Digital Publications

On this website you can access the full text of the Association’s flagship serial publications that have been published since 2006. Research Library Issues and SPEC Kits are freely available to all readers. Non-ARL members may purchase perpetual access to the ARL Annual Salary Survey and ARL Statistics titles. Online access offers the following features:

  • Search and read the full text online.
  • Fast, page-at-a-time viewing that works in any web browser, and in web-enabled handhelds like the iPhone.
  • Exact page reproduction.
  • Full-text search with relevancy ranking to help you quickly locate passages of interest.
  • All pages are easily bookmarkable for future reference.
  • Download a PDF of a particular section or the complete publication for offline use on your computer, tablet, or other digital reader.

What’s New

  • Cover Image Research Library Issues, no. 302 (2021): Sustaining Open Content and Infrastructure
    Keyword(s): RLI; research libraries; open content; open infrastructure; scholarly communication; open access; scholarly publishing; digital accessibility; digital repositories; persistent identifiers
  • Cover Image Research Library Issues, no. 301 (2020): Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
    Keyword(s): RLI; anti-racism; diversity; equity; inclusion; research libraries
  • Cover Image ARL Academic Law Library Statistics 2018-2019
    Keyword(s): statistics; law library; research library; collection expenditures; salary expenditures; operating expenditures; library personnel; public services; ILL items loaned; ILL items borrowed
    Abstract:

    This edition of the ARL Academic Law Library Statistics is a compilation of data that describes collections, expenditures, personnel, and services in 72 law libraries at ARL member institutions in the US and Canada in 2018–2019.

    Mian, Anam, and Gary Roebuck. ARL Academic Law Library Statistics 2018–2019. Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, 2020.
  • Cover Image ARL Statistics 2018-2019
    Keyword(s): statistics; research library; collection expenditures; salary expenditures; operating expenditures; library personnel; public services; ILL items loaned; ILL items borrowed; library investment index
    Abstract:

    This edition of the ARL Statistics describes the collections, staffing, expenditures (for both print and electronic materials), and service activities of the 124 Association of Research Libraries member libraries in the US and Canada in 2018–2019.

    Mian, Anam, and Gary Roebuck. ARL Statistics 2018–2019. Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, 2020.
  • Cover Image ARL Academic Health Sciences Library Statistics 2018-2019
    Keyword(s): statistics; health sciences library; research library; collection expenditures; salary expenditures; operating expenditures; library personnel; public services; ILL items loaned; ILL items borrowed
    Abstract:

    This edition of the ARL Academic Health Sciences Library Statistics is a compilation of data that describes collections, expenditures, personnel, and services in 58 medical libraries at ARL member institutions in the US and Canada in 2018–2019.

    Mian, Anam, and Gary Roebuck. ARL Academic Health Sciences Library Statistics 2018–2019. Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, 2020.
  • Cover Image ARL Annual Salary Survey 2019–2020
    Keyword(s): research libraries; salary data; salary trends; salaries; library professional staff
    Abstract:

    This report analyzes salary data for professional staff working in 123 of the 124 ARL member libraries during 2019–2020. Data are reported for 10,691 professional staff from 115 of the 116 university ARL libraries in Canada and the United States and for 3,154 professional staff of the 8 US federal and public ARL libraries. In the Salary Survey, data for university library staff are usually reported in three distinct groups: general library systems, health sciences libraries, and law libraries. The ARL Annual Salary Survey analyzes salary data from a number of different perspectives, including race, ethnicity, sex, years of experience, geographic region, and professional position.

    Downloadable Microsoft Excel file of data tables

    Mian, Anam. ARL Annual Salary Survey 2019–2020. Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, 2020.
  • Cover Image Research Library Issues, no. 300: GLAM Collaboration Opportunities and Challenges
    Keyword(s): GLAM; galleries; libraries; archives; museums; collaboration; RLI
  • Cover Image Research Library Issues, no. 299 (2019): Ethics of Artificial Intelligence
    Keyword(s): research libraries; artificial intelligence; AI; ethics
  • Cover Image ARL Annual Salary Survey 2018–2019
    Keyword(s): research libraries; salary data; salary trends; library professional staff
    Abstract:

    This report analyzes salary data for all professional staff working in the 124 ARL member libraries during FY2018–2019. Data for 10,718 professional staff members were reported this year for the 116 ARL university libraries, including their law and medical libraries (856 staff members reported by 72 medical libraries and 712 staff members reported by 74 law libraries). For the eight nonuniversity ARL members, data were reported for 3,318 professional staff members. Beginning, median, and average salaries by race, sex, years of experience, geographic region, and professional position for research, university, law, and medical libraries are covered.

    Downloadable Microsoft Excel file of data tables

    Morris, Shaneka. ARL Annual Salary Survey 2018–2019. Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, 2019.
  • Cover Image ARL Statistics 2017-2018
    Keyword(s): statistics; research library; collection expenditures; salary expenditures; operating expenditures; library personnel; public services; ILL items loaned; ILL items borrowed; library investment index
    Abstract:

    This edition of the ARL Statistics describes the collections, staffing, expenditures (for both print and electronic materials), and service activities of the 124 Association of Research Libraries member libraries in the US and Canada in fiscal year 2017–2018.

    Morris, Shaneka, and Gary Roebuck, comps. and eds. ARL Statistics 2017–2018. Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, 2019.