Collection Services

McGill campus - a view from the McLennan Library Building

Collection Services mission

The mission of the McGill University Library is to advance teaching, learning, research and community service by providing outstanding collections, access to the world of knowledge, excellence in service and an appropriate library environment, all of which are client-focused and responsive to the needs of the McGill community.

As one of the units of the McGill Library, Collection Services contributes to the fulfilment of this mission by acquiring, cataloguing, arranging and giving bibliographic access to library materials and electronic resources.

Collection Statistics (January 2011)

• Volumes (Print): 2,590,743

• E-books and E-theses: ebooks in catalogue 716,405

• E-theses from Proquest 930,000

• Journals (Print, paid and unpaid subscriptions) 6,781

• E-journals: 60,672 (free and pubs and aggregates)

• CDs & audiocassettes (physical pieces): 56,768

• DVDs & videocassettes (physical pieces): 14,962

• Microforms (physical pieces): 1,804,209

• Musical scores (volumes): 56,627

• Online databases: 782

• Graphic materials (photographs, slides, etc): 312,000

Collection Services responsibilities

Rush Cataloguing is a mailbox used by library staff to submit rush monograph orders and rush monograph cataloguing requests. Library staff may also make rush cataloguing requests by calling 4789. Library users must contact a library service point in order to place a rush cataloguing request.

Collection Services is for general enquiries.

In the fulfilment of its mission, Collection Services handles the following specific responsibilities on behalf of the McGill Library:

• Placing orders for print, electronic and audio-visual resources
• Searching bibliographic databases for usable cataloguing records
• Receiving and paying for materials and electronic resources
• Cataloguing materials and electronic resources, either from copy or originally
• Updating records in the catalogue
• Providing authority control for the catalogue
• Managing serials subscriptions and licensing electronic resources
• Processing materials for placement in the library stacks

Address questions to:

Joseph Hafner, Associate Director, Collection Services
514-398-4788

Chris Oliver, Coordinator, Cataloguing and Authorities
514-398-4777

Valerie Fortin, Coordinator, Collection Development
514-398-4790

Lise Hackett, Coordinator, Electronic Resources and Serials
514-398-4570

Valerie Mayman, Coordinator, Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery
514-398-4730

Louise Robertson, Coordinator, Special Collections, Database Maintenance and Borrowing Policies
514-398-3298

Megan Chellew, Coordinator, Music, Metadata, Special Projects and Processing
514-398-4796

The Collection Services Website assists:

• McGill Library staff by providing them with information regarding our policies and procedures, and by indicating how to reach us.
• McGill Library users by providing them with general information and by indicating whom they should contact for assistance with specific problems or needs.

The Collection Services Website uses McGill Web Publishing Software created by the Web Service Group (ISR).

Address questions concerning the website to Joseph Hafner, 514-398-4788.

Last revised: January 28, 2011.