ACCESSIBILITY AND USE OF SERIALS BY 300 LEVEL LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE STUDENTS AT DAME PATIENCE GOODLUCK JONATHAN AUTOMATED LIBRARY PORT HARCOURT, RIVERS STATE

The study investigated accessibilty and use of serials by 300 level Library and Information Science Students at Dame Patience Gookluck Jonathan Automated Library Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Four research objectives and corresponding questions were formulated to direct the study. Descriptive survey design was
employed and the study population included all of the 85 (eighty five), 300 level students of Library and Information Science students at Dame Patience Gookluck Jonathan Automated Library. Purposive sampling technique was used to select the entire population of this subset. Data collection was done using the
“Accessibility and Use of Serials Questionnaire (AUSQ). The data were analysed using frequency and percentage to answer the research questions.50 copies of the questionnaire were returned and used for the analyses. Findings of the study revealed that Dame Patience Goodluck Jonathan Automated Library has a
diverse range of serial publications, including academic journals, annual reports, magazines, periodicals with strong emphasis on academic journals and annual reports. It also revealed that the 300 level Library and Information Science students actively used these serials with weekly access being the most common. The primary purpose of using serial publications is for research, followed by examination preparation, literature reviews and academic writing, though none of the students reported using it for assignment. Despite the availability of serials, students face significant challenges including limited access to the required materials, lack of electronic access, and limited time for browsing and poor internet connectivity. The study recommended that the library should increase the range of serial procurement particularly in areas where demand is high such as academic journals, periodicals and annual reports. The library should enhance digital access to serial publications by subscribing to more e-journals and digitizing existing print serials, to make it easier for the students to access
remotely.