Course‐centered approach to evaluating university library collections for instructional program reviews

Describes a course‐centered approach to the evaluation of university library collections for instructional program reviews. Summarizes the author’s experience with preparing library reports for systematic program reviews in the agricultural sciences at the University of Saskatchewan. The method is based on the assessment of collections supporting individual courses by comparing the numbers of monographs and journal articles available directly to the library clientele with the numbers of items in the major bibliographic databases. Describes the new elements of the method. The method provides a practical tool for further selection of materials, applicable in similar situations, as well as a background for collaborating with faculty members.