Assessing the use of journals and formats preferred by postgraduate students of Makerere University

Abstract

Academic libraries are focused towards effective information provision that is necessary for teaching, learning and research. Makerere University Library (Maklib) is no exception as it has strategies towards effective provision of information resources. Journals are some of the resources that are provided by the library to support teaching, learning and research and they are provided in two formats: namely, the electronic format and the print format. This research attempted to investigate whether postgraduate students use these journals and the formats they prefer to access. Research was conducted involving 114 postgraduate students using questionnaires as the data collection tool. Qualitative data was collected, analysed using Google Forms and presented in graphs, tables and text. Findings revealed that most postgraduate students are aware of the existence of journals provided by the library although some expressed a lack of awareness. Further still they use the journals provided and most of them have preference for the electronic format of journals. However it was also revealed that access was hindered by several factors such as long procedures to access the library. Recommendations that need to be adopted by Maklib are also discussed such as increasing on awareness campaigns, continuous training of students and staff and providing the necessary infrastructure to enhance access to the journals.