Supporting Units

The Supporting Units are affiliated with the Director of the Libraries Administration and provide administrative, technical, financial, and collection development support to the Libraries Administration. They contribute to the effective operation and development of the libraries by overseeing library systems and technology, financial and accounting matters, collection development, inventory activities, and other supporting functions in accordance with the policies, procedures, and regulations adopted by Kuwait University.

Library Systems and Technology Unit

• Affiliated to the Director of the Libraries Department, where it supervises the automated systems owned by the Libraries Administration and provides continuous technical support. It monitors the workflow of its devices and systems, supervises the training of the administration's employees on the use of the its systems, supervises the maintenance of its owned systems, provides support for the inventory process including needed devices and software, sets technical specifications, and participates in studying the offers for these systems.

   

Accounting Office

• The Accounting Office is one of the units affiliated with the Director of the Libraries Administration at Kuwait University. It oversees all financial and accounting operations of the Administration, follows up on the organization of employees’ personal custodianships, manages the annual inventory activities of the libraries, and supports the technical departments and libraries in carrying out their purchases and subscriptions in accordance with the university’s financial and administrative regulations.

   

Collection Development Unit

• Affiliated to the Director of the Libraries Department, it is responsible for evaluating information sources and following up on the development of library collections for various printed and non-printed information sources necessary to meet the needs of educational and research programs in coordination with libraries and scientific departments, in accordance with the collection development policy.

Technical Departments

The Technical Departments fall under the Technical Affairs Supervision and are located in the Central Library building at Sabah Al-Salem University City. They carry out the necessary technical procedures, including the acquisition, cataloging, and classification of both printed and non-printed materials, such as books, reference materials, periodicals, manuscripts, rare books, and reports. They also handle the exchange and donation of books and publications in accordance with the policies and procedures adopted by the Administration.

Arabic Acquisition Department

• The department provides Arabic books and publications to Kuwait University Libraries through administrative and technical procedures, including request forms and the evaluation of offers, in collaboration with library selectors, academic departments, and college library committees. It coordinates with the Arabic Acquisitions Section to select and order resources relevant to each library.

Foreign Acquisition Department

• This division supplies foreign materials in all formats through local and international publishers and vendors based on the selections made by faculty members.

Arabic Cataloging Department

• The department is responsible for cataloging and classifying Arabic information resources for Kuwait University Libraries and organizing them in accordance with international standards and practices. It uses Resource Description and Access (RDA) standards, while classification is based on the Arabic edition of the revised Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) system. The department also carries out all necessary procedures for organizing and reviewing Arabic information resources, entering them into the online catalog, and updating them through the automated system.

Foreign Cataloging Department

• This division Catalog and classifies non-Arabic printed and non-printed books according to the Library of Congress (LC) and the Cataloging System follows the RDA rules and uses (Classification Plus) programs.

• Entering all the data for information resources into the (Sierra) System.

• Printing Spine Labels that include the call number for all printed and non-printed resources.

• Preparing information resources and implement (Barcoding, RFID) and preparing lists for distribution to University Libraries according to the requests and specializations.

• Classifies Thesis (Master and Ph.D.) and upload to the Online Library.
   

Periodicals Department

• This division is responsible for the acquisition of both print and electronic periodicals as per each library committee requests. This includes follow up of the periodicals in addition to registration and distribution to the various libraries.

Gift & Exchange Department

• The Gift & Exchange Department supports cooperation between Kuwait University and academic, educational, governmental, and research institutions locally and internationally through the exchange and donation of books, publications, and scholarly resources. It manages university publications, evaluates donated materials with the Collection Development Department, processes and distributes theses and publications according to approved procedures, and prepares appreciation letters for authors and donors contributing to Kuwait University Libraries.

Supply Services Department

• The Supply Services Department is one of the main departments within Kuwait University Libraries. It is responsible for developing library collections by providing information resources, including books that support the educational process and scientific research, and meet the needs of faculty members, researchers, and students.

• The department’s responsibilities include supplying libraries with books through requests from approved suppliers, publishers, and specialized book distributors. It also acquires newly published books and materials from annual book fairs in coordination with colleges and academic departments.

• The department was previously located in the Shuwaikh area at Jaber Al-Ahmad Central Library and has now been relocated to Sabah Al-Salem University City in Shadadiya, within the Central Library building of Kuwait University’s new campus, contributing to improved work efficiency and the provision of comprehensive library services.

Information Services Department

• The department provides services to visitors of the Central Library and assists them in searching its Arabic and foreign print and electronic resources. It also provides circulation, reference, and academic research services, manages library visits and clearance procedures, facilitates the reservation of study rooms for students and faculty members, conducts academic workshops on the unified search system and online catalog, and oversees all matters related to the visitors of the Central Library.