LIS releases survey results

Author: Polly Johnson

In a large-scale effort to assess the overall satisfaction with Library and Information Services (LIS), Middlebury College, along with four other schools including Bryn Mawr, the University of Richmond, Wellesley College and Bates College, created a detailed survey that was distributed during the fall of 2005. Associate Dean of LIS Carol Peddie was the primary architect of the survey at Middlebury, and the four other schools were part of the survey because, like Middlebury, they have combined library and technology services. When the new library was built, Library Services combined with Technology Services to establish LIS.

The survey went out to 700 randomly-selected students, 335 faculty members, and 825 staff members. While there was a 72.8 percent response rate among the faculty, only 48.5 percent of the staff and 35.4 percent of students responded.

"We created a survey instrument because it helped us assess what services are being used and how satisfied our users are with our services," Peddie said. Along with simply assessing the importance of LIS at Middlebury, the survey was designed "to see if Middlebury students are satisfied with LIS services, and to see how Middlebury services compare to those at other schools," she explained. She also added that although only five schools were a part of this first survey, "[it] is being rolled out to an additional 10-15 schools that have merged services. We hope to see trends, so if we are looking to enhance or let go of a service, we can look beyond just Middlebury."

Peddie hopes that the survey will be conducted every two years, so that the campus doesn't feel "over surveyed."

The officially-stated purpose of the survey was "to assess the use, importance, and satisfaction of LIS services and resources and to provide an initial benchmark measure." The results showed that the most frequently used services by faculty are library services - the library Web site, catalog, databases and circulation - classroom technology, access to online resources from off campus, Banner and the Helpdesk. The least-used services among faculty consisted of video conferencing, checking out laptops and the computing Web site. The survey ultimately concluded that 96 percent of those faculty members who responded were satisfied with the overall library service.

Among students, the results were noticeably different, with the most-used services being computer labs, telephone service, the library Web site, Banner, electronic reserves and Segue. Surprisingly, the least used services include borrowing laptops, the computing web site, Interlibrary loan and the Helpdesk. All in all, 95 percent of those students who responded were largely satisfied with LIS. Ninety four percent of the staff members surveyed reported that they were satisfied with virus protection.

In combining and analyzing the results of the students, faculty and staff, the survey showed surprising results. First, Banner ranked as the most important resource with both staff and students, while the faculty ranked Banner at number nine, with library resources and services topping the faculty list. In another noticeable variation, faculty and staff ranked the Helpdesk as the second top resource, while students ranked it at number ten on their list.

A second dissimilarity was the difference in importance which students and faculty attribute to Segue. While 79 percent of students are satisfied with Segue, only 37 percent of faculty answered to being satisfied with it. However, Peddie noted, there were correlations between the least-used services and the lowest satisfaction rates, and since many faculty members have never used Segue, it contributed to a lower percentage of satisfaction rate.

When all the results were calculated, there were a number of unexpected revelations. While over 90 percent of students have their own computers, 82 percent of students rated computer labs as very important. This pleased Peddie, who noted that percentage proved "they are getting used and are important to people." Additionally, it was a surprise that 54 percent of the faculty have never used Segue and do not think it has any significance. A high number - 74 percent - of students recorded that wireless access is important and are not satisfied with the current service. The final surprise was that over 50 percent of faculty, staff and students have never used the computing Web site, nor do they think of it as a useful or important resource.

Peddie feels the survey was an overall success and is eager for it to expand to potentially 10-15 more schools, since with the inclusion of more schools, "[LIS] can look at the best practices of other schools to see and share success stories." The survey, in general, Peddie said, "solidified the fact that people are pleased with the services we offer."