UND Peer Research Consultants highlighted in special issue of ‘Reference Service Review’

Karlene Clark, reference service librarian for Chester Fritz Library, and a recent UND graduate are co-authors on an article published in a special issue of Reference Service Review.

The journal’s issue (Volume 51, Issue 2) focused specifically on peer research student assistants in libraries. The UND-associated article is titled “’I want my PRC’: engagement of undergraduates with and assessment of the peer research consultant program.”

Clark, who leads UND’s Peer Research Consultants program, was joined on the article by Avery Breiland, a former PRC student employee who graduated in May with a criminal justice degree. Breiland has recently accepted a position at the Grand Forks Public Library.

The article shares both of their perspectives on the relatively new program, established in 2019: training and management as well as real-world practice.

Peer research consultancy among undergraduate students builds soft skills such as leadership and communication, according to the paper’s abstract. Further, the training provided to PRCs such as Breiland, and the interactions PRCs have with student researchers, builds credibility and trust among peers to use library services and resources.