10 Things You Should Know About Thomas M. Cooley Law Libraries.

Supporting the Mission
As a law student you will find yourself spending considerable amount of time in the law library; and the level of resources, services and comfort the library provides should play a major factor in your choice of law schools. Each of the 10 statistics presented here was taken from information that the American Bar Association collects annually about each of its accredited law schools.

Statistics presented here about volumes, titles and serials reflect the Thomas M. Cooley Law Libraries’ mission – making materials available to students faculty in support of curriculum, scholarship and research.

Volume Count
This is a statistic you can locate for every law school you consider attending. Thomas M. Cooley Law Libraries rank 49th out of 189 law schools in the total number of volumes it currently provides its patrons. The more volumes a library has, the greater the number of resources available to students.

Title Count
Cooley ranks 46th out of 189 law schools in the number of titles, which is a true indicator of the quality of a library's collection. Many volumes will be duplicates, but titles are rarely duplicated. Cooley is continually improving its title count as tape loads of titles for the microform collection are added.

Serials Titles
Cooley ranks 69th out of 189 in the number of journals and serials it annually adds to its collection. As students begin to take elective courses in which research papers are required, they will find themselves relying heavily on the law libraries’ journal and serial collection. The more titles available, the more comprehensive and in-depth the research may be.

Number of Professional Librarians
Cooley ranks 4th out of 189, in the number of professional librarians on its staff. Professional librarians at Cooley, many of whom have both law and library science degrees, help students find the information they need more efficiently and effectively.

Total Staff
Cooley ranks 4th out of 189 in the number of library staff. The more staff there are, the more likely students will receive the help they need when they need it.

Net Area
Cooley ranks 4th out of 189, in net area. The size of any library may be an indicator of comfortable surroundings. The more space, the more likely the library is to provide study space that will not be taken over by book stacks in the future.

Number of Seats
Cooley ranks 3rd out of 189 in the total number of seats available to students. Given the multiple divisions at Cooley -- morning, afternoon, and evening classes -- student use of the library is generally staggered. Our ability to provide study areas for large numbers of students is excellent. There are 644 seats available for students to use.

Carrels
Cooley ranks 31st out of 189 law schools in the number of study carrels available to students. Many students prefer the isolated study space that a carrel, as compared to open seating, provides. The Cooley libraries provide 271carrels to its students.

Hours of Operation
The libraries have extended hours during exams. We are open regularly a total of 123 hours a week placing us 7th out of 189 other law schools and open more hours than any other Michigan law school. See the calendar for specific changes.

Total Budget
Cooley ranks 6th out of 189 law schools in its annual library budget. A healthy budget assures that the collection, staffing, and other resources are maintained and able to grow. Cooley has a commitment to continued improvement of information resources. Students benefit by having the space and information available in which to learn and practice the law.