Examining the Use of Elsevier's ScienceDirect at Montana State University

Please contact Rachelle McLain, MSU Library Collection Development Librarian, with any questions.

Overview

The MSU Library currently subscribes to a full suite of journal titles through Elsevier, a well-known publisher of STM journals. In FY21, nearly 20% of the MSU Library's overall collections budget went to this one subscription, which is no longer sustainable.

Plan for 2022-2023

During the course of 2022, the MSU Library will be sharing information with groups around campus to understand the full extent of how this subscription is utilized by the MSU community. Ultimately, these conversations will help determine the best way to reshape this subscription. 

• Renew Elsevier subscription for 2022​
  • No change in access for faculty and students in this year
• "Unbundle" the Elsevier big deal in mid-2023, with the expectation of subscribing tothe most-used journal titles
  • Facilitate seamless purchase of other Elsevier articles as needed​(at no charge to users)
• Continue to provide full access to articles for faculty and students

Negotiating Principles & Practices

Please review our negotiating principles and practices in order to better understand how we are working to provide access to scholarship.

Elsevier Journal Title List & Usage Statistics

• Elsevier journal titles to which the MSU Library will maintain direct subscriptions
• Usage of journal titles by the MSU community (2019 | 2020 | 2021)

Other Ways to Get Articles

National Resources

• SPARC (Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition)
  • Big Deal Knowledge Base
  • Renegotiations and Cancellations of Big Deals