Analysis of University Library Usage Data to Improve Resource Allocation at University of Nigeria, Nsukka

Library usage analytics provide university administrators with evidence for optimising resource allocation, extending opening hours, and prioritising collection development decisions. This study analysed circulation records, digital resource access logs, and reading room attendance data from the main library at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu State, South East Nigeria, for the 2020 to 2023 academic years. The dataset comprised 284,000 physical item loans, 1.2 million digital resource access events, and 96,000 reading room entry records. Temporal analysis, association rule mining on co-borrowed items, and user segmentation were conducted. Physical borrowing declined by 36.4 percent while digital access grew by 112 percent over the study period. Law and Medicine faculties showed the highest physical borrowing rates, while Computer Science and Engineering dominated digital access. Morning hours between 8 AM and 11 AM recorded 68 percent of reading room peak usage. Co-borrowing analysis identified strong links between assigned textbooks and reference works in Social Sciences, suggesting supplementary reading facilitation opportunities. Postgraduate students demonstrated borrowing patterns distinct from undergraduates, with greater reliance on journals over textbooks. Weekend opening hours were underutilised by 61 percent relative to weekday averages. Recommendations include reallocating extended opening hours to weekday evenings, investing in digital resource subscriptions over physical acquisitions for Engineering and Computer Science, and deploying a personalised resource recommendation engine for UNN library users.

Keywords: library usage analytics, resource allocation, University of Nigeria Nsukka, digital library, circulation data