Summary
HEADS OF STATE/HEADS OF GOVERNMENT
Typical questions
• Who is the Russian president?
• Where can I find the name of the British prime minister in 1974?
Points to consider
• Many governments now have websites with current and historic information on presidents and prime ministers. Some even have photographs, biographies, messages and speeches online. The University of Michigan Government Documents Center has a good collection of links to foreign government websites, which are a useful starting-point, www.lib.umich.edu/government-documents-center.
• Another starting-point for historic information is dictionaries of national biography. See the Biographical Information section for details.
• Always check when the information was last updated.
Where to look
Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments
www.cia.gov/library/publications/world-leaders-1/rss-updates/index.html
Free listing, regularly updated, by the CIA.
Statesman's Yearbook (subscription required)
www.statesmansyearbook.com
Online or in print, the annual publication lists current monarchs, presidents and heads of government. Online version covers 1860 onwards.
HIGHER EDUCATION
Typical questions
• I need to find statistics on student retention rates in English universities.
• Where can I search for recent articles on HE management?
Points to consider
• This section focuses specifically on Higher Education resources. General educational theory resources may also be found in the broader Education section.
• Increasing numbers of documents produced by government departments/educational think-tanks are being published on the web rather than in print. Therefore they may not be indexed on academic library catalogues. Remember to search the internet!
Where to look
Key organizations
UK
Government bodies
Remember that recent government reports are often online, while earlier ones can usually be located in paper in major libraries, including those listed in the Education section. Departmental names often change, so check details as carefully as possible.
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS)
www.bis.gov.uk/policies/by/themes/higher%20education
Currently responsible for higher and further education. Access policy, consultation, documents and full-text reports from the website.
Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE)
www.hefce.ac.uk
Responsible for funding higher education and research activities. Note that Scottish higher education institutions are funded by the Scottish Funding Council, www.sfc.ac.uk/about_the_council/council_funded_institutions/ council_funded_institutions.aspx.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Know it All, Find it Fast for Academic Libraries , pp. 164 - 185Publisher: FacetPrint publication year: 2011