The benefits of buy-in: integrating information literacy into each year of an academic program Justin Harrison and Lorna Rourke University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the integration of information literacy into each year of a Bachelor of Arts and Science (BAS) program at the University of Guelph, Ontario, and to explain the role of librarian mentors in this program. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviews the literature related to mentoring and librarians, explains the BAS program, and outlines the library’s integration into the BAS curriculum. It discusses mentoring, assessment, and future goals, and provides some librarians’ observations and advice. Findings – The paper demonstrates the benefits of librarian-student mentoring and of integrating information literacy into each year of an undergraduate degree program. Practical implications – Since the mentoring of students by librarians is rarely mentioned in the literature, this description of our mentoring program may inspire other librarians to set up librarian-student partnerships at their institutions. Our successful application of information literacy into every year of a degree program and our partnerships with faculty and students may serve as models for other libraries. Originality/value – The experience of the University of Guelph library may show other libraries how to integrate information literacy into a program efficiently and effectively. Keywords Curricula, Mentoring, Librarians, Academic libraries, Information literacy, Information literacy Paper type Case study Introduction At the University of Guelph, Ontario – a mid-sized institution focusing on teaching, learner-centeredness, internationalism and collaboration – the library is working with an emerging, dynamic program that is receptive to innovation and partnerships. Through the efforts of three librarians at the university, the new Bachelor of Arts and Science program enjoys an integration of ongoing, increasingly more complex information literacy (IL) lessons, assignments, and perspectives into a four-year degree education. An element of the library integration that has worked particularly well is a formal relationship established between each first-year student and a librarian. We call the librarians who work with these first-year students “mentors”, based on the Oxford English Dictionary definition: “A person who acts as guide and adviser to another person, esp. one who is younger and less experienced” (Oxford English Dictionary, 2000). This mentoring relationship includes one-on-one consultations and guidance for the students in their graduating year; this student-librarian collaboration enables the students to define and refine their major research areas and sources of information. While developing a formalized mentoring relationship with a whole class of students poses many challenges, both for the coordination of librarian effort as well as The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/0090-7324.htm The benefits of buy-in 599 Reference Services Review Vol. 34 No. 4, 2006 pp. 599-606 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0090-7324 DOI 10.1108/00907320610716486