The Teaching Needs of Engineering Faculty Compared with Business Faculty: How the Library and Librarian Fit In

Subject or liaison librarians are frequently asked to provide information literacy instruction in their assigned departments. However, not much in the literature explores how else librarians can support faculty teaching needs beyond information literacy. This paper compares the results of two separate studies conducted by the author that examined the teaching needs of faculty from business and engineering. Business faculty were interviewed as part of a multi-site study in 2018 led by Ithaka S+R, while the engineering faculty study was done separately by the author in 2020. Interview transcripts from both studies were coded and analyzed to discover any overlap in teaching needs between business and engineering faculty and how the library and librarian fit into the narrative. Ultimately three core themes emerged: student literature research skills, project-based learning, and electronic access to materials and resources. Recommendations for additional research and future librarian collaborations, as well as faculty outreach, are prescribed.