Challenges Faced by Subject Librarians in an Academic Library and Initiatives Toward Overcoming Them: UPM Library Experience

ABSTRACT

Subject Librarians play an important role in an academic library, a role which it is crucial to study. There have been many published studies that have highlighted the lack of evidence on the competencies of Subject Librarians. This paper discusses the challenges faced by the Subject Librarians of the Universiti Putra Malaysia Library. The aim was to gather information from published documents regarding the experiences and practices carried out in efforts to increase the competencies of Subject Librarians. The outcomes from this conceptual paper serve as an important instructional tool for the training and development of Subject Librarians. The results might also provide guidance for the implementation of a similar program or relevant problem-solving plans for other libraries in the region.

KEYWORDS:

• Subject librarian
• liaison librarian
• competencies
• academic library
• library management
• information science management