Evidence-Based Acquisition at Hacettepe University Libraries

Abstract

To determine the most suitable acquisition model, or to decide whether or not the model they have already chosen is functioning efficiently and economically, librarians must carry out relevant evaluations of their current or potential acquisition models. In this study, an evaluation of the Cambridge evidence-based acquisition (EBA), was carried out at Hacettepe University Libraries between December 16, 2019, and December 31, 2020. Within the scope of the EBA, the number of e-books opened for access was 35,624, the number of unique books used was 2,462 and the number of the books purchased at the end of the model was 168. In total, the books were used 36,934 times. Ninety-three percent of the books were never used during the EBA model implementation term. While 52 percent of the books opened for access consisted of “books for research,” 47 percent of the number of unique books used consisted of “coursebooks.” Usage cost per unit was calculated as 0.82 USD, and the average book cost was calculated at 180 USD. Purchasing the books based on their list price was a reason for the high average book cost; nevertheless, one should consider that the entire collection of books was open for access for a year-long period of evaluation. In addition, one should not forget that further usage of e-books from the entire collection would decrease the unit cost of the books in the final purchase. During the implementation term, we observed that the Cambridge EBA Model was a suitable option for Hacettepe University Libraries.