The survey investigated students' attitudes toward the BTH library's open hours, study environment, staff service, range of print and electronic media, website, and teaching/tutoring. Most respondents were program students who had studied 0-3 terms. The Gräsvik library was used most. Respondents preferred open evenings/weekends. They were most dissatisfied with lack of quiet study spaces, noise levels, computer/printer access, and air quality. Staff service was viewed positively. Respondents preferred print books but electronic journals. The website needed improved usability. Teaching/tutoring was unknown to many. Overall attitudes were positive but some improvements were suggested.

1. BTH Library User Survey Autumn
2013

2. What was investigated?
• Students' attitudes to:
– Open hours
– Study environment
– Staff service
– Range of media (print/electronic)
– Library website
– Library's teaching/tutoring

3. Number of answers
• Number of answers: 202
– Swedish: 147
– English: 55

4. Education and number of terms
• Many of the respondents are program
students:
Sw: 79 %
Eng: 89 %
• Distance students:
Sw: 18 %
Eng: 5,5 %
• Most of the respondents had either not
studied a whole term yet, or they had studied
3 terms or more.

5. Most used library
• Gräsvik
Sw: 63 %
Eng: 83 %
• Online library
Sw: 29 %
Eng: 16 %
• Piren
Sw: 7,5 %

6. Open hours (multiple choice
question)
• Contented with current open hours
– Sw: 49 %
– Eng: 44 %
• Would prefer open evenings and weekends:
– Sw: 46 %
– Eng: 79 %
• Respondents from the English survey thus
found increased open hours more important

7. •
A university library cannot have such reduced schedule. You can have extra
opening hours by hiring students.
•
4pm is too early for a library to close...if not for the services, atleast the rooms
should be available for studying until 5 pm or 6 pm so that we dont have to
move out in search of another place in the middle of our work.
•
As the library provides a great atmosphere to study, it would be great to be
open for the students who are more productive in the evenings both during
weekdays and weekends.

8. Study environment
• Respondents were most discontented with:
– Lack of possibility to study in a quiet environment
(question 5)
– Sound level (question 6)
– Access to computers (question 1 – Sw more
discontented)
– Air quality (question 10)
– Access to printers (question 2 – Eng more
discontented)

9. Study environment
• Respondents were most contented with:
– The range of books and journals (question 4)
– Lighting (question 7)
– Possibility for group work (question 3 - Eng much
more positive than Sw)

10. •
Quiteness is not observed at the library
•
Access to printer to students that are not swedish is a joke.
•
Sometimes the library is quite loud and there is not supervision to keep the sound
down. Although it's a good point that there is a small quiet room.
•
I don't know why BTH is closed silent room in front of library and moved the tables
near washroom in H-block. Can you please allocate a silent study room for
students?
•
The air is extremely bad. It is impossible to study there without getting tired.
•
students studying there are too loud, laughing, having fun and not studying, that's
why I don't go there:(
•
As access to computers, most of them are very slow, takes long time to come up. I
used to study in silent room (previous one) , new one is very small and has just 5
desk , and so many people doesn’t feel good to study there, and main problem is
its close in weekend since its inside library, I used to study in some weekends
specially close to deadlines or exams. As sound level since it’s not a quite area,
sometimes it’s difficult to concentrate. Also as lightening some group rooms light
are not good, for example those in downstairs.

11. Staff service
• In general the respondents are contented (Eng
more contented than Sw) with the service and
the help they get
• Relatively many have answered ”no opinion”

12. • The staff is so kind and helpful.
• The only time I needed material that was not
available online, the attention paid was
commendable.

13. Range of print media
• Contented
– Sw: 53 %
– Eng: 62 %
• Discontented
– Sw: 7 %
– Eng: 20 %
• Many have no opinion.

14. • they are really few either in one special
title(sometimes many students borrow a title
and others have to waite alot or use very few
Reference ones) or one special area
• It doesn’t have wide range of sources in
English language.
• In some ways it lacks the variety in printed
media

15. Range of electronic media
• Overall contented
– Sw: 62 %
– Eng: 66 %
• Discontented
– Sw: 8 %
– Eng: 16 %
• Many have no opinion.

16. • It can be made little elaborative in the sense that students
who do not find their course books from the library, usually in
examination times mainly, then they should be able to obtain
them on PDF is I think
• it caters well for the needs of the students
• No integration of library databases to find articles, Difficult to
find what we look for with current search mecanism
• Please buy more eBooks. I prefer to use the e-library. I have
been using the e-library, but not so many eBooks on BTH elibrary. So I had to come to Library Gräsvik to borrow the
paper books. You have very good paper books, but I think that
e-books will be cheaper and more available to all students
because many students can use it at the same time without
waiting in queue.

17. Print vs. electronic media
• The majority prefer print books...
– Sw: 59 %
– Eng: 67 %
• …and electronic journal articles
– Sw: 63 %
– Eng: 76 %
• Thus, there is no great difference between the
Swedish and English survey.

18. Library website
• In general contented
– Sw: 64 %
– Eng: 74 %
• 15 % of the Swedish respondents had never
visited the site
• Relatively many comments concerning the
user friendliness of the site (or lack of)

19. • Not must user friendly
• No integration of library databases to find articles, Difficult to find
what we look for with current search mecanism
• There may be need to galvanise the login and associated resources
as a portal dashboard rather than a work flow of access.
• It can be more user friendly, at beginning it was difficult to find the
right part I want.

20. The Library's teaching
• Do not know about the Library's teaching:
Sw: 43 %
Eng: 49 %
• Do not know about book a librarian:
Sw: 57 %
Eng: 44 %
• Have taken part of the library's teaching:
Sw: 32 %
Eng: 27 %
• Have booked a librarian:
Sw: 9 %
Eng: 11 %

21. The Library's Teaching
• Contented with the library's teaching:
– Sw: 35 %
– Eng: 42 %
• The majority has no opinion.
– Sw: 59 %
– Eng: 51 %

22. • tooo short period allocated to teach
• Library's teaching in information seeking
should be held at the beginning of a semester
not in the middle.
• Shoudl be at the beggining of the semester,
not in the middle...at this point is useless

23. General comments
• Good over all
• Go BTH Library, Go!
• Please Provide a big and nice silent room which can be open in weekends
and holiday.
• Sincerely BTH library is great. I would suggest that BTH library formulates
capacity development programme that can help libraries in developing
countries like Nigeria to set up, as part of strategy of contributing to
knowledge building in the absence of Sweden's broad education policy
prior education fees. Thank you.
• Thanks and keep on improving!

24. General observations
• In general respondents have a positive
attitude to the library – those who are
contented are many more than those who are
discontented
• Many more answered ”no opinion” in the
Swedish survey
• Those who answered the English survey are in
general more contented