ACRL’s Standards, Guidelines, and Frameworks are provided as a free resource to the academic library community. Your donation to the ACRL Advancement Fund, which supports initiatives that strengthen ACRL’s influence in higher education and its ability to create diverse and inclusive communities in the association and the profession, assists us as we continuing to provide these important resources.
Access
Access Services Librarianship, A Framework for (PDF - April 2020)
ACRL-RBMS/SAA Guidelines on Access to Research Materials in Archives and Special Collections Libraries (January 2020)
ACRL Policy Statement on Open Access to Scholarship by Academic Librarians (April 2019)
Guidelines for the Preparation of Policies on Library Access (Dec. 1992)
Originally prepared by the ACRL Access Policy Guidelines Task Force December, 1992, these Guidelines were rescinded on October 27, 2006 at the Executive Committee meeting in Chicago. They have been superseded by the 2005 ALA Guidelines, available here.
Libraries in Higher Education
Standards for Libraries in Higher Education (February 2018)
PDF
Japanese Translation (PDF)
Diversity Standards: Cultural Competency for Academic Libraries (April 2012)
Guidelines for University Library Services to Undergraduate Students (October 2013)
Education, Personnel, and Academic Status
ACRL Statement on Academic Freedom (June 2022)
Cultural Proficiencies for Racial Equity: A Framework (PDF - August 2022; joint document with ALA's Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services; the Association of Research Libraries; and the Public Library Association)
Guideline on Collective Bargaining (June 2008)
Guidelines for Recruiting Academic LIbrarians (June 2017)
Impactful Scholarship and Metrics, ACRL Framework for (PDF) (November 2020)
Joint Statement on Faculty Status of College and University Librarians (April 2018)
A Standard for the Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure of Academic Librarians (April 2021)
Standards for Academic Librarians Without Faculty Status (April 2021)
Standards for Faculty Status for Academic Librarians (April 2021)
PDF
Statement on the Certification & Licensing of Academic Librarians (April 2018)
Statement on the,Terminal Professional Degree for Academic Librarians (April 2018)
Information Literacy and Instruction
Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education (February 2015, January 2016)
PDF Version
Chinese Translation (PDF)
French Translation (PDF)
German Translation (external link)
Italian Translation (external link)
Persian Translation (PDF)
Portuguese Translation (external link)
Spanish Translation (PDF)
Swedish Translation (external link)
Framework WordPress site (for further resources)
Companion Documents to the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education:
- The Framework for Visual Literacy in Higher Education (PDF) (April 2022)
- Persian Translation (PDF)
- Spanish Translation (PDF) - Journalism (PDF) (April 2022)
- Politics, Policy, and International Relations (PDF) (June 2021)
- Research Competencies in Writing and Literature (PDF) (November 2021)
- Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (PDF) (August 2022)
- Social Work | PDF version (June 2021)
- Sociology (PDF) (January 2022)
- Women's and Gender Studies | PDF version (June 2021)
Characteristics of Programs of Information Literacy that Illustrate Best Practices: A Guideline (January 2019)
- Persian Translation (PDF)
Guidelines for Instruction Programs in Academic Libraries (October 2011)
Information Literacy Standards for Science and Technology (June 2006)
- Chinese Translation (PDF)
- Farsi Translation (PDF)
Information Literacy Standards for Anthropology and Sociology Students (January 2008)
- Chinese Translation (PDF)
- Farsi Translation (PDF)
- Spanish Translation (PDF)
Objectives for Information Literacy Instruction: A Model Statement for Academic Librarians (Jan. 2001)
- Greek translation (PDF)\
- Spanish translation (PDF)
Information Literacy Competency Standards for Nursing (October 2013)
- Turkish Translation (PDF)
Information Literacy Standards for Teacher Education (PDF) (May 2011)
- Farsi Translation (PDF)
Psychology Information Literacy Standards (June 2010)
- Chinese Translation (PDF)
- Farsi Translation (PDF)
Roles and Strengths of Teaching LIbrarians (April 2017)
- Persian Translation (PDF)
Rare Books, Manuscripts, Special Collections, and Archives
Competencies for Special Collections Professionals (March 2017)
Guidelines For Interlibrary And Exhibition Loan Of Special Collections Materials (January 2012)
Guidelines on the Selection and Transfer of Materials from General Collections to Special Collections, (June 2016)
Guidelines Regarding Security and Theft in Special Collections (January 2019)
Primary Source Literacy, Guidelines for (PDF) (February 2018)
Special Collections Librarians, ACRL Code of Ethics for (PDF) (June 2020)
Standardized Holdings Counts and Measures for Archival Repositories and Special Collections Libraries, Guidelines for (PDF) (April 2019)
Standardized Statistical Measures and Metrics for Public Services in Archival Repositories and Special Collections Libraries (PDF) (October 2017)
Special Topics
Assessment Librarians and Coordinators, Proficiencies for (January 2017)
Guidelines for Curriculum Materials Centers (January 2009)
Guidelines for Media Resources in Academic Libraries (June 2018)
Standards for Distance and Online Learning Library Services (February 2023)