Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2019-20 through 2021-22

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Academic Libraries
Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2019-20 to 2021-22

Changes for 2020-21 are described on the next page, with screen mock-up on p. 3.
Screen changes are not included on the attached screens and can only be seen on
mock-ups, however, instructional changes and changes to FAQs are included and
highlighted within the instructions.

2020-21 Changes for AL:
− Inclusion of Digital/Electronic Serials in Digital/Electronic Circulation (impacts instructions and FAQs)
− Adding Staff by FTE to the AL survey (see mock-up, p.3 and changes in instructions)

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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

Academic Libraries

Overview 
Academic Libraries Overview
Welcome to the IPEDS Academic Libraries (AL) survey component. The purpose of the AL component of IPEDS is to collect information on
library collections, library expenses, and library services for libraries in degree-granting postsecondary institutions.
Recent changes

Data Reporting Reminders
Report all data for fiscal year (FY) 2018. Fiscal Year 2018 is defined as the most recent 12-month period that ends before October 1, 2018,
that corresponds to the institution’s fiscal year.
Coverage
Include data for the main or central academic library and all branch and independent libraries that were open all or part of the Fiscal Year
2018. Branch and independent libraries are defined as auxiliary library service outlets with quarters separate from the central library that
houses the basic collection. The central library administers the branches. Libraries on branch campuses that have separate IPEDS unit
identification numbers are reported as separate libraries.
Resources
To download the survey materials for this component: Survey Materials
For more information about the previous survey: Academic Libraries Survey
If you have questions about completing this survey, please contact the IPEDS Help Desk at 1-877-225-2568.

Screening Questions 
Were your annual total library expenses for Fiscal Year 2018:
Less than $100,000

Greater than or equal to $100,000

Is the library collection entirely electronic?
No

Yes

Library Collections/Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services 
Section I:
For all degree-granting institutions
with library expenses >0 and/or access to a library collection
NOTE - This section of the survey collects data on selected types of material. It does not cover all materials. Report the total number
of each category held at the END of Fiscal Year 2018.
Library Collections
Physical
Digital/Electronic
Total
Prior Year
Prior Year
Amount
Amount
Books
Databases
Media
Serials
Total
Library Circulation
Does your instituion have Interlibrary Loan Services ?
No
Yes
Interlibrary Loan Services
Total interlibrary loans and documents provided to
other libraries
Total interlibrary loans and documents received

Number

Prior Year Amount

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.This context box will not be posted on the
College Navigator Website.

Expenses  
Section II:
For degree-granting institutions with
library expenses >= $100,000
Library expenses should be reported for the most recent 12-month period that corresponds to your institution's fiscal year that ends
before October 1, 2018.
Prior Year Amount
Indicate the number of branch and independent libraries
(exclude the main or central library).
Amount

Expenses
Total salaries and wages for the library staff

Are staff fringe benefits paid out of the library budget?
No
Yes

Total Fringe benefits

Materials/services expenses
One-time purchases of books, serial back-files, and other materials
Ongoing commitments to subscriptions
All other materials/services costs
Total materials/services expenses
Operations and maintenance expenses
Preservation services
All other operations and maintenance expenses
Total operations and maintenance expenses
Total Expenses
Total Expenses (minus Fringe Benefits)
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.This context box will not be posted on the
College Navigator Website.

Prepared by 
The name of the preparer is being collected so that we can follow up with the appropriate person in the event that there are questions
concerning the data. The Keyholder will be copied on all email correspondence to other preparers.
The time it took to prepare this component is being collected so that we can continue to improve our estimate of the reporting burden
associated with IPEDS. Please include in your estimate the time it took for you to review instructions, query and search data sources, complete
and review the component, and submit the data through the Data Collection System.
Thank you for your assistance.
This survey component was prepared by:
Keyholder
Finance Contact

SFA Contact

HR Contact

Academic Library Contact

Other

Name:
Email:

How many staff from your institution only were involved in the data collection and reporting process of this survey component?
Number of Staff (including yourself)

How many hours did you and others from your institution only spend on each of the steps below when responding to this survey
component?
Exclude the hours spent collecting data for state and other reporting purposes.
Staff member
Collecting Data Needed
Revising Data to Match
IPEDS Requirements
Your office
hours
hours
Other offices

U.S. Department of Education
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hours

hours

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Entering Data

Revising and Locking Data

hours

hours

hours

hours

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy

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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

Academic Libraries

Purpose of Component
Changes in Reporting for 2018-19
General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
Context boxes

Coverage
Where to Get Help for Reporting
Where the Data Will Appear
Detailed Instructions
Section I: for degree granting institutions with library expenses >0 and/or degree granting
institutions with access to a library collection
Section II: for degree granting institutions with library expenses >$100,000

Purpose of Component
The purpose of the Academic Libraries (AL) component of IPEDS is to collect information on library collections,
expenses, and services for degree-granting postsecondary institutions.
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Changes In Reporting

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General Instructions
Please respond to each item in this survey. If the appropriate answer for an item is zero or none, or if a material is
provided and counts are not measurable, use "0." If a material is not provided or not applicable, leave the item blank. 
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Reporting Period Covered
Report all data for fiscal year (FY) 2018. Fiscal year 2018 is defined as the most recent 12-month period that ends
before October 1, 2018, that corresponds to the institution’s fiscal year.
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Context Boxes
Context boxes are provided to allow institutions to provide more information regarding survey component items. Note
that some context boxes are posted on the College Navigator Website, which is the college search tool offered by
NCES. NCES will review entries in these context boxes for applicability and appropriateness before posting them on the
College Navigator Website; institutions should check grammar and spelling of their entries.
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Coverage
Include data for the main or central academic library and all branch and independent libraries that were open all or
part of the fiscal year 2018. Branch and independent libraries are defined as auxiliary library service outlets with
quarters separate from the central library that houses the basic collection. The central library administers the
branches. Libraries on branch campuses that have separate IPEDS unit identification numbers are reported as
separate libraries. 
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Where to Get Help with Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
Phone: (877) 225-2568
E-mail: [email protected]

Web Tutorials
You can consult the IPEDS Website's Trainings & Outreach page which contains several tutorials on IPEDS data
collection, a self-paced overview of IPEDS tools, and other valuable resources.

IPEDS Resource Page
The IPEDS Website's Reporting Tools page contains frequently asked questions, a link to data tip sheets, tutorials,
taxonomies, information centers (e.g., academic libraries, average net price, human resources, race/ethnicity, etc.),
and other valuable information.
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Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Data collected through IPEDS will be accessible at the institution and aggregate levels.
At the institution-level, data will appear in the:
•
•
•
•

College Navigator Website
IPEDS Data Center
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
College Affordability and Transparency Center Website

At the aggregate-level, data will appear in:
•
•
•
•
•

IPEDS First Looks
IPEDS Table Library
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
The Digest of Education Statistics
The Condition of Education

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Detailed Instructions
Screening Questions:
Before entering any data, a screening question will need to be answered. 
Were your annual total library expenses for Fiscal Year 2018:
Indicate whether the annual total library expenses in Fiscal Year 2018 were less than $100,000 or equal to or greater
than $100,000. Fiscal Year 2018 is defined as the most recent 12-month period that ends before October 1, 2018, that
corresponds to the institution's fiscal year. Expenses include funds expended by the library (regardless of when
received) from its regular budget and from all other sources; e.g., research grants, special projects, gifts and
endowments, and fees for services. All expenses should be reported in whole dollars. Exclude expenses for new
buildings and building renovation. Include fringe benefits only IF paid from the library budget. Other library expenses
that should be included are:
•Salaries and wages (from the library budget and all other sources)
•One time purchases of books, serial back-files, and other materials
•Ongoing commitments to subscriptions
•Other materials/service costs
•Preservation services
•All other operations and maintenance expenses
If annual total library expenses are less than $100,000, the institution will submit Section I of the AL component. If
annual total library expenses are equal to or greater than $100,000, the institution will report Section I and additional
expenses and interlibrary services information in Section II of the AL component.
Is the library collection entirely electronic
Select "Yes" if your library collection is comprised entirely of digital/electronic items. Select "No" if your library
collection is comprised of both physical and digital/electronic items.

Section I: For all degree-granting institutions with library expenses > $0 and/or access to
a library collection

NOTE - This section of the survey collects data on selected types of materials, as well as staff. It does not cover all 
materials. Report the total number of each category held at the END OF Fiscal Year 2018.
Count only those materials that are considered part of your collection. Collections comprise of documents held locally
and remote resources for which permanent or temporary access rights have been acquired. Access rights may be
acquired by the library itself, by a consortium and/or through external funding. Acquisition is to be understood as
securing access rights and including it in the library catalog, other library databases or discovery systems. Interlibrary
lending and document delivery are excluded from the collection. Include government documents that are cataloged
and/or searchable through the library catalog or discovery system.

Library Collections/Circulation
Physical Books (include government documents) - Report physical book titles owned or leased by the library if
individual titles are cataloged and/or searchable through the library catalog or discovery system. Exclude serials,
microforms, maps, nonprint materials, and uncataloged items. Include music scores if searchable by title through the
library catalog or discovery system. Include government documents that are accessible through the library's catalogs
regardless of whether they are separately classified and/or shelved. "Cataloged" includes documents for which records
are provided by the library or downloaded from other sources into the library catalog or discovery system.
Physical Media – Report the number of titles of media materials. Include microforms, audiovisual
materials, cartographic, and graphic materials and three-dimensional artifacts realia.
Physical Serials – Report the number of physical serial titles that are accessible through the library’s catalog or
discovery system. A serial is a publication in any medium issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological
designations and intended to be continued indefinitely. This definition includes, in any physical format, periodicals,
serial titles on microform, newspapers, and annuals (reports, yearbooks, etc.); the journals, memoirs, proceedings,
transactions, etc. of societies; and numbered monographic series. Report serial titles, not subscriptions. If possible,
report the count of only those de-duplicated or otherwise unique serial titles searchable through the library’s catalog or
discovery system. If possible, do not include earlier title changes; however, do not worry about removing them if it is
not possible/feasible.
Total Physical Collection – This line will automatically be calculated for you.
Total Physical Circulation - Report the total number of times physical items are checked out from the general and
reserve collections. Include only initial checkouts (circulation), not renewals. Exclude interlibrary loan lending and
borrowing. Include transactions of books, media, and serials. Do not include transactions of equipment or computers.
However, circulation of electronic reading devices (e.g., Kindles) can be included if the device is pre-loaded with ebooks. For example, if a customer checks out a Kindle that is pre-loaded with 20 e-books, then that transaction counts
as 1 physical circulation, not 20 electronic/digital circulations.  
Digital/Electronic Books, (include government documents) – Report e-book titles owned or leased by the library
if individual titles are cataloged and/or searchable through the library catalog or discovery system. Examples of
discovery systems can be found at  http://librarytechnology.org/discovery/.  E-books are digital documents (including
those digitized by the library), licensed or not, where searchable text is prevalent, and which can be seen in analogy to
a printed book (monograph). Include e-book titles in aggregated sets in which the library selected the aggregator,
even if not listed by each individual e-book title. Report the number at the administrative entity level; do not duplicate
unit count for each branch. Include government documents, locally digitized electronic books and electronic theses and
dissertations. Include digital music scores if searchable by title through the library catalog or discovery system. Include 
open access (OA) titles if the individual titles are searchable through the library’s catalog or discovery system. Do not 
count e-book titles from HathiTrust, Center for Research Libraries, Internet Archive, and similar collections unless the 
library owns the digitized item and it is accessible under current copyright law. Do not include titles in Demand-Driven 
Acquisition (DDA) or Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA) collections until they have been purchased by the library.
Digital/Electronic Databases -Report the total number of licensed digital/electronic databases in your collection if
there is bibliographic or discovery access at the database level. Each database is counted individually even if access to
several databases is supported through the same vendor interface. 
A database is a collection of electronically stored data or unit records (facts, bibliographic data, and texts) with a
common user interface and software for the retrieval and manipulation of the data. The data or records are usually
collected with a particular intent and relate to a defined topic.
Do not include discovery systems in the count of databases. Do not include "individual releases" such as annual
updates of content or the migration of the user interface to the next vendor-release (i.e., interface version 3.0 replaces 
version 2.0) as separate databases.
Digital/Electronic Media - Report titles of e-media materials owned or leased by the library, if the individual titles
are cataloged and/or searchable through the library catalog or discovery system. E-media materials are media
materials that are in digital format and are available for download or streaming. For example, titles from Films on
Demand or Alexander Street Press should be reported. Include digital graphic materials and cartographic materials.
Include e-media titles in aggregated sets in which the library selected the aggregator, even if not listed by each
individual title. Report the number at the administrative entity level; do not duplicate unit count for each branch. Do
not count image databases (ARTStor, AP Photo Archives) in this category; count as databases. Do not include titles in
Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) or Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA) collections until they have been purchased or
leased by the library. 
Digital/Electronic Serials – Report the number of e-serial titles that are accessible through the library’s catalog or
discovery system. 
An e-serial is a periodical publication issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designations, is
intended to be continued indefinitely, and is published in digital form to be displayed on a computer screen in any
medium. This definition includes digital and digitized periodicals, newspapers, and annuals (reports, yearbooks, etc.);
the journals, memoirs, proceedings, transactions, etc. of societies; and numbered monographic series. If possible,
• report the count of only those de-duplicated or otherwise unique e-serial titles searchable through the library’s
catalog or discovery system.
• include ceased electronic serial titles.
• do not count earlier title changes; however, do not worry about removing them if it is not possible/feasible. A
source for counting e-serials may be a library- or vendor-developed A-Z title list of e-journals.
Include open access (OA) titles if the individual titles are searchable through the library’s catalog or discovery system, except
do not count e-serial titles from HathiTrust Center for Research Libraries, Internet Archive, and similar collections unless the
library owns the digitized item and it is accessible under current copyright law.”

Total Digital/Electronic Collection - This line will automatically be calculated for you.
Total Digital/Electronic Circulation or Usage – Report usage of digital/electronic titles whether viewed,
downloaded, or streamed. Do not include institutional repository documents.
Include usage for e-books and e-media titles only, even if the title was purchased as part of a database. Do not include 
usage of titles in Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) or Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA) collections until they have been 
purchased or leased by the library. Do not include transactions of VHS, CDs, or DVDs, as the transactions of these 
materials are reported under "physical circulation".  
Many vendors will provide usage statistics in COUNTER reports. Project COUNTER Code of Practice is available here.
Relevant COUNTER reports for e-books are: BR1-Number of Successful Title Requests by Month and Title; and BR2Number of Successful Section Requests by Month and Title. For media, the report MR1-Number of Successful
Multimedia Full Content Unit Requests by Month and Collection, is most relevant. 
If COUNTER reports are available, IPEDS suggest that libraries report counts from BR1 and MR1. If BR1 and MR1
statistics are not available, BR2 and MR2 statistics can be used. In cases where vendors do not provide COUNTER
reports, libraries may report using other means for monitoring digital/electronic circulation/usage (downloads, session
views, transaction logs, etc.).
Report usage of e-serial titles whether viewed, downloaded, or streamed. Include usage for e-serial titles only, even if the
title was purchased as part of a database. Viewing a document is defined as having the full text of a digital document or
electronic resource downloaded. [NISO Z39.7-2013, section 7.7] If available, include the count for open access e-journal
usage if the title is accessible through the library’s catalog or discovery system.
Libraries may need to ask vendors for e-serial usage reports; reports may not be delivered automatically or in easilyunderstood formats by the vendor to the library. Many vendors will provide usage statistics in COUNTER reports. When
possible, record usage at the article level. The most relevant COUNTER report is JR1 (defined as the "Number of Successful
Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") which includes any use in JR1GOA (defined as the "Number of Successful
Gold Open Access Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") and JR1a reports (defined as the "Number of Successful
Full-Text Article Requests from an Archive by Month and Journal").
Applicable COUNTER definitions:
• eJournal: "Serial content that is published online".
• Full-Text Article: "The complete text, including all references, figures and tables, of an article, plus links to any
supplementary material published with it.”
• Gold Open Access: "Access, immediately upon publication and at no charge to the user (but usually supported financially
by the author or the author’s funding agency), of peer-reviewed, full-text articles that have been accepted for
publication in a journal."
• Archive: "Non-current collections of journals, books, articles, or other publications that are preserved because of their
continuing value and which are frequently made available by publishers as separate acquisitions."
In cases where vendors do not provide COUNTER reports, libraries may report using other means for monitoring digital/
electronic circulation/usage (downloads, session views, transaction logs, etc.), or report zero. An electronic resource
management system (ERMS) and/or a usage consolidation service may be helpful for collecting e-serial usage statistics. Do
not include usage of titles in Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) or Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA) collections until they have
been purchased or leased by the library.”
Interlibrary Loan Services
Does your institution have Interlibrary Loan Services: Indicate whether your institution has interlibrary loan services.
Total interlibrary loans and documents provided to other libraries – Report the number of filled requests for material
provided to other libraries. Include all returnable and non-returnable interlibrary loans and documents. Include direct
borrowing between consortium members. Do not include transactions between the main or central library and branches, or
transactions between branches.
Total interlibrary loans and documents received – Report the number of filled requests for material received from other
libraries. Include all returnable and non-returnable interlibrary loans and documents received from commercial services.
Documents delivered from commercial services are all transactions for which the library pays even if library staff is not
involved in the transaction. This includes documents received by regular or express mail, by fax, or in electronic form. Include
direct borrowing between consortium members. Exclude transactions between the main or central library and branches and
transactions between branches.
Library Staff
Does your institution have Library Staff: Indicate whether your institution has library staff.
Report FTEs supported from the library budget. However, if known, if significant, and if specifically for library business,
include FTEs funded by the institution’s budget. For example, for staffing counts, you may include full counts for federal
work-study students working for the library, but do not include counts for maintenance and custodial staff. If there are
significant counts included or excluded because of how budgeting/expenses are handled at your institution, indicate in a note
whether your reporting here includes or excludes them.

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Computing FTEs for part-time staff: To compute FTEs for part-time employees and student assistants, take the total
number of hours worked per week by part-time employees in each category as November 1 of the fiscal year and divide it
by the number of hours considered by the reporting library to be a full-time work week (e.g., 60 hours per week of parttime work divided by 40 hours per full-time week equals 1.50 FTE). Data should be reported to two decimal places.
Report Librarians by number of FTEs: “Librarians” are professional staff as defined by NISO: Staff members doing work
that requires professional education (the master's degree or its equivalent) in the theoretical and scientific aspects of
librarianship.
Report Other professional staff by number of FTEs: Other professional staff are staff performing professional level
tasks who, though not librarians, have equivalent education and training in related fields (e.g., archives, preservation or
conservation, computer sciences, business administration, education).
Report All other paid staff (except student assistants) by number of FTEs: Library staff members without formal
qualification in librarianship/information science or other relevant specialization, not included elsewhere.
Report Student assistants by number of FTEs: Student assistants (graduate and undergraduate), employed on an
hourly basis whose wages are paid from funds from the library budget or from an account(s) within the institution, including
the Federal Work-Study Program.
Notes for Library Consortia
A library consortium is any local, statewide, regional, or interstate cooperative association of libraries that provides for the
systematic and effective coordination of the resources of schools, public, academic, and special libraries and information
centers, for improving services to the clientele of such libraries. (U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Sect. 54.500)
The purpose of library consortia can include:
•
•
•
•
•

Cost reduction through group purchasing
Professional development for library staff
Resource sharing (content, technology, expertise, and funding)
Networking, information sharing, mass communication
Building shared integrated library management and cataloging systems.

A library consortium can be multitype, almost any type of library can participate (e.g., public libraries). For IPEDS
purposes, academic libraries that share an administrative unit are NOT considered a consortium (see definition of
branch and independent libraries). There are two cases of consortium: one in which members share ALL library
resources or one in which they share PARTIAL resources. Refer below for specific instructions in each case.

Consortium Members Sharing ALL Resources
In the case of consortia where individual library members share ALL the same library resources and library budget, a
parent/child relationship for reporting Academic Libraries data may be established if certain criteria are met.
Parent/child relationships can be established for institutions if: (1) the child institution is in the same
institutional control as the parent, and (2) the child institution is not set up to report its own academic libraries
expenses or collections data. Once a parent/child relationship has been established, the parent institution will report all
data for the child institution. Shared resources are to be reported at the system level. For example, if 20,000 e-book
titles were purchased by two institutions in a parent/child relationship to be shared, the parent institution will report
20,000 e-book titles and not 40,000 e-book titles. Institutions wishing to establish a parent/child relationship must
contact the Help Desk. See the resource guide for more details on parent/child reporting. 

Consortium Members Sharing PARTIAL Resources
In the case where individual library members of the consortia share PARTIAL resources and/or are set up to report
their own academic library expenses or collections data, they must do so for their individual institution. Please note the
instructions below.

Reporting digital/electronic collection
If your library is part of a consortium of independent libraries and shares a common e-service (e.g., Overdrive), then
your library should report the number of digital/electronic titles it has access to as part of its collection. For example, if
your library pays a set annual fee, as part of a consortium, for access rights to 1200 e-books that are shared across all
members of the consortium, then your library should count the 1200 titles as part of its e-book collection.
Imag

Reporting digital/electronic circulation or usage
If your library is part of a consortium of independent libraries and shares a common e-service (e.g., Overdrive), then
count the number of digital/electronic usage for your library’s e-books and e-media collection only. If the usage count
for only your institution is not available from the e-service provider, you may allocate the total usage based on
characteristics of the institutions in the consortia (e.g., based on percentage Full Time Equivalent students, based on
percentage of consortial fees). Do not include counts from other members of the consortium.

Reporting ongoing expenses for electronic/digital materials or database purchased through a set
annual consortium fee
Report them under ‘All other operations and maintenance expenses’. Do not include under ‘Ongoing commitments to
subscriptions.'
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Section II: For degree-granting institutions with library expenses >= $100,000
Level of library expenses that determines applicability of Section II is based on the institution's response to the
screening question.

Branch and Independent Libraries
Branch and independent libraries - Report the number of branch and independent libraries at your institution that
were open all or part of fiscal year 2018. EXCLUDE THE MAIN OR CENTRAL LIBRARY. Branch and independent libraries
are defined as auxiliary library service outlets with quarters separate from the central library of an institution, which
have a basic collection of books and other materials, a regular staffing level, and an established schedule. Include
virtual/digital-based branch and independent libraries.
Branch and independent libraries are administered either by the central library, or as in the case of some libraries
(such as law, medical, etc.), through the administrative structure of the other units within the university.
Departmental study/reading rooms are not included. Please note that data for libraries on branch campuses (i.e.,
located in another community) are included if those campuses are registered under the same NCES Unit ID number as
the main campus.
NOTE- For schools in parent/child relationships, do not report the child institutions as branch libraries. However, if the
child institutions have branches, the parent institution should report the combined branch libraries for itself and child
institutions.

Expenses
NOTE – Expenses should be reported for the most recent 12-month period that corresponds to your institution's fiscal
year that ends before October 1, 2018. Report funds expended by the library (regardless of when received) from its
regular budget and from all other sources; e.g., research grants, special projects, gifts and endowments, and fees for
services. If items in this section are not paid from the library budget but can be easily identified in other parts of the
institution's budget, report them here. The exception is fringe benefits -- report fringe benefits only IF paid from the
library budget. All expenses should be reported in whole dollars in the most appropriate category to provide an
unduplicated count of expenses. Exclude expenses for new buildings and building renovation.
Total salaries and wages from the library budget – Report salaries and wages before deductions for all full-time
and part-time library staff, including student assistant wage and Federal Work-Study students' wage, from the library
budget or all other institutional sources that are identifiable. 
Staff fringe benefits– If benefits are paid from the library budget, select ‘yes’ and report the amount. If benefits are
not paid from the library budget, select ‘no’ and report ‘0’ for the amount.
Total amount of fringe benefits (if paid by library budget) – If fringe benefits are paid by the library budget,
report all cash contributions in the form of supplementary or deferred compensation other than salary. Do not include
the employee's contribution. Employee fringe benefits include retirement plans, social security taxes, medical/dental
plans, unemployment compensation plans, group life insurance plans, worker's compensation plans, and other benefits
in-kind with cash options. Exclude employee fringe benefits if not paid from the library budget. 

Materials/Service Cost
One-time purchases of books, serial back-files, and other materials - Provide the cost of one-time purchases of
books, serial back-files, and other materials. Report expenses for published materials in all formats including archives
and special collections. Include one-time acquisitions of access rights for digital/electronic materials held locally and
for remote materials for which permanent access rights have been acquired. Include expenses for database licenses
only if they are not a subscription or part of an annual consortium fee. Do not include expenses for computer software
used to support library operations or to link external networks, including the Internet. This is reported under other
operations and maintenance expenses.
Ongoing commitments to subscriptions - Report expenses for ongoing commitments in all formats, including
duplicates, for all outlets. This includes serials and any other items committed to annually, as well as annual electronic
platform or access fees. Serials are publications issued in successive parts, usually at regular intervals, and, as a rule,
intended to be continued indefinitely. Print-based serial subscriptions include periodicals, newspapers, annuals
(reports, yearbooks, etc.), memoirs, proceedings, and transactions of societies. Include the costs of electronic serials
bought in aggregations and serial packages. Include abstracting and indexing services and any database that requires
an annual subscription fee. Do not include subscription fees if they are part of an annual consortium fee. Government
documents received serially are included if they are accessible through the library's catalog or discovery system.
Other materials/service cost – Report additional materials/service costs that have not already been reported in this
section. Other materials/service costs may include:
•

•

Document delivery/interlibrary loan services. Include fees paid for photocopies, costs of facsimile
transmissions, royalties and access fees paid to provide document delivery or interlibrary loan. Include the
interlibrary loan fees paid to bibliographic utilities if the interlibrary loan costs paid can be separated out from
the expenses paid to the bibliographic utility. Do not count expenses related to transactions between the main
or central library and branches, transactions between branches, or expenses for an on-campus delivery.
Include costs associated with pay-per-view journal article transactions. Include fees expended for short-term
loans as part of a Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA) or Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) program.
Other expenses for information resources. Include copyright fees and fees for database searches, e.g.,
(DIALOG, Lexis-Nexis).

Total materials/services cost calculated – This line will automatically be calculated for you.

Operations and Maintenance Expenses
Preservation services - Report expenses associated with maintaining library and archival materials for use either in
their original physical form or in some other usable way. This includes but is not limited to binding and rebinding,
materials conservation, de-acidification, lamination, and restoration. Also, include preservation-related contracts for
services (e.g., digitization). Do not include staff salaries and wages.

All other operations and maintenance expenses - Report any other maintenance expenses that have not already
been reported in this section. Include:
•

•
•
•

Computer hardware and software expenses. Report expenses from the library budget for computer hardware
and software used to support library operations, whether purchased or leased, local or remote. Include the
expenses for equipment used to run information service products when that expense can be separated from
the price of the product.
National, regional, and local bibliographic utilities, networks and consortia.
If interlibrary loan fees paid to bibliographic utilities cannot be separated out, include the interlibrary loan
costs here with the library’s expenses of the bibliographic utilities.
All other operating expenses. Report all other expenses from the library budget not already reported. Exclude
expenses for new buildings and building renovations. Include all expenses for furniture and equipment. Include
any related maintenance costs.

Total operations and maintenance expenses - This line will automatically be calculated for you.
Total Expenses – This amount will be calculated for you. It is the sum of salaries and wages, fringe benefits, total
materials/services, and total operations and maintenance. 
Total Expenses (minus Fringe Benefits) – This amount will be calculated for you. It is total expenses minus fringe
benefits. If fringe benefits were not paid out of the library budget, this line should be equal to Total Expenses.
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Image description. The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System End of image description.

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

Academic Libraries
Click one of the following questions to view the answer.
General Questions
What is a reporting relationship and what are the different reporting relationships available for the Academic Library
1)
component?
How should items missing from the library’s collection be counted?
2)
3)
Why does the survey ask for title counts for reporting physical book collection(s)? Why is the survey no longer asking
for volume counts?
What is the difference between a database and a discovery system?
4)
Do we count unlicensed databases such as library-created databases?
5)
6)
What is a physical serial and how do I report physical serials in collection and circulation?
7)
How do we report reserves and renewals?
Where are print photographs reported?
8)
9)
Are music sheets collected?
How are physical circulations reported?
10)
11)
Does circulation include both check-outs and check-ins?
In-house circulation may include items that library personnel pick up from tables and carrels and are scanned as being
12)
used. Do we include in-house use as circulation? 
13)
Our institution now has a Library and Learning Center, instead of a standalone Library, which is comprised of a library,
tutoring, a writing center, and computer labs. Should we answer for the entire facility or just the library component?
14)
Where are microfiche and microforms included? How does an institution count microfilm by titles if Government
Document collections are not in the library catalog or discovery system as individual titles?
15
How do you report serial titles on microform?
16)
If a title is not searchable through the institution’s catalog or discovery system, but is searchable through their link
resolver, is this counted in IPEDS?
17)
How should direct borrowing between consortium members be included?
Reporting Branch and Independent Libraries
1)
When reporting the count of digital/electronic materials, do we count the total number available at the system level or
at the branch level?
Reporting as a Consortium Member
1)
How do we report digital/electronic circulation if access to the material is provided for all members as part of a
consortium?
2)
If we are asking libraries in consortia to report their collection, but part of that collection is shared, are we overstating
the collection and double counting?
3)
If an institution's academic library is in a consortium with a public library, can their shared resources be included in
the Academic Library survey?
Reporting Digital/Electronic Collections
1)
Where should VHS, CDs and DVDs of digital/electronic books or media be counted, with "digital/electronic" or
"physical"?
How are purchased electronic journals counted?
2)
3)
How do we count electronic books available via e-book services such as the Ebook Library (EBL), Freading, or
Overdrive?
4)
How do we count media offered through online streaming services such as Films on Demand, VAST, Swank?
5)
If a digital/electronic unit can be downloaded as many formats, is each format counted as a separate title?
6)
For collections, do we count downloadables (e-books, e-serials, and e-media) that do not have records in our catalog
but that we have access to?
7)
How are electronic theses and dissertations counted?
8)
Can I report open access (OA) titles as part of my collection?
9)
What is a digital/electronic serial and how do I report digital/electronic serials in collection and circulation?
10)
Are proceedings included as an e-book or as an e-serial?
11)
Is ArtStor reported as a database or media?
Reporting Digital/Electronic Circulation
1)
How do we count serial or journal circulation/usage in databases?
2)
Where are institutional repositories reported?
3)
What are some suggestions for obtaining title counts for digital/electronic circulation?
4)
What are the basic steps for obtaining COUNTER Reports for Digital/Electronic Circulation?
5)
The instructions state to exclude DDA and PDA collection usage numbers until they have been purchased or leased by
the library. How should an institution report usage if DDA and PDA numbers cannot be excluded in a COUNTER report?
6)
What should an institution report if they have platforms with BR1 and MR1 data, as well as, BR2 data?
7)

Ebrary counts every page download as a chapter download. Should an institution report Ebrary counts in COUNTER
BR2 data?
Should an institution include usage based collection model items (e.g., evidence-based programs) in e-book usage?
8)
Reporting Expenses
Where do we report expenses for electronic journals and electronic indexing/abstracting services available on the
1)
Internet?
2)
Where do we report consortial fees?
Should expenditures for memberships (e.g., state and national associations) be reported?
3)
4)
How does an institution report digitization expenditures?
Where do we report annual access fees for e-journals or e-books?
5)

Answers:
General Questions
1)
What is a reporting relationship and what are the different reporting relationships available for the
Academic Library component?
Reporting relationships allow one institution to report data for other institutions in IPEDS. For the Academic Libraries
component, institutions can establish either a "parent & child" relationship or a "main & branch" relationship. To
determine which type of reporting relationship fits with your institution, please visit the resource page
http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/resource/download/AL_Reporting_Relationships.pdf.
Back to top
2)
How should items missing from the library’s collection be counted?
Missing items are part of the collection.
Back to top
3)
Why does the survey ask for title counts for reporting physical book collection(s)? Why is the survey no
longer asking for volume counts?
NCES asks that you now report physical book collections by counting titles, not volumes, to ensure that the definition
for physical books aligns with the definitions of other collection counts (i.e., media, serials) collected for IPEDS.
Back to top
4)
What is the difference between a database and a discovery system?

A database is a collection of electronically stored data or unit records (facts, bibliographic data, and
texts) with a common user interface and software for the retrieval and manipulation of the data. The
data or records are usually collected with a particular intent and relate to a defined topic.
A discovery system consists of an interface directed toward the users of a library to find materials in
its collections and subsequently to gain access to items of interest through the appropriate
mechanisms. Discovery systems tend to be independent from the specific applications that libraries
implement to manage resources, such as integrated library systems, library services platforms,
repository platforms, or electronic resource management systems. In most cases they provide access
to multiple types of materials, independent of the management platform involved. Discovery systems
provide an interface with search and retrieval capabilities, often with features such as relevancybased ordering of search results, facets presented that can be selected to narrow results according to
specific categories, contributors, or date ranges, and tools to identify related materials or to refine
search queries. Examples of discovery systems can be found at
http://librarytechnology.org/discovery/.
Back to top
5)

6)

Do we count unlicensed databases such as library-created databases?
No, only count licensed databases.
Back to top
What is a physical serial and how do I report physical serials in collection and circulation?
A serial is a publication in any medium issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designations and
intended to be continued indefinitely. This definition includes, in any physical format, periodicals, newspapers, and
annuals (reports, yearbooks, etc.); the journals, memoirs, proceedings, transactions, etc. of societies; and numbered
monographic series.
In a physical serials collection, report the number of physical serial titles that are accessible through the library’s
catalog or discovery system. Report serial titles, not subscriptions. If possible, report the count of only those deduplicated or otherwise unique serial titles searchable through the library’s catalog or discovery system. If possible, do
not include earlier title changes; however, do not worry about removing them if it is not possible/feasible.
Also, include physical serials when reporting circulation counts.
Back to top

7)

How do we report reserves and renewals?

NCES asks that you report physical print reserve circulation in circulation of physical items. This way
the initial circulation count will reflect all physical-print circulation of content whether it is part of the
regular print collection or the reserve print collection. However, this figure will NOT include renewals
or equipment circulation counts because the practice of lending equipment varies considerably from
library to library in terms of what the equipment (ranging from bicycles to computer/AC cords) is,
making any comparison difficult.
Back to top
8)

Where are print photographs reported?
Print photographs are reported as graphic materials within physical media.

9)

Are music sheets collected?

Back to top

Include physical and digital/electronic music scores if searchable by title through the library catalog
or discovery system.
Back to top
How are physical circulations reported?
Report the total number of times physical ITEMS (e.g., volumes) are checked out from the general and reserve
collections. Include only initial checkouts (circulation), not renewals. Exclude interlibrary loan lending and borrowing.
Include transactions of books, media, and serials. Do not include transactions of equipment or computers. However,
circulation of electronic reading devices (e.g., Kindles) can be included if the device is pre-loaded with e-books. For
example, if a customer checks out a Kindle that is pre-loaded with 20 e-books, then that transaction counts as 1
physical circulation, not 20 electronic/digital circulations.
Back to top
11)
Does circulation include both check-outs and check-ins?
Circulation only includes initial check-outs, but not renewals or check-ins.
Back to top
12)
In-house circulation may include items that library personnel pick up from tables and carrels and are
scanned as being used. Do we include in-house use as circulation?
Do not include these types of in-house circulation with circulation or interlibrary lending.
Back to top
13)
Our institution now has a Library and Learning Center, instead of a standalone Library, which is comprised
of a library, tutoring, a writing center, and computer labs. Should we answer for the entire facility or just
the library component?
You should answer for the entire facility if it’s under the library’s administrative unit, reports to the head of libraries,
and expenses are paid from the library’s budget.
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14)
Where are microfiche and microforms included? How does an institution count microfilm by titles if
Government Document collections are not in the library catalog or discovery system as individual titles?
Microfiche TITLES ONLY, are counted in physical media; DO NOT INCLUDE microfiche pieces. Microforms titles are
counted in physical media only if the titles are searchable through the institution’s catalog and discovery system. For
example, while there may be thousands of titles in ERIC that may not be searchable through the institution's catalog
or discovery system, ERIC should be counted as 1 title. Another example is the Congressional Record on Microfiche
which would be counted as 1 title.
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15
How do you report serial titles on microform?
Report non-serial microform titles in physical media, and serial titles on microform under physical serials. If the library
cannot determine if a microform title is a serial or not, then report it under physical media.
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16)
If a title is not searchable through the institution’s catalog or discovery system, but is searchable through
their link resolver, is this counted in IPEDS?
Yes, institutions should count titles that are searchable through their link resolver even if they are not searchable
through their catalog or discovery system.
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17)
How should direct borrowing between consortium members be included?
Direct borrowing transactions are included in interlibrary loan services reporting.
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Reporting Branch and Independent Libraries
1)
When reporting the count of digital/electronic materials, do we count the total number available at the
system level or at the branch level?
Report at the system or administrative entity level. For example, if the library system has 3 branch libraries and
access to 2,038 downloadable audio units at the system level, then it would report 2,038 and not 6,114 units.
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Reporting as a Consortium Member
1)
How do we report digital/electronic circulation if access to the material is provided for all members as
part of a consortium?
10)

If the circulation count for only your institution is not available from the e-service provider, report using whichever
method you use locally to monitor circulation for your library. Do not include counts from other members of the
consortium. A method for estimating usage for just your institution is to use the percentage of your institution's
contribution to the total consortial fee. Another method is to use the percentage of institution's Full-Time Equivalent
(FTE) student count to the consortium total FTE student count.
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2)
If we are asking libraries in consortia to report their collection, but part of that collection is shared, are
we overstating the collection and double counting?
The Academic Libraries component of IPEDS was integrated from the previous Academic Libraries Survey (ALS). The
ALS Advisory Committee, which was comprised of practitioners and academics, agreed with this method for reporting
collections from consortia because it is more important to get accurate total access counts than total collection counts.
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3)
If an institution's academic library is in a consortium with a public library, can their shared resources be
included in the Academic Library survey?
A library consortium can be multitype, almost any type of library can participate (e.g., public libraries). However, for
their shared items to be included on the Academic Library survey, the items have to be cataloged and/or searchable
through the institution's library catalog or discovery system.
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Reporting Digital/Electronic Collections
1)
Where should VHS, CDs and DVDs of digital/electronic books or media be counted, with
"digital/electronic" or "physical"?
VHS, CDs and DVDs of digital/electronic books or media should be counted under "physical media".
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2)
How are purchased electronic journals counted?
Electronic journals are included in the collection count, but not in the circulation count. However, expenses for
electronic journal subscriptions should be reported under "Ongoing commitments to subscriptions."
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3)
How do we count electronic books available via e-book services such as the Ebook Library (EBL),
Freading, or Overdrive?
Report each title owned or leased by the library if individual titles are cataloged and/or searchable through the library
catalog or discovery system.
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4)
How do we count media offered through online streaming services such as Films on Demand, VAST,
Swank?
Report titles of the media if it is owned or leased by the library, if the titles are cataloged and/or searchable through
the library catalog or discovery system.
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5)
If a digital/electronic unit can be downloaded as many formats, is each format counted as a separate
title?
Count all formats as one title. For example, count an e-book title that is available via epub, PDF, or Kindle formats as
one title.
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6)
For collections, do we count downloadables (e-books, e-serials, and e-media) that do not have records in
our catalog but that we have access to?
Count only downloadables to which you have access and that are in your library’s catalog or discovery system.
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7)
How are electronic theses and dissertations counted?
Theses and dissertations in electronic format can be included under "digital/electronic books", providing they are part
of the library's collection (see definition of collection). Report the titles.
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8)
Can I report open access (OA) titles as part of my collection?

OA titles may be included if the individual titles are searchable through the library's catalog or
discovery system. Do NOT count titles from HathiTrust, Center for Research Libraries, Internet
Archive, and similar collections unless the library owns the digitized item and it is accessible under
current copyright law.
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9) What is a digital/electronic serial and how do I report digital/electronic serials in collection and circulation?
An e-serial is a periodical publication that is published in digital form to be displayed on a computer screen
An e-serial is a periodical publication issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designations, is
intended to be continued indefinitely, and is published in digital form to be displayed on a computer screen in any
medium. This definition includes digital and digitized periodicals, newspapers, and annuals (reports, yearbooks, etc.); the
journals, memoirs, proceedings, transactions, etc. of societies; and numbered monographic series. If possible,
• report the count of only those de-duplicated or otherwise unique e-serial titles searchable through the library’s
catalog or discovery system.
• include ceased electronic serial titles.
• do not count earlier title changes; however, do not worry about removing them if it is not possible/feasible. A source
for counting e-serials may be a library- or vendor-developed A-Z title list of e-journals.
Include open access (OA) titles if the individual titles are searchable through the library’s catalog or discovery system,
except do not count e-serial titles from HathiTrust Center for Research Libraries, Internet Archive, and similar collections
unless the library owns the digitized item and it is accessible under current copyright law.”
Report usage of e-serial titles whether viewed, downloaded, or streamed. Include usage for e-serial titles only, even if the
title was purchased as part of a database. Viewing a document is defined as having the full text of a digital document or
electronic resource downloaded. [NISO Z39.7-2013, section 7.7] If available, include the count for open access e-journal
usage if the title is accessible through the library’s catalog or discovery system.
Libraries may need to ask vendors for e-serial usage reports; reports may not be delivered automatically or in easilyunderstood formats by the vendor to the library. Many vendors will provide usage statistics in COUNTER reports. When
possible, record usage at the article level. The most relevant COUNTER report is JR1 (defined as the "Number of
Successful Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") which includes any use in JR1GOA (defined as the "Number
of Successful Gold Open Access Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") and JR1a reports (defined as the
"Number of Successful Full-Text Article Requests from an Archive by Month and Journal").
Applicable COUNTER definitions:
• eJournal: "Serial content that is published online".
• Full-Text Article: "The complete text, including all references, figures and tables, of an article, plus links to any
supplementary material published with it.”
• Gold Open Access: "Access, immediately upon publication and at no charge to the user (but usually supported
financially by the author or the author’s funding agency), of peer-reviewed, full-text articles that have been accepted
for publication in a journal."
• Archive: "Non-current collections of journals, books, articles, or other publications that are preserved because of
their continuing value and which are frequently made available by publishers as separate acquisitions."
In cases where vendors do not provide COUNTER reports, libraries may report using other means for monitoring digital/
electronic circulation/usage (downloads, session views, transaction logs, etc.), or report zero. An electronic resource
management system (ERMS) and/or a usage consolidation service may be helpful for collecting e-serial usage statistics.
Do not include usage of titles in Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) or Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA) collections until
they have been purchased or leased by the library.”

10)

Are proceedings included as an e-book or as an e-serial?
Based on the definition of serials, numbered monographic series are included in the e-serial collection count. If the
proceedings are numbered, then they may be a monographic series, which should be counted in e-serials.

However, if the proceedings have an ISBN, then it is a monograph and should be counted as an e-book. If it has both
an ISBN and ISSN, and if it is an individual volume within a series that can stand on its own (it is not dependent upon
content before it or after it), then it would be counted as an e-book.
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11)
Is ArtStor reported as a database or media?
ArtStor is reported as a database.
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Reporting Digital/Electronic Circulation
1)
How do we count serial or journal circulation/usage in databases?
IPEDS does not collect the circulation/usage of electronic journals or serials. Please do not include.
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2)
Where are institutional repositories reported?
IPEDS asks that you do NOT report data on institutional repositories in the AL survey.
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3)
What are some suggestions for obtaining title counts for digital/electronic circulation?
If you have titles in your knowledge base in your link resolver integrated into your discovery tool, this can be an easy
way to get title counts for the digital/electronic collections (e-books, e-serials, and e-media) of the AL survey. If your
link resolver is not complete for e-books or e-multimedia, it might be better to rely on getting the title counts through
catalog records or other means.
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4)
What are the basic steps for obtaining COUNTER Reports for Digital/Electronic Circulation?
First, identify where you should collect your electronic and digital circulation data. Some options are:
• Publishers that host their own content (e.g., Elsevier on ScienceDirect)
• Publishers that use a third-party platform to host content (e.g., Royal Society on Highwire)
• Aggregators that license content from a wide variety of publishers and offer it through a database (e.g., Academic
Search Complete on EBSCOhost)
Second, obtain a list of providers and identify how to obtain reports from each provider. An example of basic steps for
this process is as follows:
• Compile spreadsheet of providers.
• Identify administrative URLs and login information needed to collect statistics.
• Identify formats and reports to collect under each provider:
• Serials - JR 1
• Books - BR 1
• Books - BR 2
• Multimedia - MR 1
• Identify providers where you need to contact vendor or where statistics are unavailable.
• Work your way through the list, recording the Reporting Period Total in your spreadsheet.
• Provide IPEDS with one total sum of all digital/electronic Reporting Period Totals obtained through all providers.
Note: In cases where vendors do not provide COUNTER reports, libraries may report using other means for monitoring
digital/electronic circulation/usage (downloads, session views, transaction logs, etc.).

Libraries may need to ask vendors for e-serial usage reports; reports may not be delivered automatically or in
easily-understood formats by the vendor to the library. Many vendors will provide usage statistics in COUNTER
reports. When possible, record usage at the article level. The most relevant COUNTER report is JR1 (defined as
the "Number of Successful Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") which includes any use in JR1GOA
(defined as the "Number of Successful Gold Open Access Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") and
JR1a reports (defined as the "Number of Successful Full-Text Article Requests from an Archive by Month and
Journal").
Applicable COUNTER definitions:
• eJournal: "Serial content that is published online".
• Full-Text Article: "The complete text, including all references, figures and tables, of an article, plus links to
any supplementary material published with it.”
• Gold Open Access: "Access, immediately upon publication and at no charge to the user (but usually
supported financially by the author or the author’s funding agency), of peer-reviewed, full-text articles that
have been accepted for publication in a journal."
• Archive: "Non-current collections of journals, books, articles, or other publications that are preserved
because of their continuing value and which are frequently made available by publishers as separate
acquisitions."
In cases where vendors do not provide COUNTER reports, libraries may report using other means for monitoring
digital/electronic circulation/usage (downloads, session views, transaction logs, etc.), or report zero. An
electronic resource management system (ERMS) and/or a usage consolidation service may be helpful for
collecting e-serial usage statistics.

5)

6)

7)

8)

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The instructions state to exclude DDA and PDA collection usage numbers until they have been purchased
or leased by the library. How should an institution report usage if DDA and PDA numbers cannot be
excluded in a COUNTER report?
If DDA and PDA numbers cannot be excluded in the institution’s COUNTER report, then please report the COUNTER
report with DDA and PDA numbers included. However, please note this detail in the comment box available on the
survey.
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What should an institution report if they have platforms with BR1 and MR1 data, as well as, BR2 data?
Please only report BR1 and MR1 data.
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Ebrary counts every page download as a chapter download. Should an institution report Ebrary counts in
COUNTER BR2 data?
Include COUNTER BR2 reports with Ebrary. However, please note the inclusion of Ebrary in the comments section on
the survey.
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Should an institution include usage based collection model items (e.g., evidence-based programs) in ebook usage?
The survey excludes DDA or PDA collections unless they have been purchased by the institution. However, if the title
is purchased in an evidence-based model and it is searchable through the catalog or discovery system, then it is
counted in e-book usage.

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Reporting Expenses
1)
Where do we report expenses for electronic journals and electronic indexing/abstracting services
available on the Internet?
Report electronic journal and indexing/abstracting service expenses  with "Ongoing commitments to subscriptions" if
they require an annual fee. If not, report electronic journal expenses under 'One-time purchases of books, serial backfiles, and other materials' and electronic indexing/abstracting services under "Other materials/service costs"
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2)
Where do we report consortial fees?
Report this amount under "All other operations and maintenance expenses". Include expenses for database licenses,
serial subscription fees, and other annual electronic platform or access fees, if they were part of an annual consortium
fee. Do not report these under "Ongoing commitment to subscriptions" or "One-time purchases" expenses.
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3)
Should expenditures for memberships (e.g., state and national associations) be reported?
Yes, include membership costs if they are part of the library budget. These types of membership costs should be
included in “all other materials/service cost.”
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4)
How does an institution report digitization expenditures?
Report digitization expenditures as preservation expenditures, if it is an outsourced service. Additional digitizationrelated expenses are either reported as memberships or services and included in “all other materials/service cost” OR
reported as computer systems/other technology-related expenditures and included in “All other operations and
maintenance expenses."
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5)
Where do we report annual access fees for e-journals or e-books?
Report annual access fees under “Ongoing commitments to subscriptions.”
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