In February, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) released a new “First Look” report, Enrollment and Employees in Postsecondary Institutions, Fall 2015; and Financial Statistics and Academic Libraries, Fiscal Year 2015. Among the key findings, eligible Title IV degree-granting institutions reported approximately 1.3 billion items in physical library collections (books and media) and about 839 million items in electronic library collections (digital/electronic books, databases, and digital electronic media).
The Academic Libraries (AL) component collected information from degree-granting institutions on library collections, expenditures, and services for fiscal year 2015. Section I collects data on the library collections and circulation numbers, including physical books, media, digital or electronic books (including government documents), digital or electronic databases, and digital or electronic media, and is to be completed by institutions reporting any library expenditures. Section II collects data on the number of branch and independent libraries as well as library expenditures—including library staff wages and fringe benefits, materials and service costs, operations and maintenance expenditures, and interlibrary services.