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The purpose of this paper is to explore how course informational needs are being satisfied by materials outside of traditional library resources.

The design is based on the results of a survey of instructional faculty at Central Washington University during fall quarter 2008.

The findings show that course support materials available through publishers meet in many cases the immediate informational needs of students. Additionally, these materials are directly tied to specific course/research needs and activities. The paper also demonstrates that these materials permit students to bypass the initial and fundamental steps of the information literacy process.

The implications may be that libraries will continue to see stagnant funding as the informational needs of students are being met through other means. The lack of complaints regarding adequate material budgets will remain strong within the library but largely silent at the campus level. Another implication is that the cost of access is now being borne by the immediate user, the student, and that the library is repurchasing similar materials for the university as a whole.

The paper provides useful information on whether course informational needs are being satisfied by materials outside of traditional library resources.