MLS - Master of Library and Information Science Resources & Collection Management 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which weeding methodology uses a combination of last-circulation-date and on-shelf time to identify candidates for removal?
- CREW (Continuous Review, Evaluation, and Weeding) (Correct answer)
- MUSTIE criteria assessment
- Cost-per-use analysis
- Conspectus depth mapping
Correct answer: CREW (Continuous Review, Evaluation, and Weeding)
CREW is the standard public and academic library weeding method that combines recency of use with physical condition and currency of information to systematically identify items for withdrawal.
Question 2: In cooperative collection development, what is the primary function of a 'strengths-based' division of collecting responsibilities?
- To reduce redundancy by assigning subject specializations to individual libraries based on existing collection depth (Correct answer)
- To consolidate all acquisitions budgets into a single shared fund
- To eliminate interlibrary loan agreements between member institutions
- To standardize cataloging practices across the consortium
Correct answer: To reduce redundancy by assigning subject specializations to individual libraries based on existing collection depth
Strengths-based division leverages each institution's existing collection depth so member libraries concentrate resources where they already excel, reducing duplication while maximizing collective coverage.
Question 3: A library's approval plan returns material to a vendor because it falls outside the established profile. What collection development concept does this process exemplify?
- Demand-driven acquisition
- Profile-based selection control (Correct answer)
- Standing order management
- Retrospective conversion
Correct answer: Profile-based selection control
An approval plan profile defines subject scope, format, price limits, and audience level; returns occur precisely when items violate those parameters, making this a direct application of profile-based selection control.
Question 4: Which metric is most appropriate for evaluating the cost-effectiveness of a print journal subscription compared to pay-per-view access?
- Impact factor of the journal
- Cost-per-use calculated from ILL and turnaways (Correct answer)
- Total holdings count in the subject area
- Number of citations in faculty publications
Correct answer: Cost-per-use calculated from ILL and turnaways
Cost-per-use—derived by dividing the subscription price by actual article downloads, ILL requests, and turnaways—directly measures whether subscription spending is justified relative to per-article alternative pricing.
Question 5: What distinguishes a 'demand-driven acquisition' (DDA) model from a traditional firm-order purchase?
- DDA titles are cataloged and discoverable before purchase, with purchase triggered only by patron use (Correct answer)
- DDA requires librarians to pre-select every title before it enters the catalog
- DDA applies only to physical monographs and cannot be used for ebooks
- DDA eliminates the need for a collection development policy
Correct answer: DDA titles are cataloged and discoverable before purchase, with purchase triggered only by patron use
In DDA, records for a large pool of titles are loaded into the catalog and made discoverable; a purchase (or short-term loan) is triggered automatically when a patron meets a defined use threshold, shifting selection from librarian prediction to actual demonstrated need.
Question 6: When conducting a collection-gap analysis, a librarian compares the local holdings list against a published core list for the discipline. What is the primary limitation of this approach?
- Core lists cannot be used for non-STEM subjects
- Core lists reflect consensus currency at the time of publication and may not capture emerging scholarship or recent high-impact titles (Correct answer)
- Core lists are only valid for print materials and exclude electronic resources
- Core lists are produced exclusively by vendors and carry commercial bias
Correct answer: Core lists reflect consensus currency at the time of publication and may not capture emerging scholarship or recent high-impact titles
Published core lists represent expert consensus at a fixed point in time; rapidly evolving fields can render them outdated quickly, meaning a gap analysis based solely on them may overlook recent landmark works or miss newly deprecated titles still on the list.
