Welcome to the UBC Library Collections website. Here you will find information about the library’s collections and collection development policies, digital content produced at UBC Library, our budget and strategy for continuing to provide excellent material to our patrons, and how you can support the Library.
UBC Library’s acquisition of material is guided by and prioritized according to current and anticipated future teaching, curriculum and research interests of the university. The Library selects resources in the most appropriate format with the aim of distributing the information most widely. Electronic access to resources is preferred if disciplinary needs support that format. When selecting material for the Library several issues are considered, including accessibility, quality, relationship to other works in the collection, language, format, portability, perpetual access, suitability for the purpose, availability from other libraries and licensed digital resources, and cost.
The Library acquires current (e.g. published within the past five years) material, unless historical perspectives, classic texts, or older core works are required to provide users with necessary information about the topic. The conversion of legacy print material to digital is a priority if the content is still of value and appropriate to support the research initiatives of the university.
UBC Library collaborates with other libraries by resource sharing, collective purchasing, and other activities. See Cooperative Collecting for more information.
