Case Study: Sheffield Hallam University improves discovery and information literacy with ProQuest Summon

Discovery as a Launch Pad for Information Literacy

Sheffield Hallam University, in Sheffield, United Kingdom, needed to repair a disjointed discovery journey and replace outdated federated search technology for its 35,500 students. The university also wanted to prevent students from turning to other search channels instead of the library, and it worked with ProQuest on discovery services, including the Summon service.

In 2011, Sheffield Hallam implemented ProQuest’s Summon service with 360 Link to give users a familiar, Google-like search experience across the library’s collections. The university said the service offered a seamless search, returned clear and relevant results, and let librarians move teaching away from search mechanics and toward information literacy, with Matthew Borg calling it “the ultimate launch pad for our information literacy teaching.”

Sheffield Hallam University

Matthew Borg

Information Adviser