During the 2004-05 academic year, University Libraries added 78,687 items to its collections. Every new book, journal, serial, newspaper, electronic resource, and video that was added, was first selected, ordered, received, paid for, cataloged, and processed before it was ready to be checked out or accessed by library users. How does the library acquire materials? Who does what to get the item ordered and onto the shelf? Following is a brief overview of the processes involved in acquiring materials for the libraries and making them accessible to UC students, faculty, staff, and other library users.
- Selecting -
Working with faculty throughout the colleges, subject librarians select materials to be added to the library collections. They choose resources in their subject areas, paying special attention to the particular needs of the departments and programs they represent. The librarians then send their book and other selections to the Monograph Department for acquisition.
 Acquisitions -
Acquisitions staff order and receive books and other library materials. In addition to receiving requests from subject librarians, materials are acquired through standing orders with book vendors, annual
subscriptions, or through large package deals of e-books.
- Accounting –
Once an item arrives in the library and the invoice is verified, the Accounting Department pays for it. In 2005-06, the department processed 42,974 payments (includes books, periodicals, and electronic items).
- Cataloging –
In order for an item to be added to the Library Catalog, it must first be entered into the online database. Catalogers and other staff assess the item according to subject matter and then assign a call number according to the Library of Congress classification system used by research libraries across the country. To determine the specific call number, cataloging staff search a national database for a pre-existing bibliographic record assigned to the item. If no record exists, the item is marked for original cataloging. Original catalogers work in an area of expertise – language, format, or both – and they create a record to add to the national database as well as to University Libraries’ online Library Catalog.
- Processing –
Once an item is cataloged, it must then be physically processed. Spine labels with the call numbers and property stamps are applied to the item along with security devices. The item is then sent from processing to one of 10 libraries for shelving.
- Shelving –
Circulation staff members collect new library items after they are processed and change their status in the Library Catalog to ‘available,’ meaning the items are ready to be checked out. The items are sorted by call number in the Circulation Department, arranged on carts, and then are taken to the stacks and shelved by Circulation
student workers.
 Check out –
After a library user has located a book or other library item he or she wishes to borrow, the next step is to take that item to a circulation desk where a staff member or student worker will check out the book, desensitize the security strip, and provide a date-due for the item. In Langsam Library, users can use Self Check-out to complete this process.
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