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Digest of Education Statistics
2009 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest


Table 422. Collections, staff, and operating expenditures of degree-granting institution libraries: Selected years, 1976-77 through 2005-06
Collections, staff, and operating expenditures 1976-771 1981-82 1984-85 1987-88 1991-92 1994-95 1996-97 1997-98 1999-2000 2001-02 2003-04 2005-06
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Number of libraries 3,058 3,104 3,322 3,438 3,274 3,303 3,408 3,658   3,527 3,568 3,653 3,617
Number of circulation transactions (in thousands) 231,503 230,733 216,067   193,948 189,248 200,204 187,236
                         
Enrollment (in thousands)                          
Total enrollment2 11,121 12,372 12,242 12,767 14,359 14,279 14,300 14,502   14,791 15,928 16,911 17,487
Full-time-equivalent enrollment2 8,313 9,015 8,952 9,230 10,361 10,348 10,402 10,615   10,944 11,766 12,688 13,201
                         
Collections (in thousands)                          
Number of volumes at end of year 481,442 567,826 631,727 718,504 749,429 776,447 806,717 878,906 3  913,547 954,030 982,590 1,015,658
Number of volumes added during year 22,367 19,507 20,658 21,907 20,982 21,544 21,346 24,551   24,436 24,574 24,615 22,241
Number of serial subscriptions at end of year 4,670 4,890 6,317 6,416 6,966 6,212 5,709 10,908 4  7,499 9,855 12,764 16,361
Microform units at end of year 1,062,082   1,111,389 1,143,678 1,173,287 1,166,295
Electronic units at end of year5 465 983 3,473  
                         
Full-time-equivalent (FTE) library staff                          
Total staff in regular positions6 57,087 58,476 58,476 67,251 67,166 67,433 67,581 68,337   69,123 69,526 69,047 93,590
Librarians and professional staff 23,308 23,816 21,822 25,115 26,341 26,726 27,268 30,041   31,001 32,053 32,280 33,265
Other paid staff 33,779 34,660 38,026 40,733 40,421 40,381 40,022 38,026   37,893 37,473 36,767 36,350
Contributed services 1,403 404 326 291 270   229
Student assistants 33,821 29,075 28,411 27,998 28,373   26,518 25,305 25,038 23,976
FTE student enrollment per FTE staff member 146 154 153 137 154 153 154 155   158 169 184 141
Hours of student and other assistance (in thousands) 39,950 40,068 28,360  
                         
Library operating expenditures7                           
Total operating expenditures (in thousands) $1,259,637 $1,943,769 $2,404,524 $2,770,075 $3,648,654 $4,013,333 $4,301,815 $4,592,657   $5,023,198 $5,416,716 $5,751,247 $6,234,192
Salaries8,9 ,10 698,090 1,081,894 1,156,138 1,451,551 1,889,368 2,021,233 2,147,842 2,314,380   2,430,541 2,753,404 2,913,221 3,102,561
Hourly wages 68,683 100,847 (10) (10) (10) (10) (10) (10)   (10) (10) (10) (10)
Fringe benefits (9) (9) 231,209 (9) (9) (9) (9)   271,954 (9) (9) (9)
Preservation 22,521 30,351 32,939 34,144 43,126 46,554 45,610 42,919   43,832 46,499 42,976 41,102
Furniture/equipment 55,915 56,128 57,013   63,459
Computer hardware/software 128,128 157,949 164,379   160,294 155,791 143,042 153,002
Bibliographic utilities/networks/consortia 81,106 85,113 89,618   90,264 92,242 101,293 106,268
Information resources 373,699 561,199 750,282 891,281 1,197,293 1,348,933 1,499,249 1,600,995   1,822,277 1,944,490 2,114,555 2,375,485
Books and serial backfiles—paper 514,048   552,100 563,007 550,599 572,228
Books and serial backfiles—electronic 28,061   33,888 44,792 65,597 93,778
Current serials—paper 849,399   945,958 926,105 883,534 830,137
Current serials—electronic 125,470   203,371 297,657 480,138 691,585
Audiovisual materials 23,879 28,753 28,879 30,623   32,039 37,041 35,216 39,029
Document delivery/interlibrary loan 12,238 17,645 19,309   20,540 22,913 24,823 26,513
Other collection expenditures 373,699 561,199 750,282 891,281 1,173,414 1,307,942 1,452,725 34,086   34,381 52,976 74,648 81,113
Other library operating expenditures 96,643 169,478 233,957 393,099 518,867 331,463 309,925 323,354   140,579 424,290 436,160 496,877
Operating expenditures per FTE student 152 216 269 300 352 388 414 433   459 460 453 472
Operating expenditures per FTE student in
   constant 2007-08 dollars11
559 496 550 561 552 559 564 580   587 560 528 514
                         
Operating expenditures (percentage distribution) 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0   100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Salaries8 ,9 ,10 55.4 55.7 48.1 52.4 51.8 50.4 49.9 50.4   48.4 50.8 50.7 49.8
Hourly wages 5.5 5.2 (10) (10) (10) (10) (10) (10)   (10) (10) (10) (10)
Fringe benefits (9) (9) 9.6 (9) (9) (9) (9)   5.4 (9) (9) (9)
Preservation 1.8 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.1 0.9   0.9 0.9 0.7 0.7
Information resources 29.7 28.9 31.2 32.2 32.8 33.6 34.9 34.9   36.3 35.9 36.8 38.1
Other12 7.7 8.7 9.7 14.2 14.2 14.9 14.2 13.8   9.0 12.4 11.8 12.1
                         
Library operating expenditures as percent of total
   institutional expenditures for educational
   and general purposes
3.8 3.5 3.4 3.2 3.0 2.8  
—Not available.
1 Includes data for U.S. territories.
2 Fall enrollment for the academic year specified.
3 Includes data for schools newly added to the survey system, so end of year figure for 1997-98 exceeds total of volumes added during the year plus end of year value from 1996-97.
4 Includes microform and electronic serials.
5 Electronic files, formerly labeled "Computer files."
6 Excludes student assistants.
7 Excludes capital outlay.
8 Includes salary equivalents of contributed services staff.
9 Expenditures for fringe benefits included under salaries (except for 1984-85, 1987-88, and 1999-2000).
10 Hourly wages included under salaries (except for 1976-77 and 1981-82).
11 Constant dollars based on the Consumer Price Index, prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, adjusted to a school-year basis.
12 Includes furniture/equipment, computer hardware/software, and utilities/networks/consortia as well as expenditures classified as "other library operating expenditures."
NOTE: Data through 1995 are for institutions of higher education, while later data are for degree-granting institutions. Degree-granting institutions grant associate’s or higher degrees and participate in Title IV federal financial aid programs. The degree-granting classification is very similar to the earlier higher education classification, but it includes more 2-year colleges and excludes a few higher education institutions that did not grant degrees. (See Appendix A: Guide to Sources for details.) Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Library Statistics of Colleges and Universities, selected years, 1976-77 through 1984-85; 1987-88 through 2005-06 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, "Academic Libraries Survey" (IPEDS-L:88-98), "Fall Enrollment Survey" (IPEDS-EF:87-99), and Spring 2002 through Spring 2006; Academic Libraries Survey (ALS), 2000 through 2006; and Academic Libraries: 2006 (NCES 2008-337). (This table was prepared July 2008.)

2009 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest