Updated: Wed, 10/09/2024 - 15:16

Oct. 10-11, campus is open to McGill students, employees and essential visitors. Most classes are in-person. See Campus Public Safety website for details.


Les 10 et 11 octobre, le campus est accessible aux étudiants et au personnel de l’Université, ainsi qu’aux visiteurs essentiels. La plupart des cours ont lieu en présentiel. Voir le site Web de la Direction de la protection et de la prévention pour plus de détails.

Library Assessment

Library assessment has as its primary objective the evaluation of the effectiveness of the Library's collections, services, and spaces in meeting the teaching, learning, and research needs of university-affiliated users and outside researchers. The Assessment Librarian can help with:

  • External requests for survey responses
  • Requests for data for departmental accreditation
  • Individual or unit assessment projects
  • Analysis of existing library data
  • Preparation of reports on assessment projects
  • Locating published evidence to support decision making and practice

For help, please contact Giovanna Badia at giovanna.badia [at] mcgill.ca or 514-398-7504.

Assessment initiatives

To inform decisions about library services and spaces, McGill Libraries undertake multiple assessment activities, such as collecting and analyzing usage statistics about our services and spaces, conducting observations, distributing surveys, and collecting feedback from our website and social media. Specific activities include:

Library rankings

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) ranks McGill Library 39 out of 118 member libraries in North America. This is based on the most recent ARL Library Investment Index (2021-2022).

In the 2024 MacLean's University Rankings, released in October 2023, McGill Library ranked 1st in the percentage of its budget devoted to library collections in the medical-doctoral category, which includes 15 Canadian universities with medical schools and a wide range of doctoral programs.

Selected facts and figures

  • Library collections: 10.2 million items
  • Library personnel (excluding casual employees): 165 staff members
  • User seating across library branches: circa 4,000 seats
  • 8,000 daily average visits to the Library system-wide during weekdays in 2022-2023 (Fall & Winter terms).
  • 300+ articles downloaded on average per McGill student or faculty member in 2021 via the Library’s electronic subscriptions.
  • 25K participants attended 770 library lectures, workshops, and tours in 2021-2022.
  • 17 open access journals currently published by the Library (June 2023).
  • 51,858 theses & dissertations from McGill University available in the Library’s institutional repository, eScholarship@McGill (June 2023).
  • 179,625 pages from print items in the Library’s collections were digitized in 2022, of which 54% were digitized to complete on demand requests.
  • 2275 BCE clay tablet is the oldest item in the Library’s collections.

McGill Libraries complete annual statistical surveys for different library associations, e.g., for the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), le Bureau de coopération interuniversitaire (BCI), and the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL). These annual surveys collect statistics about the usage of library services and spaces. McGill Libraries’ responses to BCI’s annual statistical surveys are publicly available.

User engagement: We want to hear from you!

We encourage and welcome feedback about the Libraries’ services. We have multiple ways to share your feedback. Use the method that works for you.

  • On our website: Complete the Feedback/Suggestion form to let us know how we are doing. If you have a specific item you would like us to purchase, please use the Suggest a Purchase form or contact the liaison librarian in your discipline.
  • Social media: You can share your thoughts with us on Facebook, Instagram, or X (formerly Twitter). We monitor these routinely to find comments about the library and its services to inform changes and improvements in the Library.
  • About our building project: To provide anonymous input on the Fiat Lux Library Project, use the special Feedback Form.

Questions? Ask us!  Chat • Email • Text • Call            Send feedback    Report a problem

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