Back files are usually acquired in microform. Requests for new subscriptions are received by the Technical Services Librarian and reviewed by the Collection Review Committee. The complete serials list is reviewed by departments every two or three years. The Libraries subscribe to over 30 newspapers from all parts of the United States and several foreign countries. Papers for which the Libraries hold the indexes are kept permanently in microform.
Newspaper subscriptions come under the serials budget and control systems.
New subscriptions must be justified by the requestor in the same manner as any other serial subscription. The Civil Engineering Department has a map collection which is maintained and administered by that department and is not part of the libraries' collection. Atlases are purchased and shelved as part of the general reference collection. They are cataloged into the general collection and shelved in the stacks or with the Timmins Collection if appropriate. A current VMI Records Group list is on file in the Archives and is periodically reviewed and updated.