text access is available via existing databases.

More than one copy is included in the collection in accordance with the following requirements.

·      Course books that are highly used,

·      Books with a high borrowing rate,

·      Books that are physically worn out

·      Lost books.

  • Cost

The books requested for inclusion in the collection are reassessed together with the Library management and the user in order to provide budget possibilities and subject balance.

Books whose cost exceeds the upper limit defined for the subject area ($ 250 for Science and Technology fields, $ 100 for Social Sciences) is re-evaluated with the requesting user.

The printed paperback format of the requested books (if available on the market) is primarily preferred because of lower price. A hardback version of the related book is provided if it is the only available format on the market.

  • Language

In accordance with the education and research programs of the university, book purchases in different languages, especially in English and Turkish, are made in the direction of the requests from users.

  • Print Status and Physical Format

The requested book must be in print as of the date of order. There is no secondhand book purchase for non-printed books.

The different physical printing forms for the books and the conditions of supply are as follows:

  • Reprint: Old edition books or reprinted books that are abbreviated from the original edition of rare books are purchased when requested by users.
  • Loose-Leaf Prints: The purchase of such forms of printing is not preferred due to its uselessness. If the obligation to provide the book is declared by the users, they can be provided if no other print is available.

Book Supply Service

Purchase Procedure

The book request and recommendation is evaluated within the scope of the selection criteria, and the purchasing process is started for those who are decided to be included in the collection.

The books are provided through tender and direct purchase methods within the budget allocated to the Head Office of Library and Documentation.

Tender lists of the books with order records are prepared. In cases where urgent book procurement is required, direct purchasing lists are established within the year and within the framework of budget conditions.

The procurement of books to be provided through the tender is carried out according to the Public Procurement Law. Books that are tendered have an average of 4-6 months in advance due to the tender process.

Donation Procedure

Information sources that support the university's educational, research and cultural activities are included in the Library collection.

The   Donation and Exchange Committee decides on the appropriateness of donated information sources to the collection by consulting with relevant experts when necessary. The Library has the authority and responsibility to decide whether or not donated resources will be added to the collection and that in which category they will be replaced.

A special area or shelf is not created for the donated collection; it is included in the current collection according to the integrity and layout of Library.

Those who want to donate resources to the Library are obliged to fill in the "Book Donation Form" in compliance with the Movable Property Regulations.

The source(s) decided to be suitable for the Library collection are added to the collection and the list is created after the technical process, and a letter of thanks is sent to the donor person or institution on behalf of the University.

The source(s) not included in the collection are returned to the donor or sent to other universities, schools or institutions by the donor's approval.

Donation Principles

The donated information sources are supposed to;

·      Support the education and research activities of the university and have scientific quality,

·      Be not available in the Library collection,

·      Be physically appropriate,

·      Be not photocopied or replicated in any ways,

·      Be possible to taken as an extra copy when necessary, depending on the quality of the source and the frequency of use.

·      The publication date of information sources except for Social Sciences should not be older than 5 years.

·      It is not possible for every donation received by email to be included in the Library collection.

Rare Works

Rare works collection is formed according to the following criteria;

  •  Manuscripts and lithography works,
  •  Works written in Ottoman, Arabic and Persian languages in the years before 1928,
  •  Works published in Latin letters in 1801 and pre-1801,
  •  Works that have special printing technique and paperbound,
  •  Works printed in limited number or without second copies,
  •  Old and out of print sources,
  •  Works signed by important authors or important persons,
  •  Manuscript forms of books and letters belonging to authors who did not print their works,
  •  Works that have aesthetic value and contain valuable visuals (drawing, engraving, illumination, miniature, marbling etc.).

Reference Collection

The reference collection includes information sources of different kinds that contain competent information on a particular topic, provide a quick response and summary information on that topic. The Reference Collection is located in a separate unit in the Library and is not lent.

Statistical sources, maps, atlases, encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, bibliographic sources, guides, almanacs, abstracts, indexes and annuals are information sources available in the Reference Collection.

METU Library creates an e-reference collection that provides uninterrupted access in order to remove space and time limits for access to information.

 

Thesis Collection

Hard copies of the master and doctorate theses prepared in METU are kept in the Library by the decision of the University Senate.

Electronic copies of theses prepared since September of 2003 with the aim of creating Digital Thesis Archive are also included in the collection.

Theses in the collection are closed for one or two years depending on the author's wishes.

Photocopying or electronic reproduction of a printed thesis is subject to the permission of the author.

Reserve Collection (Short-Loan Books)

The collections created from the course sources are lent to the students for a short time (one hour, three hours, a night, etc.) in the direction of the requests and suggestions of the lecturers.

The textbooks that are announced by instructors through Adding and Submitting Books to a Short Loan Collection form are provided as 1 book for every 40 students. These books must be requested before the beginning of the semester.

Materials not included in the Reserve Collection:

·           Current and bound magazines,

·           Reference sources (except English-Turkish Dictionaries),

·           Sources that are available in general collection but not lent

Removing Information Source from the Reserve Collection:

  • For the books that the instructor wants to be removed from the reserve collection, it is necessary to fill out the Adding and Removing Books for the Short Loan Collection on the web page.

·         The collection is reviewed at the end of each semester and unused books are removed from the reserve collection in order to be added to the long-term lending collection.

Audiovisual Information Sources Collection

Audiovisual information sources that METU members and students want to be included in the library collection are provided through subscription or purchase after being evaluated. 

When selecting Audiovisual Information Sources;

  • It is important to be in quality and format to support training and user requests,
  • Cultural publications should be appropriate to the level and knowledge of the user,
  • Pirated or copied material is not purchased and is not accepted as a donation.

Printed Periodical Collection

Methods of Choosing and Providing Materials

In today's digital collection environment, electronic subscription is preferred instead of printed subscription of periodical publications.

Evaluation and Selection Criteria

Criteria for evaluating existing publications / publications to be newly added to the collection:

  • New printed subscription requests are based on information received from METU users (academic and administrative staff, students) and publishers, as well as information obtained through research conducted by the Librarians to remove missing information from the current collection.
  • New subscription requests are delivered via periodical request form on Web.
  • All requests are checked from the current collection of printed collections and electronic journals.
  • Pricing model for requests is detected through their publisher, education language, impact factor, scientific quality, etc.
  • Content analysis is performed to check the suitability of the collection.
  • If electronic form is not published, the printed form is evaluated.
  • It is checked whether the requests are in collections of other university libraries in Ankara.
  • The selection and evaluation of publications is based on the evaluation criteria determined by the Periodical Publications Department and the Library Management.
  • For existing hardcopy publications, publications that whose print has stopped within the year and that have a bibliographic change are followed up.

Supply of Printed Periodicals

How to obtain printed publications:

·         Providing subscription from domestic and foreign sources through tender and direct supply method,

·         Providing with donation and exchange.

Donation and Exchange Criteria

Periodicals to be provided through donations and exchanges from persons or institutions are accepted on condition that they are regularly sent to the Library for at least two years while those whose print has done are accepted considering the needs of the users.

The appropriateness of the periodicals to be provided through donations or exchanges to the education language and research areas is taken into account.

Content of the sources should be eligible for The Constitution of the Republic of Turkey along with Law of Intellectual Property Rights No. 5846 and Law of Higher Education. Pirate and/or photocopied publications will not be accepted or purchased in Library in accordance with the Law on Intellectual and Artistic Works No 5846.

Journals and physically worn out periodicals are not included in the collection.

Termination of the Subscription and Transforming to Digital Format

Subscription of printed periodicals is terminated through evaluation of the following criteria:

  • Being irregular,
  • Price increases,
  • Usage,
  • Current archive information in the collection,
  • Conflict with digital collection,
  • The electronic copy has archive access,
  • Appropriateness to the budget,
  • Continue to be published as open access.

Digital Source Collection

 

The digital source collection is made up of online, licensed and open access information sources. Digital sources are provided through subscription and/or purchase.

Types of Digital Sources:

·         E-journal databases 

·         Single e-journals

·         E-book databases

·         Index and contained databases

·         E-Reference databases (dictionaries, encyclopedias, theses, standards, etc.)

·         E-newspapers

·         Databases with statistical data

·         Multimedia sources

Selection of Digital Sources

Electronic source selection is made by the Periodical Publications Unit and the Library Management in line with the demands of the university members.

Selection of New Digital Sources

The selection process for a new e-source begins with evaluating the requests from users (e-mail, database / e-journal request / evaluation form), suggestions from publishing houses and Library staff.

The following criteria are taken into account in the appraisal phase of an e-source;

·         Appropriateness to the university’s education and research programs,

·         Whether an equivalent source is available in the existing collection,

·         Whether the relevant e-source has been evaluated before,

In order to examine an e-source in detail, trial access opportunities are searched. The evaluation of sources for which trial access is not possible is done in accordance with the information provided on the Web page or from the publisher of the source.

Selection Criteria

It is expected that a digital source will be able to provide the following features to the maximum level to be included in the collection.

In terms of content;

·          To be appropriate to the university’s education and research areas,

·          To contribute to the current collection,

·          To be an authority in its field.

In terms of technical requirements and usage;

·         To be IP based and provide remote access,

·         To provide usage statistics,

·         To provide integration with technical infrastructure and other systems,

·         To have a user-friendly interface,

·         To offer data downloading, copying and printing options.

Support of provider/intermediary firm and the publisher;

·         To provide user training,

·         To provide technical support,

·         Customization of the interface in line with requests,,

·         Data archiving (backup, collaboration with data archiving systems (LOCKSS, etc.) ).

·         Competence and credibility of the intermediary firm.

Pricing model;

·        FTE based pricing,

·        Pricing based on the number of concurrent users,

·        Finding consortium pricing,

·        Pricing by selected collection.

In terms of licensing features;

·         Accessibility issues;

·         Authorized user,,

·         Access methods (access via IP, multi/unlimited users, single user access, etc.),

·         Retrospective access; rights to be retained if archiving and subscribing is terminated.

·  Usage issues;

·      Loaning between universities,

·      View, download and print,

·      Responsibilities of the provider/intermediary firm,

·         Legal issues (payment terms, payment period).

Confliction with printed collection;

When the information source considered to be included in the collection has both print and electronic access, electronic access is preferred considering the following items:

 

·           The electronic copy should provide the same content as the print, or give more,

·           The quality of the text and images (graphics, tables, etc.) on the electronic copy should be at least as high as or better than the quality,

 

 

·           It is preferred that price of the digital source is the same or lower than the printed copy. Where the price of a digital information source is higher, the publisher should provide more content with the source for the fee paid.

 

Assessment of Current Digital Sources

The continuity of existing digital source subscriptions is assessed by considering the following criteria:

  •  Usage;

·         Usage statistics and change over years,

·         Unit cost analysis,

·          Purchase/subscription models and pricing changes,

  •  Licensing features;

·         Changes in archival rights,

·         Changes in terms of use,

·         Changes in access methods.

  •  In case of platform change, new platform features,
  •  Renewal/repetition of content and conflict analysis,
  •  User opinions.

Supply of Digital Sources

Supplying of selected digital sources are carried out with the relevant units taking into account the following criteria;

·         The budget allocated for the digital sources, the form and timing of payment,,

·         Providing of required documents during the payment process (proforma, single authorized provider document, and invoice).

Termination of Subscriptions

It may be decided to terminate the subscription of a digital source in the following cases:

·         Usage is not at the expected level despite enhancement works,

 

·         Unexpected high increases in subscription prices (except content changes),

 

·         Another digital source overlapping in terms of content is available at a lower cost than the existing digital source,

 

·         Negative accessibility changes.

 

PART 4

Budget

The library plans and uses the budget determined by the Ministry of Finance with the aim of sustaining and developing the existing collection to support educational and research activities with scientific publications. Distribution and use of budget is determined by Library Management and related units.

Distribution and use of budget:

  •  Printed book
  •  Printed periodicals
  •  Database
  •  E-Journal
  •  E-Book

Planning is carried out within the budget freedoms determined by the Ministry of Finance (January, April, July, October). The spending plan made by the Purchasing and Accounting Unit at the beginning of the year is implemented throughout the year.

 

 

PART 5

Collection Management

Collection Assessment

The collection development policy aims to renew and improve the collection within the Library. In order to maximize the effectiveness of the collection, it is necessary to evaluate the collection regularly and, when necessary, to extract books and renew them. The processes carried out under these evaluations are as follows: 

  •  The density of the subjects in the collection is assessed every year by the Library Management and Supply and Cataloging Unit. In this assessment, the balance between the budget allocated to the departments for material intake, the collection intensity for the subject areas of the departments, and the usage rate of the materials within this collection are analyzed. If the subject areas in which the distribution is insufficient are determined, it is planned that the development of these subject areas and the balancing of the subjects will be ensured in the following purchase process.
  • Extraction and renewal processes.

Collaborative Works

Consortiums

METU Library is a member of Anatolian University Libraries Consortium (ANKOS) founded wih the aim of providing of the  common policy agreement among the members about the issues of the subscription  or purchase  e-books’ databases  considering of  collections rational growth and the allowing to access of more sources for supplying the educational and inquiring needs of  participating  users’ to Consortium. ANKOS aims to collaborate with appropriate institutions and organizations both at domestic and foreign about many subjects such as the management of copyrights, license contracts and the other consortium services around the world is made to progress the participation of ANKOS to the international developments.

 

University and Research Institutes

Full-time staff employees of universities and research institutions in Turkey can borrow books from the Library of the Middle East Technical University through their affiliated Library Lending Officer, and can provide photocopies of articles or theses (if permitted).

 

Full-time academic and administrative staff of Middle East Technical University can borrow books from the libraries of other research institutions in Turkey and photocopy articles or thesis through Interlibrary Loan Service.

 

Preservation and Bookbinding

The binding process is applied to protect the printed information sources against wearing and to reuse the worn out collection for the user.

Inventory Procedures

Inventory operations of printed collections are conducted through different methods at specific time intervals.

Extraction

The extraction process is carried out in accordance with the legislation by the joint efforts of the Librarians' Supply and Cataloging Unit and the Shelf Services Unit along with Cancellation          Commission, which consists of subject experts.

The following types of information sources are extracted from the collection or taken into storage;

·         Those who are physically damaged and unusable,

·         Those who have not been used in the last 10 years and have been over-replicated,

·         Sources available also as digital copy,

·         Technologically unavailable sources (e.g. Diskette, Cassette),

·         Old editions of information sources with new editions (especially reserve books).

 

Lost Sources

The lost information sources determined according to the results of the counting operations are regained by considering the usage rates.

References

Appendix

  • Law of Intellectual Property Rights
  • Standing Order List
  • Book Donation Form
  • METU Library Instruction



[1] METU members and students can request to receive information sources.

[2] Members of our university can provide questions, problems and suggestions about their material requests to saglama@metu.edu.tr