Why an Academic Library?

Public libraries and Academic libraries generally contain very different collections, because they are supporting very different communities.

Public libraries tend to focus on the day to day needs and interests of the residents of a town.

Academic libraries focus on the scholarly needs of the students and faculty of a college or university.

Therefore to find resources appropriate for the topics you study at Lesley, rely primarily on academic libraries. They are more likely to have the scholarly resources your professors expect you to use.

Exceptions - public libraries often have great information on
• local history
• local news
• local government information
• current events
• very large public libraries often contain research materials