Cataloging

Library cataloging is the practice of organizing a collection of bibliographic items to facilitate their identification, location, access, and use. In the cataloging process information on the author, title, publisher, etc. of an item are created and entered into the catalog. Anglo-American Cataloging Rules, 2nd edition (AACR2) is used to create these descriptions. AACR2 is a set of rules that describe the content that is contained in library catalog.

Since, the universities are newly established once, there may not be established library procedures, policies, guidelines, and manuals. Hence, many standards and procedures will be introduced. For example the Library of Congress Classification Scheme (LCCS) is a de-facto standard classification scheme widely used in colleges and university libraries. It is necessary to use LCCS as a standard classification scheme.

Every material received by the acquisition unit of a university library should be sent to the cataloguing unit for cataloguing. The purpose of cataloguing should be to assist users in locating a piece of information by providing a searching tool to the library collection. The Cataloging Units of any college/university library should have at least the following major functions. These are:

For each of the above processes, a clear description of the process, work procedures, input/output, the library personnel playing the role, and its objectives should be clearly defined. Besides, policies, rules, and regulation should be established for each of the business processes.