Frequently Asked Questions

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Library User Services

How can I reserve a Group Study Room?

Group Study Rooms may be reserved by enrolled students. Go to library home page. Click on "Reservations" then "Group Study Rooms." This service is not available to non-students.

How do I access Blackboard from the library web site?

Go to the library home page. Click on the Blackboard icon in the tab menu bar near the top of the page.

How do I find a research Subject Page for my subject?

Go to the library home page at http://www.lib.byu.edu.
The "Find Articles" cascade window will be open by default. Under the "Still Stuck" heading in the cascade window click on "Subjects A-Z. "
Choose your subject from the alphabetical list of subjects.
Some narrow topics may require using a broader Subject Page: i.e. the Psychology Subject Page can be used for researching all behavioral science topics.

What is Course Reserve and how do I access Electronic Reserve?

The Lee Library maintains course reserve collections to support the university's academic programs. Class related materials such as books, book chapters, articles, sample exams, problem sets, lecture notes, compact discs, etc. may be placed on Course Reserve.

Students can access circulating Course Reserve materials by bringing the call number to the Circulation Desk during library hours. To facilitate 24-hour access to reserve materials, the Lee Library provides an electronic course reserve service.

Electronic Reserve is an online collection of articles, book chapters, weblinks, sample papers, class syllabi, course material call numbers. In order to use the Electronic Reserve you need a password. You should have received this from your instructor for each class.

Once you have the password, click on "Services" from the library home page, then click on "Electronic/Course Reserve". Click on "BYU ERes: Electronic Reserve." Select "Electronic Reserves and Course Materials." Now find your class by one of four methods: department, instructor's name, course name, or course number. Scroll to the course and click on the course name. The next screen will ask you for the password your instructor gave you. Enter this password and click "Accept." This will take you to a list of items the instructor has on circulating and electronic reserve.

How can I see a list of the books I have checked out?

Go to the library home page.
Click on "Services."
Select "Renew Materials."
Login then click on "Review My Account."

Can I renew books online?

Yes. Click on the "Services" option on the library home page.
Select "Renew Materials."
Log in then click on "Renew My Materials."
Renewals must be made before the due date.

Click on the "Services" option on the library home page. Select "Renew Materials" Renew Materials Click on the link corresponding to your status then scroll down to "Overdue fines".

How do I place a hold and what is a recall?

BYU students, faculty and staff can place a hold at the Circulation Desk or online from the library catalog. All other library patrons can place a no-recall hold at the Circulation Desk. Contact the Circulation Desk (Level 3) 422-6061 with any questions.

Hold
As soon as the book is returned to the library it will be set aside for you and you will be notified by email. You will then have 7 days to come to the Circulation Desk and check it out. You may have up to 3 holds at a time.

Recall
When a recall is placed, a notification (recall) is sent to the patron who currently has the book checked out. The current user is required to return the book by the date specified in the recall notice (usually within 7 days).

Can I check out books from other university libraries?

BYU students, staff, emeriti and faculty are authorized to check out library materials at any Utah Academic Library Consortium member library.

Library privileges may be obtained by showing valid campus identification or by presenting legal photo identification and proof of current registration.

Borrowers are responsible to comply with the lending library's circulation policies. Items may be returned to the lending library or to the Lee Library Interlibrary Loan Office. See UALC webpage for participating libraries and links to their online catalogs

If I am not affiliated with BYU what services may I use?

You may come to the library in person and use many of the print and online collections, databases and other electronic resources with a Guest Login available at the Information Commons Desk on Level 3. Otherwise many online resources are restricted to BYU affiliated persons. You are always welcome to use any online source that does not ask for a Net ID and password.

In addition, anyone can apply to become a Friend of the Library. Friends enjoy the benefits of circulation privileges and access to selected databases as well as several additional features. The details about becoming a Friend can be found on the library web site. From the home page at http://www.lib.byu.edu click on the For Donors tab in the top menu bar. You will find all the details on the new page that opens. To see a list of the databases available to Friends of the Library click on Member Benefits. There are contractual agreements preventing some databases from being available to everyone yet the list of databases for Friends grows yearly. We welcome you as a Friend of the Library.

If I am not affiliated with BYU may I borrow a book from the BYU Library using interlibrary loan?

Yes, find a local public or university library in your area that has a reciprocal borrowing agreement with the Harold B. Lee Library and work through their Interlibrary Loan office. Give them as much information as you can about the item. They will take care of the details.

If necessary, you may give the librarian the contact information of the ILL lending department in the Lee Library. They can be reached via email (ill-byu@byu.edu), telephone (801-422-4155) or fax (801-422-0471). Please do not try to contact them yourself. They will respond only to requests from libraries.

Library Catalog and Databases

Can I access databases from home?

The majority of databases are available off-campus to current faculty, staff and students using their Net ID and password. To verify off-campus access go to the library home page. Click on "Find Articles" then "Databases A-Z." Use the legend on the top right of the page to determine availability.

How do I get a copy of a journal article?

Print journals can be found on level 2 in the periodicals room. Copy machines are available.

Electronic journals can be accessed online.(see next question) If the article is not available electronically or in print you can request it using Interlibrary Loan Interlibrary Loan (ILL).

A document delivery service for journal articles is available to BYU faculty and faculty research assistants through the ILL website. If you have a problem filling out your request, or have any other questions, call the Interlibrary Loan office at 422-6344. Remember, the document delivery service is available ONLY to faculty and faculty research assistants.

Does the library have full text electronic access to the journal I'm looking for?

To find out go to the library home page.
Click on the "Find Articles" option.
Click on "Journal Finder (Print and Electronic)."
When the Journal Finder window opens, type the journal title in the search box or click on the beginning letter of your journal from the alphabetical list and choose either the "starts with" "contains" or "exact" radio button.
Select the journal you are looking for in the "journal title" results list.
A new window will open listing all the full-text online options for the journal with the years of coverage available for each. There will also be an entry for the print version of the journal if the library has print copies available in the periodicals room on Level 2.

Where is your digital media collection?

Go to the library home page.
Find the set of lavender tabs at the right hand side of the page titled "Unique BYU Collections."
Click on "Digital Collections at BYU."
Choose one of the genre tabs at the top of the new page or click on "All Collections" to see all digital collections listed together.

How can I find a master's thesis or dissertation by a BYU student?

Go to the library home page.

If you know the author or title of the thesis, select Library Catalog and then Alphabetic Search to search the catalog.

If you do not know an author or title, select Library Catalog and then Advanced Keyword Search. You will see several rows of three boxes each.

First Row
Be sure the first box says "keyword anywhere." If it doesn't, change it by clicking on the down arrow. In the next box, type "thesis or dissertation". (If you want only a thesis or only a dissertation, you may use only the one word. If you want either, be sure to use both words with the OR in the middle.) Be sure the last box is set to "and." If not, change it.

Second Row
Be sure the first box says "keyword anywhere." If it doesn't, change it by clicking on the down arrow. In the next box, type "byu or brigham young university". Be sure the last box is set to "and." If not, change it.

Third Row
Be sure the first box says "keyword anywhere." If it doesn't, change it by clicking on the down arrow. In the next box, type any word or words that describe your topic. Hit the "Search" button.

If you cannot find what you need, contact a reference desk for additional help.

Who can I contact about family history resources?

Begin with this link to the web site for the Family History/Genealogy Resources (located in the Lee Library). Here you will find a wide range of resources, a list of classes offered by the center staff, links to other genealogical sites, and other valuable information. The Religion/Family History Reference Desk can be reached at 801-422-6200.

For personal help, go to your local Family History Center. Friendly and knowledgeable people there can guide you through the research process and can order material from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For the location of the nearest Family History Center, look in the white pages of your local telephone book under "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."

You may also find a Family History Center in your area by using the official LDS Church web site. Click on "Family History," then "Find a Family History Center Near Your Home".

Finding your Ancestors, a tutorial developed by BYU, will help you learn how to search for your ancestors. It teaches you about different databases that will help you find information and provides free access to the Personal Ancestral File (PAF) that is available to download.