BTH Library User Survey Autumn 2013

What was investigated?

• Students' attitudes to:

– Open hours

– Study environment

– Staff service

– Range of media (print/electronic)

– Library website

– Library's teaching/tutoring

Number of answers

• Number of answers: 202

– Swedish: 147

– English: 55

Education and number of terms

• Many of the respondents are program students:Sw: 79 %Eng: 89 %

• Distance students:Sw: 18 %Eng: 5,5 %

• Most of the respondents had either not studied a whole term yet, or they had studied 3 terms or more.

Most used library

• GräsvikSw: 63 %Eng: 83 %

• Online librarySw: 29 %Eng: 16 %

• PirenSw: 7,5 %

Open hours (multiple choice question)

• Contented with current open hours

– Sw: 49 %

– Eng: 44 %

• Would prefer open evenings and weekends:

– Sw: 46 %

– Eng: 79 %

• Respondents from the English survey thus found increased open hours more important

• A university library cannot have such reduced schedule. You can have extra opening hours by hiring students.

• 4pm is too early for a library to close...if not for the services, atleast the rooms should be available for studying until 5 pm or 6 pm so that we dont have to move out in search of another place in the middle of our work.

• As the library provides a great atmosphere to study, it would be great to be open for the students who are more productive in the evenings both during weekdays and weekends.

Study environment

• Respondents were most discontented with:

– Lack of possibility to study in a quiet environment (question 5)

– Sound level (question 6)

– Access to computers (question 1 – Sw more discontented)

– Air quality (question 10)

– Access to printers (question 2 – Eng more discontented)

Study environment

• Respondents were most contented with:

– The range of books and journals (question 4)

– Lighting (question 7)

– Possibility for group work (question 3 - Eng much more positive than Sw)

• Quiteness is not observed at the library

• Access to printer to students that are not swedish is a joke.

• Sometimes the library is quite loud and there is not supervision to keep the sound down. Although it's a good point that there is a small quiet room.

• I don't know why BTH is closed silent room in front of library and moved the tables near washroom in H-block. Can you please allocate a silent study room for students?

• The air is extremely bad. It is impossible to study there without getting tired.

• students studying there are too loud, laughing, having fun and not studying, that's why I don't go there:(

• As access to computers, most of them are very slow, takes long time to come up. I used to study in silent room (previous one) , new one is very small and has just 5 desk , and so many people doesn’t feel good to study there, and main problem is its close in weekend since its inside library, I used to study in some weekends specially close to deadlines or exams. As sound level since it’s not a quite area, sometimes it’s difficult to concentrate. Also as lightening some group rooms light are not good, for example those in downstairs.

Staff service

• In general the respondents are contented (Eng more contented than Sw) with the service and the help they get

• Relatively many have answered ”no opinion”

• The staff is so kind and helpful.

• The only time I needed material that was not available online, the attention paid was commendable.

Range of print media

• Contented

– Sw: 53 %

– Eng: 62 %

• Discontented

– Sw: 7 %

– Eng: 20 %

• Many have no opinion.

• they are really few either in one special title(sometimes many students borrow a title and others have to waite alot or use very few Reference ones) or one special area

• It doesn’t have wide range of sources in English language.

• In some ways it lacks the variety in printed media

Range of electronic media

• Overall contented

– Sw: 62 %

– Eng: 66 %

• Discontented

– Sw: 8 %

– Eng: 16 %

• Many have no opinion.

• It can be made little elaborative in the sense that students who do not find their course books from the library, usually in examination times mainly, then they should be able to obtain them on PDF is I think

• it caters well for the needs of the students

• No integration of library databases to find articles, Difficult to find what we look for with current search mecanism

• Please buy more eBooks. I prefer to use the e-library. I have been using the e-library, but not so many eBooks on BTH e-library. So I had to come to Library Gräsvik to borrow the paper books. You have very good paper books, but I think that e-books will be cheaper and more available to all students because many students can use it at the same time without waiting in queue.

Print vs. electronic media

• The majority prefer print books...

– Sw: 59 %

– Eng: 67 %

• …and electronic journal articles

– Sw: 63 %

– Eng: 76 %

• Thus, there is no great difference between the Swedish and English survey.

Library website

• In general contented

– Sw: 64 %

– Eng: 74 %

• 15 % of the Swedish respondents had never visited the site

• Relatively many comments concerning the user friendliness of the site (or lack of)

• Not must user friendly

• No integration of library databases to find articles, Difficult to find what we look for with current search mecanism

• There may be need to galvanise the login and associated resources as a portal dashboard rather than a work flow of access.

• It can be more user friendly, at beginning it was difficult to find the right part I want.

The Library's teaching• Do not know about the Library's teaching:

Sw: 43 %Eng: 49 %

• Do not know about book a librarian:Sw: 57 %Eng: 44 %

• Have taken part of the library's teaching:Sw: 32 %Eng: 27 %

• Have booked a librarian:Sw: 9 %Eng: 11 %

The Library's Teaching

• Contented with the library's teaching:

– Sw: 35 %

– Eng: 42 %

• The majority has no opinion.

– Sw: 59 %

– Eng: 51 %

• tooo short period allocated to teach

• Library's teaching in information seeking should be held at the beginning of a semester not in the middle.

• Shoudl be at the beggining of the semester, not in the middle...at this point is useless

General comments• Good over all

• Go BTH Library, Go!

• Please Provide a big and nice silent room which can be open in weekends and holiday.

• Sincerely BTH library is great. I would suggest that BTH library formulates capacity development programme that can help libraries in developing countries like Nigeria to set up, as part of strategy of contributing to knowledge building in the absence of Sweden's broad education policy prior education fees. Thank you.

• Thanks and keep on improving!

General observations

• In general respondents have a positive attitude to the library – those who are contented are many more than those who are discontented

• Many more answered ”no opinion” in the Swedish survey

• Those who answered the English survey are in general more contented