westernoregonuniversity.info

Library

WOU's library is a great place to study, socialize and more. Here are 5 key ways in which we can help you succeed at WOU, whether you ever set foot in the building or not: (see the Library Virtual Tour)

1. Someone is available to help you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from wherever you are located.
   Think about it - you're at home, at the WUC, in your dorm room, one of the computer labs, or studying abroad - wherever you have Internet access you can use many of the resources that the library provides access to. You can even ask a question at any time. During library hours, WOU library staff are available using the widget on the library home page for instant help (You can also IM us directly from the major IM service providers: WOULibrary). After hours, our backup librarians provide IM help 24 hours a day. This means when it is 11 PM and you need to find an article for the paper that is due tomorrow, you don't have to trudge to the library, you only need to click and ask.

2. We can get it for you.
   If we don't have it, we can get it. It's a simple as that. Our catalog and databases are online and available from anywhere, any time. Searching these will let you know if you can find it in our building or online collections. If we don't have it, Summit, the shared catalog of most of the University and College libraries in Oregon and Washington, usually will. The great thing about Summit is that materials usually arrive in 2 or 3 days. If you need them sooner and are willing to drive, you can also visit any of the member libraries with your WOU ID and check stuff out there. If it isn't in Summit, we can still get it! WOU has partnerships with libraries around the world that let us borrow materials that we don't have. For articles, that usually means you will have a PDF sent to you within just a few days. For other materials (like books, CDs and DVDs) this process (called Interlibrary Loan) takes 7-10 days.
3. The Library is Digital
   Long gone are the days of flipping through magazines, trying to position a print journal on
   the copier just right so you copy the whole article, or squinting at a microfilm reader. The
   library loves the Internet and the Internet loves the library. Can’t make it to the library but
   you need to have a book source for your paper? No problem, ebrary Academic Complete
   contains more than 37,700 ebooks in 16 key subject areas. Couldn’t find the right source
   from our article databases. We also have the Directory of Open Access Journals. This
   provides access to 3789 free, full text, quality controlled scientific and scholarly journals.
   No doubt about it the library of tomorrow is here today.
   4. Space – Space – Space
   While you don’t need to come to the library to actually use the library, we have three
   good reasons why you might just stop by: space, space, and space. Are your roommates
   in the middle of a Guitar Hero world tour and you are trying to study for you economics
   exam? The library has comfortable sofas, poofy chairs, and study carrels to meet your
   studying needs. Have a study group that needs a place to meet? We have study rooms to
   accommodate four, six, eight, ten, or twelve people. And, don’t think that just because
   you are studying at the library that some bun haired librarian is going to tell you,
   “shush.” Our third floor is reserved for quite study; however, talking and conversation is
   allowed, even encouraged, on the first and second floors. We even have a student lounge
   that is open until 2:00 a.m. so you can have a place to study after the library closes for the
   night.
   5. Tutorials and Assignment Help
   With all the different research options available to you, the library’s resources can seem a
   bit overwhelming at first. Never fear….we provide many helpful tutorials to help you
   figure things out. These tutorials are available to you 24/7 so you can access them
   whenever you need them. We also work with your instructors to create class guides.
   These class guides provide you with a variety of library resources you can use to complete
   your assignments. Plus, the University Writing Center holds evening hours in the library
   so you can get help writing your papers.

We're planning to make the library even more useful and convenient for you. Some of our future plans include:

• A coffee shop and snack bar
• More spaces to study and more comfortable furniture to study on
• More online tutorials and resources to help with your learning
• Library pages to help with research for the specific classes you are enrolled in

Next Step - Take the see the Library Virtual Tour.

I Love the WOU Library

The Hamersly library is an information giant. What I like about the library is that there are so many ways to find articles, books, government document and other information...
December 17, 2008 | Comments (0) | Read more/comment

Great On Site Facilities and Inter Library Network of 36 other University Libraries

As an elementary education major here at WOU, I take full advantage of the books we have at our Hamersly Library. I find the books to be a well used...
December 17, 2008 | Comments (0) | Read more/comment

Library Computers

The computers in the library help us as students because they are a universal tool in the education system. For both traditional and non-traditional students, they allow access to...
December 17, 2008 | Comments (0) | Read more/comment

Library Main Page

WOU's library is a great place to study, socialize and more. Here are 5 key ways in which we can help you succeed at WOU, whether you ever set...
December 17, 2008 | Comments (0) | Read more/comment

Recent Entries

• I Love the WOU Library
• Great On Site Facilities and Inter Library Network of 36 other University Libraries
• Library Computers
• Library Main Page