Jay Bhatt is the Engineering Librarian in the Scholarly Connections Department at Drexel University. He has three master’s degrees from Drexel University, including an M.S. in Library and Information Science, an M.S. in Instructional Design and an M.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering. He also earned an M.S. in Education from the University of Pennsylvania.
Jay is responsible for building library collections in engineering subject areas, as well as outreach and teaching information and research skills to faculty and students in Drexel’s College of Engineering and College of Biomedical Engineering. He provides individual and small group consultations, instructional sessions and workshops, and online research support for students in on-campus and distance learning programs.
Jay is actively involved with the Engineering Libraries Division of the American Society for Engineering Education. He is a member of the Engineering Division, Science and Technology Division, Philadelphia Chapter, and Asian Chapter of the Special Libraries Association (SLA). He is extremely passionate about experimenting with innovative applications of emerging technologies to enhance information literacy among faculty and students. He is passionate about participating in conversations and raising awareness about Open Access, Open Data, and Open Educational Resources in Engineering, among faculty and students. He has published and presented papers extensively in the area of information literacy for engineering students. He particularly loves mentoring and working directly with students, and he believes that the best learning occurs when it involves the mutual sharing of ideas, knowledge, and experiences. He also was invited as presenter and invited speakers at several library related international webinars.
Accomplishments:
Jay had partnered with a team of Drexel University engineering students to co-create the Engineering Academic Challenge, an online research game based on transdisciplinary grand challenges of civilization that has reached thousands in hundreds of universities worldwide.
In 2022, Jay received SLA Science-Technology Community's Ann Koopman Science-Technology Community Achievement Award, In 2017, Jay received the Engineering Librarian of the Year Award from the Engineering Division of the Special Libraries Associations. He received the Homer I. Bernhardt Distinguished service award from the Engineering Libraries Division of the American Society for Engineering Education in 2010. In 2016, he was nominated for Drexel University’s Presidential Award for Excellence for Professional Staff. He received the outstanding staff award at the 2016 Graduate Student Association Awards from the Graduate College at Drexel University and the Exceptional Service Award from Drexel University Libraries in 2014. He was awarded the Learning Partner Award from the School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems at Drexel University in 2014. In 2013, he received the Outstanding Staff Mentor Award from the Graduate Student Association of Drexel University. He received IEEE's mentorship award and a Certificate of Appreciation in recognition of outstanding leadership as the Drexel University IEEE Graduate Students Forum Partnership Coordinator and Student Branch Liaison in 2018 and in 2006-2007. In 2003, he received Drexel University's Harold Myers Distinguished Service Award.
Professional specialties and areas of interest include: Engineering Information, Teaching Information Seeking Skills, Collection Development and Management, Outreach to Faculty and Students, Mentoring, and Data Information Literacy.
Personal interests
Jay has a lifelong passion for trains and is a member of the Indian Railways Fan Club. He loves to read and write poetry, including a Gujarati language blog, Bansinaad, in which he occasionally writes his poems. In his spare time, Jay enjoys researching new initiatives that highlight U.S./India/global collaborations in areas such as engineering education and libraries.