[DCRM-L] when to input a new record re: dcrmr

[Jessica Grzegorski]

Hi Colleen,

Yes, you absolutely can upgrade existing copy to DCRMR and code the 040 as $e rda $e dcrmr. To do so, you would need to follow all provisions outlined in DCRMR<https://bsc.rbms.info/DCRMR/> for required elements and notes. Long story short: Coding a record as DCRMR means that it complies with DCRMR, just as one would need to follow RDA when changing a record from AACR2 to RDA. And

Note that in OCLC it is perfectly acceptable to replace existing copy with an updated and more complete version following a different descriptive standard. For more information, see OCLC's documentation on When to input a new record<https://www.oclc.org/bibformats/en/about/input.html>. One thing I'll draw your attention to is the guidance on the 040 field: "Absence, presence, or difference in field 040 subfield ǂe does not justify a new record."

I hope that helps!

Best,
Jessica


Jessica Grzegorski (she/her/hers) [cid:20a41d30-b085-4817-8c48-a110ca9f8534] <https://orcid.org/0009-0002-9602-3241>
Rare Materials Metadata Librarian
Acquisitions and Metadata Services
Northwestern University Libraries
Northwestern University
www.library.northwestern.edu<http://www.library.northwestern.edu>
jessica.grzegorski at northwestern.edu<mailto:jessica.grzegorski at northwestern.edu>
847.467.6966



In the spirit of healing, we acknowledge and honor the Potawatomi, Odawa and Ojibwe Tribes, the original people of the land upon which Northwestern University stands, and the Native people who remain on this land today.





________________________________
From: DCRM-L <dcrm-l-bounces at lib.byu.edu> on behalf of Colleen Fedewa via DCRM-L <dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu>
Sent: Friday, July 17, 2026 12:46 PM
To: DCRM Users' Group <dcrm-l at lib.byu.edu>
Cc: Colleen Fedewa <cof3 at case.edu>
Subject: [DCRM-L] when to input a new record re: dcrmr

Hello all,
I would really appreciate any feedback and clarification regarding the following question. I have asked many catalogers with varying answers. Thank you!!
 Can you take an existing RDA record and add DCRMR elements to it? I have seen official instructions for putting "dcrmr" in an original MARC catalog record : "In field 040, use codes $e rda $e dcrmr, in this order, directly following the language of cataloging (040 $b), (e.g., $b eng $e rda $e dcrmr)"... but I don't know if this applies to copy cataloging. Example: If we have the same item that other libraries have, but they did not catalog with RBMS. We would like to enhance the existing record, but I thought that I recently saw something that stated we can't add $e dcrmr and upgrade an existing RDA record. I am currently training a brand new cataloger for the first time, and I am putting together official documentation/reference materials. I do not want to share the wrong information.
Appreciate any help you can provide!
Colleen
Metadata Librarian
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