2010 Survey of Graduate and Professional Students

Results

What is the 2010 Survey of Graduate and Professional Students?

The 2010 Survey of Professional and Graduate Students, which ran from February 9-15, 2010, launched the University of Chicago Library’s new annual survey program which will target, on a rotating basis, graduate students, faculty, and undergraduates.

What does the survey cover?

The 23-question survey, designed by the Assessment Project Team and based on similar surveys run by MIT and the University of Washington, covered:

• Demographic information: division/school, degree program, whether respondents were in first year at University
• Collections: importance, satisfaction, impact on success , comments/suggestions
• Activities: physical/remote visits, activities when visiting library, website tasks
• Spaces: primary library, library satisfaction, frequency of visits , comments/suggestions
• Existing services/facilities: importance, satisfaction, comments/suggestions
• New services: importance of services presented as options, top pick, comments/suggestions
• Overall satisfaction

Who took the survey?

• Invitations were sent to 9,726 graduate and professional school students who were enrolled in a degree program
• 1,791 students completed the survey, yielding an 18% response rate
• The highest number of responses (423) came from the Social Sciences Division and the Humanities Division (303), which together account for 41% of the completed surveys.
• Degree programs: 62% (934)  Doctoral degree, 37% (657) Masters degree, around 5% are in Law or Medical degrees

What are the 2010 survey results?

Results include (see the full survey report for detailed analysis):

• 93% report that they are either very satisfied or satisfied with the Library overall
• 92% rate electronic journals and magazines as either very important or important to their current research and study
• 85% report being very satisfied or satisfied with our collection of electronic journals and magazines
• 86% rate the Library's collections as either very important or important when it comes to their effectiveness as a researcher
• 76% report accessing the Library resources from off campus at least weekly
• Among the proposed services that participants rated as important to offer were scanning and online delivery of print journal articles, and designated quiet zones
• Over 4,000 coded comments in response to the 6 open-ended questions highlight the reliance on electronic access and collections and the importance to many of the Library as work space.

How is the Library responding to these results?

In addition to responses to specific requests (see the Library response to results), both the quantitative and qualitative data are reviewed and acted on by various committees and workgroups, including:

• The Library Planning Council will use the results to develop priorities for the next fiscal year
• Results will be reviewed and acted on by the Public Services Steering Committee, the Virtual Access Committee, and  the Web Improvement Team.

Assessment Project Team members: Agnes Tatarka, Assessment Director; David Larsen, Head of Access Services and Assessment: Tod Olson, Systems Librarian; Margaret Schilt, D'Angelo Law Library Faculty Services Librarian; Andrea Twiss-Brooks, Co-Director, John Crerar Library