The University of Arizona's Music Library's Needs Assessment

Summary of main findings

The project team summarized their main findings as follows:

• Customers identified recordings as being the most important type of material

• Many customers also indicated that they need both a score and a recording to enable them to study music material

• Waiting for computer stations was perceived as a problem

• Updated listening and audiovisual equipment was requested by customers

1) Since recordings emerged as the most important type of material, library-wide efforts to improve the quantity, variety and accessibility of recordings should be undertaken. The retirement of the copy cataloger for compact discs in February of 1999 has left the system without any cataloging of recordings (copy or original) at the present time, so plans to investigate outsourcing companies need to begin.

2) Since many respondents indicated the need to have both a score and a recording for a particular composition, a condition not currently offered by the Music Library, approval plans which offer this service should be investigated. Currently, Theodore Front is the only vendor whose approval plans offer some ability to correlate the purchase of both a score and a recording for the same composition. In addition, Front's plans to begin offering "copy cataloging" passthroughs to OCLC would speed the processing of new scores and recordings.

3) Obtaining more SABIO terminals (the Music Library currently has only 5 stations) and designating one terminal for e-mail use would reduce some of the waiting and e-mail overload noted by many respondents. Also, obtaining updated listening and audiovisual equipment (e.g. a modern television to replace the current, older model, a DVD player, etc.) would significantly improve the listening/viewing area.

4) Once the Music Librarian's Web site devoted to locating scores, musical recordings and musical videos in SABIO is completed, it will be used in training individuals from the Materials Access Team (MAT) who staff the Music Library's Circulation Desk. Also, this site will be publicized to the School of Music and used during customer instruction sessions offered by the Music Librarian. Hopefully, the site will lead to better trained staff and users, two themes discovered in customer responses to the improvement question.

Take a few minutes to note your answers to the following questions:

1. Was the hypothesis proposed an appropriate and valuable one for this study?

2. What demographic information was each participant asked to provide? What other information about the targeted customer group might have been helpful in this survey?

3. Does the survey as designed and implemented address the research questions?

4. Which methodologies are most appropriate for this type of needs assessment?

Let's continue on and make your own needs assessment plan.