In this keynote, research takeaways are presented from PIL’s nine research studies. An information-seeking typology for understanding students’ strategies and difficulties with research tasks is introduced. Highlights are also presented from research currently being conducted by PIL—a qualitative study on how college students’ research and learning habits have changed in the past decade with the ubiquity of mobile devices and apps on campuses and the creation of library learning space and peer-to-peer learning. UNL students have participated in PIL discussion groups for this latest study along with undergraduates from 10 other U.S. community colleges and four-year public and private colleges. A discussion is included of implications for teaching, learning, work, and librarianship in the 21st century.

Alison J. Head, Ph.D. is an information scientist and social sciences researcher. She is the founder and director of Project Information Literacy (PIL), an ongoing, research study in the U.S. that has investigated how college students and recent graduates conceptualize and operationalize research tasks for course work and “everyday life” use.