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Information needs of international students at a Malaysian University

Safahieh, Hajar and Singh, Diljit (2006) Information needs of international students at a Malaysian University. In Khoo, C. and Singh, D. and Chaudhry, A.S., Eds. Proceedings A-LIEP 2006: Asia-Pacific Conference on Library & Information Education & Practice 2006, pages pp. 479-485, Singapore.

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Abstract

The number of students studying away from their home countries is increasing. These students face various challenges when studying abroad, including meeting their information needs. This study investigated the information needs of international students at the University of Malaya. A questionnaire was designed and distributed to 70 students, of whom 54 (77.1%) responded. It was found the main information needs were related to the university, the faculty, and their programs of study. The students used the library in attempting to meet their information needs, although the frequency of library usage was generally low. The main barriers in seeking information were language related, and unfamiliarity with the library or-ganization and mission. Language proficiency appeared to be a barrier in being able to meet the information needs. Although the majority of the students considered themselves to be computer and Internet literate, but that did not have a relationship on the problems they faced in meeting the information needs.

EPrint Type:Conference Paper
Keywords:Information needs, International students, Malaysia
Subjects:Information Seeking Behaviors
ID Code:1424
Deposited On:26 May 2007
Eprint Statistics:View statistics for this eprint
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