Curious about what we’ve been up to? Check out the studies below, organized by Year.
User Experience (UX) is hard to define but you know it when you see it. User Experience is about structuring things so they are more accessible and consumable, but it is also about breaking down problems and understanding what are the many ways to approach it.
We want the library experiences of Niagara College students to have resonance to their college experience. As UX, we are constantly exploring the student’s interaction with the library and are looking for ways to evolve our services, facilities, collection and websites.
Sign up to participate in a library study
Would you like to have input on how the library could better serve you? Well, you can help us improve the library or library website by participating in one of our various library studies. Our studies are short, fun and flexible to fit your schedule. We offer small incentives to thank you for your participation.
Curious about what we’ve been up to? Check out the studies below, organized by Year.
| Title | Description | Year | Study Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website Redesign 3 Month Follow-up | Three months post-launch of the redesigned library website, usability testing was conducted to assess navigation ease, identify user pain points, and gather actionable feedback for improvements. A total of 14 participants, including students from 10 programs and staff, tested various website features and tasks. | 2024 |
Website Redesign
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| Website Redesign Usability Testing |
Task-based testing for a library site review involves evaluating the functionality and usability of the website by simulating real-world tasks that users might perform. |
2024 | Website Redesign |
DJP Quiet Hours |
Reinstated the supervision of the DJP Library space for Quiet Hours between 12 pm and 2 pm. The quiet hours ran daily from April 10th through April 19th. Throughout this period, the library staff increased their presence on the library floor, reminding students that these hours are specifically monitored for quiet study. During Quiet Study Hours, our staff will encourage students to refrain from eating, taking phone calls, using laptop/phone speakers, and being considerate of other patrons in their surroundings. This semester cleaning supplies were made available to be used for cleaning student laptops and screens as an added value for students. | 2024 | Library Space |
| Online Payment Portal |
The LLC is now cashless. NC students can now pay for library fines and other library services via our online payment portal. There are two ways to access the payment portal. Patrons can access the portal and instructions for payment via the “Pay Now” button found in the Paying Fines box on our Borrow page. I have attached an image of the button below. Patrons can also access the payment portal by scanning a QR code that can be found on the back of the circ desk monitors. |
2024 | Service upgrade in response to Student activity |
| Website Redesign: Icon Survey | This survey aims to gather insights into your preferences regarding icons used in our library's digital interfaces. Icons play a crucial role in navigating digital platforms, aiding users in quickly identifying and accessing various functions and features. The feedback will help us refine our iconography to better serve your needs and preferences. | 2024 | Survey |
| Homepage Card Sort | This library card sorting exercise aims to gather insights into user preferences and expectations for organizing library services and resources on the library website. By engaging participants in organizing and categorizing topics, we hope to enhance the overall user experience and improve the library's organization of information. | 2024 | Card Sort |
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We are initiating a UX signage inventory which serves as the first step in determining the quality and effectiveness of our library signage. This involves assessing how many signs we have, the type (temporary or permanent), category (information, directional, policy, etc.), location, the text, usefulness and whether to update or remove the sign. |
2024 |
Signage Inventory Spreadsheet |
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| ADI Interviews | For this UX study, we interviewed the Academic Drop-In facilitators by asking them the same 5 questions to provide the opportunity to identify any pain points with the service that they offer. We recorded, assessed, and created recommendations for the concerns that were expressed | 2023 | ADI Interview |
| Website Redesign Staff Survey | The questions in the Website Redesign Staff Survey (2023) hold a pivotal role in the redesigning of the Libraries & Learning Commons homepage. In the following survey, we will examine the survey responses, and seek patterns, trends, and other valuable insights. Our initial survey was responded to by 13 staff members. We will take their suggestions and concerns with the singular purpose of redesigning our website to be more than just a digital presence but an important hub that highlights our evolving services and supports information literacy, academic research, and student engagement. | 2023 | Website Survey |
| DJP Quiet Hours | As final exams and assignments approach, we reinstated and engaged the supervision of DJP Quiet Study Hours once more. The quiet hours were from 12 pm to 2 pm, Monday to Friday, beginning on December 4th, 2023. Throughout this period, the library staff will increase their presence in the Library and Learning Commons, reminding students that these hours are specifically being monitored for quiet study. During Quiet Study Hours, our staff at the LLC will encourage students to refrain from eating, taking phone calls, and to be considerate of other patrons in their surroundings. | 2023 | Library Space |
| Brewed Tea | Team UX is considering offering brewed tea to students during given terms as a wellness initiative as wellness supports in academic libraries tend to focus on stress reduction and include adding leisure and/or wellness reading collections to library stacks, and bringing in therapy animals to help students de-stress. | 2022 | Library spaces |
| Canadian Journal Titles | Developed a list of Canada journal titles, either published in Canada or Canadian-based content journals, from three of the library's major databases. | 2022 | Library resources |
| COVID-19 report | Team UX summarized the ncLLC online interactions with patrons during the period of full or partial closure of both campus libraries (March 16, 2020 to April 22, 2022) into a PowerPoint presentation. | 2022 | Library usage / stats |
| DJP Public Access Noise Reduction Project |
Ongoing - In September 2022, the UX Team initiated a project to reduce the level of noise in DJP Public Access Computer area. |
2022 | Library Spaces and Noise |
| Food Policy | Team UX has reevaluated the food policy in library spaces because of a gradual increase in students using library spaces since returning from COVID closure in winter and spring 2022 terms. | 2022 | Library spaces |
| Library Fines | UX Team, Tech coordinator, and Circ/Ref staff discus plan to eliminate library fines owing on regular collection library items, excluding reserves and small equipment (4h and 24h duration). | 2022 | Library Services |
| Library Info-Graphics | Upper management request for data for services and supports in Library and Learning Commons on a per term basis. Ongoing. | 2022 | Library services |
| Library Value Project | Team UX has prepared documents / Google Form surveys which capture "students' perceived value" of using "academic library resources, supports, and services" to maintain high GPA and be retained [retention] throughout their program at College. | 2022 | Library |
| Faculty / Staff Services Icon | Project surveyed faculty in F20 term on reaction and awareness to library communications during the COVID-19 closure period (3/2020 to 8/2021). From results, updated the Library Homepage to reflect a new Icon dedicated to Faculty / Staff Services -- a one-stop resource for faculty to develop courses, obtain copyright information, information literacy modules for students to use, and what services / supports the library offers faculty. | 2021 | Library website |
| Tap Card Readers | Circulation staff are observing problems with the circulation card tap machines. Cards have not been reading properly when tapped on the card pad. | 2021 | Library Services |
| Database Training Guide | UX Team created a database training guide for all college users to guide them to using our databases to their full potential. It was a vendor-driven online webinar series about best practices to use databases. | 2020 | Library resources |
| Post COVID-19 reopen plan | UX Team, in collaboration with Circulation / Reference, Test Centre staff, evaluated and modified spaces as per public health and college policies for when spaces reopen to greater use. | 2020 | Library spaces |
| Tent Card Study | Welland library, lower floor. WC library has two floors: lower floor is active with student group study; upper floor is a quieter, individual study space. Study attempts to engage students using the lower floor to determine if they are accessing in-person help from library staff. | 2020 | Library spaces / resources |
| Citation and Plagiarism Webpage Review | UX team wanted to better understand how students perceive and experience the library’s citation and plagiarism guide. | 2019 | Library Webpage |
| Noise Study | UX Team, in collaboration with library staff, created new signage and policy directed toward controlling noise levels in both campus library spaces within study limits. | 2019 | Library spaces |
| Peer Tutoring Webpage Review | UX team wanted to better understand how students perceive and navigate the organization of the NC LLC Peer Tutoring webpage. | 2019 | Library Webpage |
| Library Website Refresher Survey | UX Team created a Google Form questionnaire in order to gather feedback from college users who regularly use and access the library's website for information about services and assignment research. | 2018 | Library website |
| Faculty and Library Services Database Summary | Survey asked faculty if they were aware or unaware of the library's promotional efforts of our online services and supports since the COVID-19 closure on 3 / 16 / 2020. The NC LLC hosts these online services and supports. | 2020 | Survey |
| Library Academic Drop-In Reflection Survey | UX Team analyzed and assessed the survey data from the NC Library Academic Drop-In Reflection survey. The survey asked students to reflect upon their experience using the Academic Drop-In Sessions and if they found this service beneficial. | 2019 | Survey |
| In-house Survey | Ongoing -- Short student survey can be given out in-person while they study inside library spaces | 2017 | Library spaces |
| Library & Learning Commons Terminology Survey | Librarians tend to use technical jargon. This study attempted to discover what non-jargon words best describe the online resources we make available through the library's web pages. | 2017 | Library website |
| Physical Spaces of the NC LLC | Ongoing -- UX Team asks some library members to assist with reviewing the library buildings at both campuses. Their fresh eyes will see things that might be otherwise overlooked. | 2017 | Physical spaces |
| Observational Study Checklist | Ongoing -- Library staff can walk around spaces observing how students use different library resources. Look for books with call numbers / reserve stickers / stamps on the spines. | 2017 | Library resources |
| The No! List | Circulation staff track situations they say "No" to a patron while at the desk. UX Team made it easy for staff to simply record the question asked that you had to say "No" to, on the sheet provided. | 2017 | Library services |