Libraries moves up
in national rankings

The NCSU Libraries has moved up five spots to No. 27 among 113 U.S. and Canadian academic library members in the membership criteria index published by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL). Among the U.S. public university members, NC State advanced from No. 20 to No. 17.

“The really good news is the wealth of digital resources and capabilities that directly benefit students and faculty,” emphasized Susan K. Nutter, vice provost and director of libraries.

After the university set a goal in the early 1990s to reach the “Top 50” within five years, the Libraries advanced from a ranking of 101 to 32 in just 10 years, an unprecedented accomplishment in ARL history. The Commission on the Future of NC State University has affirmed a longer-term goal of reaching the Top 25.

According to the ARL, the index “is a summary measure of relative size among the university library members of the Association.”

With fewer than 3.4 million volumes, NC State does not rank high in terms of sheer size. What sets the NCSU Libraries apart is the strengths of its collections in the specific disciplines of the university, the caliber of the library staff, and the quality and innovation of the services they offer.

The library was one of the first to remain open 24 hours per day, seven days per week during the academic year; was a pioneer in creating a Learning Technology Service to assist faculty in developing online courses; and was the very first in the nation to hire an intellectual property attorney to help both librarians and faculty interpret how copyright law protects or limits their access to information. The Scholarly Communication Center forms part of the Learning and Research Center for the Digital Age, together with a state-of-the-art Digital Media Lab, Usability Research Lab, and Digital Library Initiatives Department.

Posted June 17, 2005

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