• We provide assistance or instruction in the use of basic reference sources
• We provide online and email search services.
• we assist our patrons in identifying library materials needed to answer a question.
• We provide brief and factual answers to questions that can be quickly located.
• We also make referrals to institutions which have materials this library lacks.
• We keep statistics of usage of reference materials.
• We render information literacy programmes for our users.

Vision Statement To make the Bibliographic Control Unit of Plateau State University Library function effectively and efficiently by adopting standardized indexing, as a means of access point. Mission Statement The overriding objective of the university Library is to make information resources accessible to her patrons in order to fulfill the role of supporting the parent institution in achieving the basic objectives of teaching, learning and research.

In view of the above, the mission statement of Bibliographic Control Unit of Plateau State Library is to: •

• Index Newspaper/Magazines using Library of Congress Subject Headings to control the subject index term in form of standardized indexing. •
• Create access points for visibility through organization and indexing of information resources for library users. •
• Upload and edit library resources in KOHA and DSPACE environment • Create a friendly environment for our library users, by putting their services in the fore-front of our job.

Mission Statement The Mission Statement of the Plateau State University Library Bindery Unit should be to place the Bindery Section and its activities in the forefront of the library research and development, innovation, knowledge, transfer and human resources development in the technical knowledge of the library to the core values in promoting the dignity of binding profession. Vision Statement

The Vision Statement of the Bindery Unit of Plateau State University Library is to create a functional, productive and model-focused unit of the library as a centre of learning and research. It’s to make it responsive to the needs of the members of staff, the departments, the university and the society as a whole while delivering the assigned technical and administrative responsibilities.

The services of the Bindery Section include:

• General Book Binding for the library, other departments, offices of the University, Institutes and individuals of the University Community and beyond.
• Cutting of catalogue cards, for both the library and its patrons’ use. •
• Training of students of Library and Information Sciences on industrial Training (IT) under the SIWES programme to update their practical knowledge in the area of book- binding and preservation.
• Lamination of paper and documents like certificates, identity cards etc for the individual within the University Community and beyond.
• Daily shelving of books in the library department.
• Other essential and emergency services as may be assigned to the section. Like the binding of accreditation papers and other services.

The Cataloguing unit is a unit within the Technical Services Unit. It is a unit that is involved in cataloguing and classification of library books and making sure that books on the same and related subjects areas are kept and maintained together on the shelf.

This section concerns itself with the following: 

THE CATALOGUE: The Library Catalogue is the key to the resources of the Library. It is a record of not only books, but also of all the materials in the entire Library, proper use of the Catalogue will tell the reader whether the Library has a particular book by a given author or not and what books the Library as on specific subjects and their locations on the shelves. A Catalogue Card gives the following information:- author, title, place of publication, publisher, date of publication, number of pages, whether a book is illustrated or not and where a book is located in the Library.

The following Catalogue are available in this Library.

• AUTHOR/TITLE CATALOGUE: This is a card catalogue arranged alphabetically by the name of the author, surname first, followed by forename(s);. Books are entered, where relevant, under their editors, translators and the institutions or bodies that sponsor them. For example: White, J.B. The title entries which enable you to find books under their titles are made in almost all cases and filed within the author sequence. The article ‘A’, ‘An’ and ‘The’ are disregarded in the Title Filing. For example: The Waste Water Engineering/by J.B. While will be filed under Waste and not under the article THE.  
• CLASSIFIED CATALOGUE: The Classified Catalogue brings together in one place all books and documents on a particular subject. In this catalogue the “CLASSMARK” (or CALL NUMBER), and not CATALOGUE, is used with the help of the Subject Index.
• SUBJECT CATALOGUE: This contains entries under the subject contents of the book. Here books on the same topic are brought together. This subject catalogue is arranged alphabetically by the name of the subject (e.g. Chemistry, Organic). In consulting this catalogue, you should look under the most specific form of heading.

              Thus, in order to achieve these, the library uses the Library of Congress Subject Headings which divided knowledge into 21 main subjects as it’s shown below:

  OUTLINE OF LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CLASSIFICATIONS SCHEME

  A                     -           General

  B-BJ                -           Philosophy and Psychology

  BL-BX            -           Religions, General

  C                     -           History, Auxiliary Science

  D                     -           History (General)

  DA-DR           -           History of Europe

  DS                   -           History of Asia

  DT-DX            -           History of Africa, Australia etc.

  E-F                  -           History of America

  G-GH              -           Geography

  GN-GR           -           Anthropology, Ethnology

  GV                  -           Sports

  H                     -           Social Sciences

  HA                  -           Economic Statistics

  HB                  -           Economic Theory

  HC                  -           Economic History

  HD                  -           Applied Economics

  HE                   -           Communications

  HF                   -           Commerce

  HG-HJ             -           Finance

  HM-HN          -           Sociology

  HQ                  -           Family and Marriage

  HS                   -           Societies

  HT                   -           Social Classes

  HV                  -           Social Welfare

  HX                  -           Socialism and Communism

  J                       -           Political Science

  JA                    -           General

  JC-JQ              -           Constitutional History and Administration

  JS                    -           Local Government 

  JK                    -           Colonial, Colonization and Emigration

  JX                    -           International Relations

  K                     -           Law

  L                      -           Education

  LA                   -           History

  LB                   -           Theory and Practice

  LC                   -           Special Aspects

  LD-LG                        -           Individual Universities and Colleges

  M                     -           Music

  N                     -           Fine Arts 

  NA                  -           Architecture and Planning

  NB                  -           Sculpture

  NC                  -           Graphic Arts

  ND                  -           Painting

  NE                   -           Graphics and Art Production

  P                      -           Languages and Literature

  PA                   -           Classical Languages and Literature

  PB-PH             -           European Languages

  PG                   -           Russian Languages and Literature

  PJ                    -           Oriental Language and Literature

  PK                   -           Indo-Iranian Languages and Literature

  PL                   -           Languages and Literature of Western Asia Africa & Oceanic  

  PM                  -           American and Artificial Languages

  PN                   -           Comparative Literature

  PQ                   -           Romance Literature   

  PR                   -           English Literature

  PS                    -           American Literature

  PT                    -           German Literature

  PZ                   -           Short Stories, Children Literature

  Q                     -           Sciences

  QA                  -           Mathematics

  QB                  -           Astronomy

  QC                  -           Physics

  QD                  -           Chemistry

  QE                   -           Geology

  QH                  -           Biological Sciences

  QK                  -           Botany

  QL                   -           Zoology

  QM                  -           Anatomy

  QP                   -           Biochemistry and Physiology

  QR                  -           Microbiology

  R                     -           Medicine

  S                      -           Agriculture

  SB                   -           Plant Culture & Horticulture

  SD                   -           Forestry

  SF                    -           Animal Breeding & Veterinary Medicine     

  SH                   -           Fish Culture & Fisheries

  T                      -           Technology and Engineering

  TA                   -           Civil Engineering and General

  TC                   -           Hydraulic Engineering

  TD                   -           Sanitary and Municipal Engineering 

  TE                   -           Roads

  TF                    -           Railways

  TG                   -           Bridges

  TH                   -           Building Technology

  TJ                    -           Automobile & Aeronautic Engineering

  TN                   -           Mineral Industries and Metallurgy

  TP                    -           Chemical Engineering  

  TR                   -           Photography

  TS                    -           Manufactures

  TT                    -           Mechanical Trade and Handicrafts

  TX                   -           Domestic Science

  U                     -           Military Science

  V                     -           Naval Science

  Z                      -           Librarianship and Bibliography 

   

  Note: You can ascertain what books the Library has on a particular subject only by using the Subject Catalogue. Browsing round the shelves will reveal only those works shelved in a particular sequence in one part of the Library. Books currently on loan and related materials classified elsewhere will be missed.

This unit contains publications issued in progressive parts bearing numerical or orderly designations and intended to be continued indefinitely. This may include – periodicals, newspapers, journals, proceedings, transactions among others.
 
Serials Policy

• This is in the policy of the library to acquire as much as possible within its capacity yet relative to the “major journals” in the various disciplines within the University.

Serials Catalogue

• This is which is within the Serials Unit, consists of basically title catalogue and a very separate shelf-list according to the Library of Congress classification. These Publications are listed in alphabetical chronology. Each entry is usually under the title, but publications of institutions, corporate bodies, when their titles aren’t distinctive, should be entered under the official name of the said institution.

Serials Collection

• All of the Library’s serials collections are contained in the Serials Unit.

Arrangement

• Our Serials collection are arranged on the shelves according to subject groups and then followed by in an alphabetical order of title within each group.

Classification System

• These Serials Collections are arranged in broad subject groups following the Library of Congress Classification systems used for the book collection but although there are certain differences. However here is the outline
• Classification Mark                 Subject

A         General Works (General encyclopedias, reference books, periodicals, etc.)
B         Philosophy – Religion
C         Auxiliary Sciences of History
D         History: General and Old World
E-F      History of America
G         Geography, Anthropology, Folklore, etc.
H         Social Sciences

J           Political sciences

K         Law
L          Education
M         Music
N         Fine Arts
P          Language and Literature
Q         Science
R         Medicine
S          Agriculture
T          Technology
U         Military Science
V         Naval Science
Z          Bibliography and Library Science
 
The number ‘6’ is used to distinguish journal resources. The class marks therefore of all serial collections are prefixed by ‘6’.For instance, the Journal of Politics’ will have its class mark will be - 6 JA 1 J “J” stands for the first letter of the first word in the title.

• Other significant Anterior numerals in use and what each represents -

526­­­­­­­­­­­      Represents Serials on Micro cards
536      Represents Serials on Microfilms
6          Represents Periodicals, Journals, Indexes, and Abstracts.
66        Represents Newspapers (African and Non-African)
78        Represents Back volumes of Serial sets example Yearbooks, Directories, Calendars
86        Represents Africana Periodicals
9          Represents Antiquated books – The collection includes valuable amount of ‘Out of print’ and little used books.

Vision Statement

Our vision as a unit is to develop an ICT unit, with a proficient information service system with the capacity to support the library’s vision of developing an effective ICT purpose driven academic and research library system while working side by side with the Technical unit of the library in the automation of the library. More so, to create a very effective functional, Global Competitive and Research Focused Section which is not Just a section in the library but responsive to the needs of the library clientele while delivering world class information and knowledge base.

Mission Statement

• To project and uphold an efficient public relations with our clientele,
• To provide an ICT library and information services to clientele.
• To be an example for Universities in library and information service delivery within the library and outside the library.
• To be a good image of the library.
• To provide consultancy services to clientele, departments and faculties within the University Community.
• To create an atmosphere of partnership within and outside the library system.
• To ensure a professional information service system that is clientele-centered, clientele-friendly and instrumental to the vision of teaching, learning, research and scholarship.