Piloting a Library-Led Online Academic Skills Orientation Program
Date
2023-06-08
Authors
McMillan, Jill
Fonstad, Joel
St-Jacques, Amy-Renee
Journal Title
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Partnership: The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research
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Article
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Abstract
In August 2021, we piloted an online academic skills orientation program for incoming undergraduate and graduate students. The program featured a range of synchronous online sessions that provided students an opportunity to learn from librarians, learning specialists, peer mentors, professors, academic advisors and other campus partners during presentations, panels and Q&As. The program was attended by 548 unique students with overall workshop attendance totaling 1310 over a four-day period. Due to the success of the 2021 pilot, we ran another iteration of the program in August 2022, which included both online and in-person elements. The three-day online program was attended by 309 unique students with overall workshop attendance totaling 1084 while the one day in-person program was attended by 37 students. Approximately 8% and 20% of program attendees completed program surveys in 2021 and 2022 respectively. While the low response rates make it difficult to generalize about the data, feedback overall was positive, with most respondents indicating that they found the experience to be valuable. We conclude by encouraging other libraries to consider the role that they play in familiarizing students with university supports and services and to take a leading role if such programming is not currently in place at their institution.
Description
Open Access Policy: "This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge." (https://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca/index.php/perj/about#oapolicy)
Keywords
academic libraries, orientation, university preparedness, academic skills, induction, transition
Citation
McMillan, J., Fonstad, J., & St-Jacque, A. (2023). Piloting a library-led online academic skills orientation program. Partnership, 18(1), 1-28. https://doi.org/10.21083/partnership.v18i1.7244
Degree
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Citation
McMillan, J., Fonstad, J., & St-Jacque, A. (2023). Piloting a library-led online academic skills orientation program. Partnership, 18(1), 1-28. https://doi.org/10.21083/partnership.v18i1.7244
Part Of
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DOI
https://doi.org/10.21083/partnership.v18i1.7244