UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES PARTNER WITH UAMS FOR SCIENCE DIRECT ACCESS

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The University Libraries have formed a partnership with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Libraries to acquire online access to 470 journals on the ScienceDirect Web site. Researchers at both institutions will now have instant access to top-ranked journals in fields such as biology, economics, medicine, psychology, sociology, mathematics, engineering, chemistry and physics.

Several factors merged to make this collaboration desirable. First, expanding degree programs and courses offered at the U of A and UAMS created a need for each library to expand their support, often in areas that overlap. Secondly, as publishers expanded their digital collections of both current and archived journals, their subscription prices soared, putting a strain on library budgets. Lastly, traditional degree programs at both institutions changed dramatically with new technologies, requiring research forays into other fields—such as the use of specialized medical and genetic journals by students in poultry sciences and related areas in agriculture.

Today’s students and researchers demand immediate online access to the text of thousands of journals and newspapers from around the globe, often unaware of the staggering costs of such subscriptions. Library administrators are thus continually looking for ways to provide more in-depth access to more titles within their set budgets. In the partnership between UA Libraries and UAMS, for instance, each library pays for its own access to the ScienceDirect database, but the publisher allows both institutions to share access to journal titles paid for by the other institution.

"Targeted purchases such as these will allow us to develop digital collections that best match the research and teaching needs of our institutions," said Carolyn Henderson Allen, dean of the University Libraries. "We’ve pooled our resources to do more than either library could have done individually."

Although online access to journal titles may be a convenience for today’s on-campus student, it is a necessity for distance education students. Mary Ryan, Director of the UAMS Libraries, said, "Since our medical school supports distance education students throughout the state, online access anytime, anywhere is very important."

To view a list of ScienceDirect titles, point your browser to the Libraries’ database news page at: http://libinfo.uark.edu/eresources/databasenews.asp. For more information contact Judy Ganson, UA Libraries’ Director for Collection Management Services and Systems, at (479) 575-2130 or jganson@uark.edu.