INFORMATION FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS
 UMASS LOWELL LIBRARIES

 

BORROWING PRIVILEGES

Graduate students, both day and evening, are entitled to check out up to twenty books for 28 days. Check for the books you need in our Public Access Catalog. Books may be renewed as many times as you want, (provided no one else has requested them) via the WEB by going to our PAC, and accessing your account. You must present a valid ID to the Circulation Desk to obtain materials.   If you don't find a book you need in our catalog, try one of our Virtual Catalogs.  (see details below).

PERIODICALS

We now have a large number of journals available electronically: all connections are available on the Library’s Web site: UML E-Journals.  This list includes direct links to the actual electronic journal or the database which contains it. Journals in the Libraries are listed in the computer catalog, and records show the latest issue received, as well as call number and location of the journal. If the library is entitled to the electronic version of the journal, a link will also be found here.  Journals in paper format are shelved by call number and do not circulate. Science, engineering, and business journals are located on the second floor of Lydon.  Nursing, medicine, liberal arts, and music journals will be found at O’Leary, either on the fourth floor, where they shelved with the regular collection, in call number order, or on the mezzanine current display area, where they are arranged by title.  A large number of journals are available in microformat. Reader/printers are located at both libraries (copies are free). At Lydon, many journals older than 1980 are in storage. These may be retrieved by filling out a request at the Lydon Circulation Desk. Material will be available as soon as possible but definitely within 24 hours.

COPY CARDS

Copy machines located at both libraries charge $.15, but only $.10 if a copicard is used. Purchase a blank copicard card for $1.00 at the dispensing machine. Cards can accept any sum of money and be replenished indefinitely or just carry a blank card with you and insert it in the copy machine before you begin.

ELECTRONIC LIBRARY

The Libraries' "Electronic Library" offers many different indexes and full text services, all available on the Library WEB page. The list is constantly changing and includes everything from the general to very specific. CSA, Infotrac and Ebsco are three which have multiple databases. At last count, over 41,000 full-text journal titles were available.  The number keeps rising! For guides to what is available in a specific field, click on Resources by Subject from the library home page.  For science and engineering students, a very important database is SciFinder Scholar, which is available on the library's PC network. It may also be installed on any PC on campus. Check here for instructions.  The University has a site license for RefWorks, a citation management tool.  Set up your own account.  You may directly import citations of interest from many of our databases into RefWorks, which then stores, organizes and creates your bibliography and cited references.
 

GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS

This collection is located at Lydon Library, 4th floor. 25% of the documents issued by the US government are located there. Documents are in hard copy or on microfiche. Many government documents are now available free on the WEB via FirstGov. Check with the Reference Librarian for the latest details.
 

INTERLIBRARY LOAN

If you need material which is not available in our Libraries, the Interlibrary Loan department will obtain it for you free of charge. Books from other libraries are borrowed for 10-30 days; for faster service, we suggest you try the Virtual Catalog first. For journal titles not at the University, we obtain a photocopy of the article, which we deliver to you electronically.  This service takes about two weeks, so please plan accordingly. You must order your Interlibrary Loan items directly via the ILL WEB page. The Library has installed the ILLIAD system to make requesting easier and response time faster. Patrons may order 5 items per week.
 

PATENTS

You may search for US patents and international patent applications on the WEB. The US Patent site offers full text and full content of all US Patents from 1790-. The EPO site offers European and World Patents.  Asitri.com from MIT, and FreePatentsOnline both allow you to print an entire patent in PDF format, much faster than the page-by-page printing allowed on the US Patent site. You may also use the Interlibrary Loan services to obtain older patents from other countries or organizations.

THESES

UMASS Lowell theses are available in hard copy or microfilm, at Lydon Library. A complete list of all UML theses and dissertations up to 1985 is available. For more recent UML theses and dissertations, check Dissertation Abstracts.  To obtain the library copy of a thesis, fill out the Storage retrieval form at the Circulation desk. The thesis will be retrieved within 24 hours, and must be used in the building. Microfilm copies are located on the 2nd floor of Lydon Library, available at any time. New theses are added to the collection after being microfilmed, bound, and cataloged. This takes approximately 8-12 months. All UMASS Lowell Dissertations, which have been digitized (about 1998-) are available free via ProQuest Direct's Digital Dissertations. Dissertations from other institutions may be obtained by requesting an Interlibrary Loan. Each graduate student may receive up to 3 dissertations at no cost. This service is provided by the Graduate Student Association. If you wish to order additional dissertations, you may speak to the ILL staff, who will obtain your dissertation for you for a cost of $38.00 per title.
 

BOSTON LIBRARY CONSORTIUM

UMASS Lowell is a member of the Boston Library Consortium, which includes 18 academic libraries in New England.  Graduate students who need to borrow materials from members of the BLC may apply for a card at either Access Services Desk.  Cards are good for one year. It is not necessary to have a card if you only require journal articles. Students must be in good standing with the Libraries and must follow BLC member rules at each library.   Check the BLC Web site for user guides for all members.

VIRTUAL CATALOGS

The  two Virtual Catalogs allow you to search for a book that you want in multiple libraries, and request that the book be sent to you. Your first choice would be the Boston Library Consortium Virtual Catalog, which includes at present, all the UMASS campuses, Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern, Brown, Wellesley, Tufts, Williams, UConn, UNH, and the Marine Biological lab. You will need your valid UMass Lowell ID for this service.  If you request an item, you will receive an email when it is delivered to the UML Library of your choice.  Items may be borrowed for one month, with no renewals allowed. You may also use the Statewide Virtual Catalog, encompassing most of the public libraries in the State of Massachusetts. We encourage you to try both Virtual Catalogs for any book before requesting an Interlibrary Loan.   

REFERENCE LIBRARIANS

Professional reference librarians at all campus libraries are subject specialists who will help you answer questions, locate material, and assist you in any way.

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This page maintained by Marion S. Muskiewicz, Science Reference Librarian, Lydon Library

Last updated 1/26/06