New On Campus Students

Welcome to the Library!

Hello and a very warm welcome from all of us here in the Library.

We know that finding your feet as a new student can be daunting, so we have put together some useful information about the Library and the type of services we provide.

If you want to know more, need some help, or if you just get stuck, please contact us.

Good Luck!

The Library Team


Study Areas

Library Tower

People studying in the libraryHead to the Library Tower if you are looking for a quiet space to read, work on projects, or access PCs and study space.

The Library is a great place to find peace and quiet away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the Campus. It’s a good spot to settle down to some serious individual study so we ask for voices to be kept low and chat to a minimum. If it gets noisy, the library staff will have a quick word – just let them know.

We now allow lidded drinks and cold food in the library, just take care not to spill!

Remember to keep your phone or other devices on silent and the volume on your headphones turned down low.

Group Study spaces

The Library is set up as a quiet and individual study space but the Student Union, located in the Riverside building, offers a more relaxed environment. It has a mixture of individual workspaces, PCs, group spaces and bookable project pods and rooms. Please visit the Student Union website for more information.

Zoom and Teams in the Library

If you need to attend a lecture on Zoom, Teams or any other platform, then please consider your level of participation before using a desk in the open spaces in the Library.

If your level of participation requires you to listen only and not speak then you're welcome to use a library desk to attend the lecture. Please ensure you're using headphones so as not to disturb other students.

If you're attending a lecture, meeting or tutorial where you'll need to speak then the Library open desks are not suitable. The whole of the Library is a quiet space and we don't permit the use of mobile phones. Speaking on a Zoom or Teams call is considered very similar to mobile phone usage in terms of noise. Rooms in the Student Union or the communal areas of buildings such as canteens will be more suited to your purpose.


Books and Journals

We have a large collection of printed books and journals which you can access from the Library. When you come to the Library Tower you will notice that each level is dedicated to particular subjects, to make things easier to find and keep organised.


Borrowing / Returning

Borrowing books is easy. The best way is to come to the Library and browse the shelves to find the most useful looking books. Library staff will be happy to help you find the right area of the library and search the catalogue. Alternatively you can place a hold using Library Search and we'll notify you when the items are ready to collect, although obviously this may take some time depending on staff availability.

Once you've chosen your book off the shelves or picked it up from our reception desk, just take it to one of the self-issue machines on Level 5, scan your student card and then the book. If you have several items which you would like to check out, put them all in. A receipt will emailed to you, and you can choose to print one off as well if necessary. This will confirm that the items have been checked out by you and the date they are due back. Don't worry if you lose the receipt, everything is synced with your Library account which you can check at any time. Log in with your normal RGU username and password.

To return books you can drop your items off at the Returns slot when you come into the Library. It's located just to the left of the entrance door. Pop your items in one at a time to have them removed from your Library account. If you're not coming up to the Library there's also a drop-box available in the foyer of the Sir Ian Wood Building from 0700-2300 Monday to Friday and 0900-2100 Saturday & Sunday.

Renewing

Do you need to keep an item longer than its original due back date? No problem!

 Automatic Renewals!

As long as your account is in good standing and no one else needs the book, it will be automatically renewed seven days before the due date. You can also renew it yourself earlier if you want to, using your library account.

Unfortunately you will not be able to renew items that have been requested by someone else. We will always let you know, via your RGU email, if any of your loans have been recalled.


Finding Stuff

Searching the Library Collections

So you want to find a book or a journal? The first place to go is LibrarySearch! This is where you will find valuable information about books and journals which we have on shelves, such as the level and shelf number so you can track down the items easily. Can't find something? Don't worry, we have library assistants on each level and they would be happy to help.

Remember that not everything in the catalogue exists on our shelves as printed copies. We have an extensive collection of e-books and e-journals which are freely available for students to access in a few clicks.

LibrarySearch is not only about finding stuff, you can also log in to your account, see what items you have on loan, place a hold on something you really need but is already borrowed, renew items and more!

 Reading Lists!

Remember, you can also access library content through your module reading lists, which contain essential and recommended reading for your modules.

Using Databases

You will hear us speak about searching databases, or your lecturers will refer you to databases to conduct your information gathering for assignments. Databases are just online tools which allow you to search and access academic journals on a variety of topics. They are provided by different suppliers, which the Library subscribes to.

We subscribe to numerous databases, covering all our courses. Here are only some of them, you will find a full list of suitable databases on our subject databases pages.

  SUBJECTS COVERED
Business Source Complete Business, Management, Accounting, Finance, Communication, Tourism & Hospitality and more
CINAHL with Full Text Nursing, Midwifery, Nutrition, Biomedical Studies, Pharmacy, Public Health, Social Work etc.
IEEE Xplore Computing and Engineering
Westlaw Law, Construction Law, Employment Law, Forensic Science, Journalism and more
ScienceDirect All courses
Web of Science All courses

Related Links


Referencing at RGU

Referencing is a critical aspect of writing any assignment and you will be asked to correctly reference all the sources and materials used in your work.

At RGU we use two main referencing styles, RGU Harvard and RGU Vancouver. The referencing style is depending on what your course requires, but Harvard is the most used.

We know referencing can be scary at first, especially if you haven't done it before, but not to worry! We are here to help with every aspect of referencing and have developed detailed guides for both styles.

Related Links


How The Library Can Help You

Academic success is more than just mastering your field of study. Developing key library-related skills will enhance your academic pursuits, research and lifelong learning. We support this through workshops, drop-ins, individual and small group appointments. These take place online (via MS Teams) or in-person, at the library.

We would like to encourage students to sign-up to our workshops, as they are great for learning something new, upskilling, or having a refresher.

Explore our timetable to book a session!

Online Support

We are here to help you even when you are away from campus. Please see our contact details below:

QUERY TYPE CONTACT INFORMATION
Referencing, RefWorks, LibrarySearch, Databases library.support@rgu.ac.uk or 01224 263450
All Library queries library@rgu.ac.uk or 01224 263450

You can also send us messages and queries on Instagram and Twitter and we will answer as soon as possible during our office hours:

 

Related Links

LIBRARY WORKSHOPS

Printing and Binding

How Do I Add Money to My Account?

You can top up online at https://rgu.uk.uniflowonline.com/#Dashboard

How Much Does it Cost?

There are different charges depending on the page size, whether you print black & white or double / single sided. Please be careful when you send the document to the printer, and select black & white to save yourself some money. If you have some pages in colour, you can choose to print only those in colour and the rest in black & white. Otherwise, if you select 'colour' for the entire document, you will be charged as if every page is printed in colour.

SINGLE-SIDED DOUBLE-SIDED
PAPER SIZE BLACK & WHITE COLOUR BLACK & WHITE COLOUR
A4 4p / sheet 20p / sheet 3p / side 18p / side
A3 8p / sheet 40p / sheet 8p / side 38p / side
MORE ABOUT STUDENT PRINTING

How Do I Print?

First make sure you send any print jobs to RGU Print, then go to any printer, scan your student card or type your PIN and select your document(s) then 'Print' or 'Print all'.

MORE ABOUT PRINTING AND SCANNING

Step 1

Swipe your student card

Step 2

You will see your account balance. Select OK

Step 3

Select the documents you want to print and select Print. Or, if you want everything printed, select Print All

Step 4

Don't forget to log out!

Binding

At some point during your time as a student you will be asked to print and bind assignments for submission. This usually happens for dissertations, but might be applicable for various other projects as well. We provide access to binding equipment and sell materials (contactless payments only please), just come to the Library and enquire at the Main Reception Desk on Level 5.


Library Opening Hours

The Library is currently open for Semester Opening Hours.

Our next period of 24/7 opening will be from 8am on Monday 8th April until 8pm on Friday 3rd May.


Semester Opening Hours
Monday - Thursday 08:00 - 22:30
Friday 08:00 - 20:00
Saturday 10:00 - 20:00
Sunday 10:00 - 20:00
Vacation Opening Hours
Monday - Thursday 09:00 - 21:00
Friday 09:00 - 17:00
Saturday 13:00 - 17:00
Sunday 11:00 - 18:00


Find out when the University and support buildings are open each day:

Building Opening Hours