UML Library is pleased to announce the launch of a new institutional repository, UMass Lowell RAD (Research, Archives, and Data)!
UML Library is pleased to announce the launch of a new institutional repository, UMass Lowell RAD (Research, Archives, and Data)!
The librarians at the University of Massachusetts Lowell created this Collection Development Policy to establish the philosophy, goals, and standards guiding the development of the general collections for the UMass Lowell Library (“the Library”). This policy is reviewed every two years by the Library Leadership Team. As the curricular and research needs of the university change, this policy will change to meet those needs.
Published December 9, 2025.
This policy will be reviewed annually in December, and updated as necessary.
Recognizing that our collections support the research and work of a community of individuals, the Library builds intentional collections that recognize, value, and embrace the diverse experiences and multiple identities within our community. These identities and experiences include, but are not limited to, race, ethnicity, gender identity, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, ability, culture, language, geographic origin, level of education, religion, age, size, and area(s) of study/expertise.
The Library works with the UMass Lowell academic community to select and purchase materials for curricular support, research, and other cultural enrichment. The majority of resources are electronic, including databases, journals, data sets, streaming media, and ebooks. The Library also purchases physical books, and physical media when appropriate and in areas critical to the learning, teaching, and research needs of the UMass Lowell community.
Intellectual inquiry and a global perspective are encouraged by the availability of materials representing our global society. The Library selects materials that reflect the diversity of the university community and supports the American Library Association’s interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights: “A well-balanced collection doesn’t need to include every viewpoint in equal amounts. Instead, it should aim for equity in content and ideas.”
Strengths and weaknesses of the current collection, the academic level of the material, currency of the topic and the resource, and faculty and student feedback, are also all possible factors when determining whether to purchase or renew a resource.
The decision to acquire a material in a particular format (ebook vs. print book, for example) is determined by the advantages or disadvantages of the format including availability, accessibility, cost, space, and other factors.
Acquisitions are financed by an appropriation from the University to the Library and by income from a number of Library endowments, supplemented by gifts and grants. New acquisitions may be recommended by any member of the community.
Textbooks are not systematically collected by the Library. However, faculty may request that the library purchase textbooks to place on course reserve. Unlimited access ebooks will be purchased when available and economically feasible.
Faculty may also request licenses to streaming media to support their courses. Media is licensed when available and economically feasible. The number of licenses available each year is limited. The Library may decide not to purchase a license for material that is readily available for rent in the online consumer marketplace for a reasonable fee (e.g., under eight dollars per individual).
Resources costing more than $400 that support a specialized course are generally not acquired and require approval from the Dean of the University Library.
The Library endeavors to acquire one copy of books and other materials appropriate to the academic community that are created by the university’s faculty and staff. These works are displayed in specially designated areas of the Library. Exceptions include but are not limited to edited conference series and some textbooks.
The Library does not ordinarily acquire duplicate copies of materials. Exceptions may be made for titles with frequent use that cannot be purchased in an unlimited electronic format, or for titles where a noncirculating copy is held in special collections or the Center for Lowell History.
Priority is given to English language materials. However, the Library does purchase materials to support World Languages programs and will acquire materials of academic significance where there is no English equivalent.
The Library facilitates electronic access to UMass Lowell theses and dissertations in ProQuest and the university’s institutional repository. Theses and dissertations published prior to 2012 may not be available electronically in full text.
The Library ceased collecting print copies of theses and dissertations in 2013. A selection of print theses and dissertations produced at UMass Lowell and its predecessors (Lowell Technological Institute, Lowell State College, University of Lowell) between 1952 and 2012 is cataloged, and available upon request.
The Library supports the principles of intellectual freedom set forth in the Library Bill of Rights.
We affirm the entirety of the Freedom to Read Statement which says in part: “It is the responsibility of publishers and librarians, as guardians of the people's freedom to read, to contest encroachments upon that freedom by individuals or groups seeking to impose their own standards or tastes upon the community at large; and by the government whenever it seeks to reduce or deny public access to public information.”
The Library strives to develop a sustainable and affordable collection of resources in the context of escalating costs and a limited budget. Fiscal limitations necessitate choices between resources and formats rather than obtaining access to all requested materials.
It is a complex task to build collections that balance a wide range of areas of study across the university in a variety of formats that meet both immediate needs while providing long-term access. Striking the right balance of continued ownership and preservation of materials requires the expertise of Library staff and is one of the many challenges the Library faces as we develop and manage our collection.
It is a reality that creators may, intentionally or inadvertently, misstate facts or draw erroneous conclusions from their research. The Library cannot be responsible for vetting the accuracy of the content it acquires, and it is realistic to expect that current research will become outdated over time. Our goal is to provide access to current scholarship and foster a robust exchange of ideas.
The Library leverages increased borrowing and purchasing power through membership in the following consortia:
The Library also makes strategic collaborative purchases in partnership with other University of Massachusetts system libraries, and benefits from access to databases provided by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC).
No individual library is expected to have direct access to all the information resources available in the scholarly record. The Library provides Interlibrary Loan services to students, faculty, and staff for books and articles not immediately available in our collection.
The Library works to establish a balanced and sustainable information environment where access to content remains affordable and accessible. We appreciate content providers who are transparent about their governance, finances, pricing, and licensing practices, and are responsive to requests and concerns. Content providers are expected to adhere to ethical conduct and avoid harmful practices.
The Library will prioritize content from values-aligned organizations and from providers that support pricing transparency, fair use, perpetual ownership of materials, digital ebook lending, patron privacy, and accessibility and inclusive content. In accordance with ADA Title II, content providers must be able to supply their Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) for consortia or individual institution subscriptions and purchases.
The Library will not support or engage in acquisitions from content providers who impose unreasonable or unjustified price increases and licensing terms, particularly those that significantly exceed inflation or lack transparency in cost justification.
It is true that critical resources are sometimes exclusively available through suppliers that display challenging behavior. We hope this statement will help to influence improvement or support the longer-term identification of alternatives.
As much as is possible, the Library will work to allocate resources to support open content, support accessibility, reduce reliance on problematic suppliers, and continually evaluate our collections to meet evolving needs.
Open access is a publishing model for scholarly communication that makes research information available to readers at no cost to themselves or subscribing institutions, such as libraries.
Open access resources are an integral part of the Library's collection. The Library supports an open and diverse scholarly publishing system by subscribing to open access publishing models, such as Subscribe to Open and read and publish agreements.
The Library welcomes gifts of books that meet the university’s research and curricular needs, and are less than 10 years old.
If you wish to donate items that fit those criteria, email library_acquisitions@uml.edu with a list of items including title, author, year of publication, and any other pertinent information. The items will be evaluated for relevance and usefulness to the Library collection.
Once received, the Library owns the gift materials and may choose to keep, discard or donate them. The Library is unable to return donated materials. Donations that arrive without preapproval will not be accepted.
For donating rare materials, contact the Center for Lowell History.
Monetary donations are welcomed and greatly appreciated.
Collections development policies for the Center for Lowell History, university archives, and special collections require specialized policies and are developed and maintained separately from this document. For more information, please contact the Center for Lowell History, university archives, and special collections at archives@uml.edu.
University of Massachusetts Lowell
University Library
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