I Need Books!

By Lily Stancliffe.

Key words: libraries, library, academia, university, books, resources, self-help

Being cast adrift from your institution’s libraries can be an alarming experience, especially for those of us who never intended for the end of our degree to mean the end of our research. But fear not! Libraries are full of books which are meant to be read, and while accessing certain libraries or collections might be beyond our reach, the existence of legal deposit libraries means that no book is unattainable if you know where to look.

Apologies for the UK-centric nature of this post, I am woefully ill-informed about the borrowing statuses of un-affiliated researchers anywhere else. Please comment with your own countries’ or institutions’ borrowing rights, let’s share the knowledge!

To begin with, and depending on the nature of your research, I recommend local libraries. The collections might not be quite what you’re after but many local libraries pay subscription fees for a surprising range of online journals and interlibrary loans will give you access to all the libraries in your county. If your research has a local focus and doesn’t rely too heavily on primary sources, local libraries might be sufficient.

If not, your next port of call would be the National Libraries: The British Library, The National Library of Scotland and The National Library of Wales. A holy trinity of repositories with access to every book ever published in English and a great many that have been published in other languages. These libraries are excellent because they aren’t connected to universities, meaning that there is no group of students and academics whose requirements outrank yours. For the national libraries, anyone can obtain a reader card (though you might need to be at least temporarily resident in the relevant country). An online registration form will speed up the process, and you’ll need to take two forms of ID with you including proof of address (one of them will also need your signature on it, i.e. driving licence).

There exists a secondary and less accessible group of legal deposit libraries, containing all the same books but also an obligation to prioritise students. These are The Bodleian Libraries, Cambridge University Library and the library of Trinity College Dublin. For the Bodleian Libraries you will need to fill out an application form establishing ‘an appropriate research need’, this can be academic, professional or private research (i.e. anything). Part of the application form requires you to detail which resources you will need access to, presumably to check that you actually need access to the libraries and which libraries you will need access to. A Bodleian libraries reader’s card will give you reference-only access to a specific selection of Oxford Libraries, some available to you only outside of normal term time. Check the books you need using the online catalogue SOLO.

The application process for Cambridge University Library is quite similar. Those associated with other universities can use the library freely outside of term time once they have applied for a reader’s card. Private and business researchers will need to complete a separate form asking for access. You can have a week’s access in a twelve-month period free of charge but otherwise have to pay for a month, 6 month or year pass, the most expensive being £28. All these application processes pale in comparison with that employed by Trinity College Dublin however, where you will be required to present a letter of introduction from your home university if you have one, detailing why you need access to their collections. “All other applicants must demonstrate they are unable to obtain the material needed for their research elsewhere”, once accepted, your access may be limited to Saturdays only.

For other University libraries the admissions process will be similar but the extent to which they are willing to accept outside researchers will vary enormously. If possible, you will get the most accurate answers to questions about access by speaking directly to a librarian at whichever institution will be most convenient for you, though many institutions are also responsive to emails. Alumni will be greeted more warmly than other members of the public and you are probably more likely to meet with success during the summer holidays than at other times of year. While the applications might appear prohibitive, they are really designed to make sure that libraries aren’t clogged up with people pretending to work on their novels. If you have a genuine research need, there shouldn’t be a library in the world which will close its doors on you, ask politely and all the books in the world are at your fingertips.