Isn’t everything available online for free?

No. Most of the online resources that our scholars use are paid for by the library through subscriptions and licenses. These resources are usually quite expensive. Many disciplines also still rely heavily on print material.

Why has the buying power of the library’s budget decreased?

This is the result of several issues. One issue is currency fluctuation. Many of the resources we purchase come from outside of Canada. When currency and exchange rates change, this can result in resource costs increasing. Another issue is inflation. The library's collection budget is static and the inflation rate on library materials can be as high as 7%-11% a year. Academic journals from commercial publishers are an example of this.

Why are commercial academic journals so expensive?

Journal subscription prices have increased steadily over the last few decades.  Journals produced by commercial publishers are also about 5 times the price of those published by professional or academic societies.  New journals are created frequently, and the cost of existing journal subscriptions are increasing at rates beyond the inflation rate.

Take a look at the following articles for more information about scholarly journal pricing:

• The economics of scholarly journal publishing (Bergstrom & Bergstrom)
• Economic analysis of scientific research publishing (Wellcome Trust)

The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) also has a webpage devoted to journal pricing.

Will open access help reduce costs?

Open access is a new model of scholarly publishing in which material is available online free of charge, but the cost of publishing is often transferred to the author using APCs (Author Processing Charges). UNBC Library supports Open Access through a number of Transformative Agreements with APC discounts and/or waivers. The existence of alternative models of scholarly publishing may start to put pressure on commercial publishers to change and reduce costs and may reduce the problem of libraries having to purchase the results of the research produced at their institution.

Can we use endowments to purchase more materials?

98% of the library’s collection expenditure is from the operating budget. Endowments count for only a small percentage of the budget.

How is the library reducing collection expenses?

Due to reduced buying power, the Library’s collection strategy has to be very focused. This means we:

• Avoid duplication in content
• Review serials, monographs and databases for overlapping and redundant content
• Reduce the number of serial subscriptions and standing orders each year that no longer fully support the teaching, learning, and research at UNBC
• Rely more on interlibrary loan (ILL) and document delivery

Where are the gaps in the collections budget?

The Library will need to take steps to keep collections expenditures within the allotted budget. The areas of focus for collection building will include: e-journal backfiles, digital collections, and patron driven acquisitions.

What are the challenges to a sustainable budget?

Each year the library continues to purchase new materials. Finding funding for new materials, including items such as special collections, and digital and print monographs, is more difficult as the focus tends to be on highly-used continuing resources such as serials and databases. Periodically, the library also gets asked to support new curriculum areas and research, requiring a significant investment in new materials.

Maintaining digital access to e-resources that support university teaching, learning, and research is both extremely important and costly. The prices for serials and databases continue to increase beyond the standard inflation rate. Currency exchange rates continue to fluctuate and are often unpredictable, leading to differences between projected and real expenditures.

Of great importance to creating a sustainable budget is demonstrating the value and investment of the collections to the university.