The State of the Approval Plan in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic

ABSTRACT

59 academic technical services librarians were surveyed about the state of their approval plans in the wake of the collections and acquisitions challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. 40 responded, with a majority indicating a move away from print auto-shipments and toward e-preferred collection models. Libraries that continued to receive print auto-shipments tended to favor narrow, targeted profiles, such as faculty publications, international plans, best-sellers and award winners. Every response qualified as a movement away from print auto-shipments as an acquisitions strategy, even in cases where approval plans were maintained or, in one case, initiated for the first time.