Remember that there will be no Closed Access or Store collections on Bank Holiday Monday.
Closed Access collections will resume on Tuesday 7 May. The next Store collection will take place on Thursday 9 May.
For more information and detailed instructions on how to make Closed Access and Store requests, check out the ‘Requesting items from Store and Closed Access‘ information page or our Store items video guide.
Matthew Pearson, Library User Services
If you are graduating this summer then please don’t forget to return your loans and clear your account 
before you go. If you have any outstanding fines or bills you can pay online via the Campus Card Portal or at the Ground Floor Information Desk now situated in the Library@URS Building.
Before you leave don’t forget to return:
Save the pennies and avoid having any leftover money on your Campus Card at the end of your course. When you top-up your card via the Campus Card Portal there is now no minimum amount you have to spend. This means you can top-up exactly what you need to see you through to the end of term!
If you are interested in borrowing from the University Library after you graduate, annual Library membership is half-price at £45! Alternatively, if you are beginning a new course at UoR next session you can apply for membership over the summer for a reduced charge of £20. Registrations for membership can be made at the Ground Floor Information Desk in the URS Building.
Matthew Pearson, Library User Services
RUSU Disabled Students’ Officer, Blythe Varney was the first student to try out a glass lift. She loves these new bigger lifts because they can take bigger wheelchairs, have ‘a nice smooth ride and they’re a lot of fun to use’.
Library refurbishment continues to make good progress with the significant milestone of the first new lift and staircase becoming operational from today, Tuesday 23 April, with two more lifts coming very soon. This will improve accessibility to upper floors and enable work to start on removing the old lifts.
Use the new lift to reach group study space on the 1st Floor and all books and materials which remain available on the 3rd and 4th Floors. Meanwhile refurbishment continues on the closed 2nd and 5th Floors. Behind the hoardings, the demolition of the central staircase behind the old lifts is now complete. This will create space for print hubs on every floor and a silent study PC area on the 5th Floor.
The works involved in removing the old lifts may sometimes be noisy and disruptive. Alternative quiet and silent study spaces are available in the Library@URS building, as well as a variety of alternative study space options across campus. A guide to the availability of study space across the campus can be seen here: Study space update.
This refurbishment forms part of the University’s ambitious 2026: Transform capital investment programme, which focuses on improving campus facilities and supporting the student experience by the University’s 100th anniversary of its charter.
Rachel Redrup, Marketing Co-ordinator
for University Communications
We are currently experiencing problems with resources that we link to via DOI. A DOI (Digital Object Identifier) is a unique alphanumeric string that is used to identify content and provide a persistent link to its location on the internet. An example of a resource that links via DOI is this, http://idpproxy.reading.ac.uk/login?url=https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316338773.
Unfortunately one of our authentication methods is currently interfering with such linking and preventing users from accessing content. If you find a link with this problem it will take you to a webpage with a ‘Bad Gateway’ error message. This is affecting resources that are using our Proxy that link via DOI, and as such may appear in Talis, Enterprise or Summon. We are aware of the urgency of this problem and are working with the company that manages this authentication system to resolve the situation. In the meantime we have changed links in Talis and Summon so that they no longer authenticate with the proxy, these changes may take up to 48 hours to complete. Once on a platform you may need to login to a resource via the institutional sign in.
If you come across such an error message you can still access the resource by using our A-Z databases list to search for the platform the eBook or article is on, and then search the database using the title or author to find the resource.
I apologise for the inconvenience caused.
Lindsay Warwick, E-resources Team
The problems we were experiencing accessing international content and news content on Lexis Library have now been resolved.
You can now access these two platforms by using the links below.
For International content these are the new on campus and off campus links.
For News content these are the new on campus and off campus links.
We will be updating the Library website with the new links shortly. In the meantime please use the above links for access to Lexis’ international and news platforms. To access all other areas of the Lexis platform please use the links found on the A-Z database.
If you are still having any problems with access, please contact us at eresourceshelp@reading.ac.uk or submit an e-resources problem report form.
Thank you for your patience during this time.
Lindsay Warwick- E-resources Team
Get your requests in before our deadlines to collect items in time for the Easter closure that are not found on our subject floors!
Normal service will resume on Tuesday 23 April with the first Closed Access collection on that day and the first Store collection on Thursday 25 April.
For more information and detailed instructions on how to make Closed Access and Store requests, check out the ‘Requesting items from Store and Closed Access‘ information page or our Store items video guide.
Matthew Pearson, Library User Services
Despite opening extensive hours from Saturday 6 April until Friday 14 June, please note access restrictions to Library buildings. From Monday to Friday, Library space is reserved for University Campus and Library Card holders only. Visitors are only permitted at weekends with prior arrangement. This is to prevent disruption to our revising students from non-University members, right until their last exam is over.
We operate a ‘no card, no access policy’ and reserve the right to refuse access to anyone, including University members, who cannot identify themselves adequately.
You already need your campus card to enter the Library building at all times. You will also need your card to enter Library@URS after 17:00 and before 08:30 on weekdays, and all weekend. When other doors are locked, please enter by the right-hand doors of Library@URS. Card-holders gain automatic entry by placing their Campus Card on the ‘proximity reader’ beside the right-hand door.
6 April—14 June Members of the public without cards are only admitted on weekends, by prior appointment.
Regrettably, they may not use study spaces here as these are required by our own students revising for exams. Visitors are encouraged to look to their own school, college or public library for study space.
As always, our policy is that children in the Library must be accompanied by a responsible adult.
The Library Café will remain accessible throughout, but we apologise to visitors unable to use Café Libro during restricted periods.
Should your University Campus Card fail to open our doors with the card reader, please ask Campus Card Services to fix the fault via their Campus Card non-residential door access report form or email cardfinance@reading.ac.uk.
Whilst refurbishment works continue in the Library building this summer there will be some construction noise. Besides the quieter Library@URS building, UoR students can also use additional study space listed on the Library Refurbishment Project page.
Katie Winter, Trainee Liaison Librarian for
Sue Egleton, Associate Director (Systems & User Services)
This term the Library purchased access to the Kanopy Video Streaming service – it’s a huge collection of online videos including documentaries, films, and instructional videos. You can watch Kanopy videos online, on- and off-campus, and they’re all accessible through the Library here: https://www.reading.ac.uk/library/eresources/image-sound/lib-kanopy.aspx
Since the start of Spring Term, 874 of you have watched a total of 247 hours of content – mostly on Sunday or Monday nights… we won’t ask why!
These are the top 5 films that you’ve been watching, and their summary from Kanopy.
There’s a wide range of films available, as you can see from the list above. Take a look for yourself! You can browse by subject or topic, or search for a filmmaker or subject area to see what Kanopy has to offer.
Kim Coles, Liaison Team Manager
Simply tapping your Campus Card here will give you access to your Library account!
Soon you will no longer need to scan the barcode of your Campus Card to borrow items at our new Self-Service Points in the University Library.
Simply holding your Campus Card up to the mifare chip reader beneath the screen will allow you to borrow items and check the status of your account as normal.
Please note that the Self-Service Points in Course Collection will still require you to scan your Campus Card to be able to borrow items.
Our new Self-Service Points will be updated in the week commencing 1 April.
Matthew Pearson, Library User Services
With the Easter vacation approaching, make sure you know our upcoming opening hours and borrowing policies for the break!
Our opening hours will be changing over the Easter Vacation period.
Between Monday 1 and Friday 5 April the Library Building will be open from 09:00-17:00.
Between Monday 1 and Friday 5 April the Library@URS Building will be open from 08:30-19:00.
Between Saturday 6 and Tuesday 16 April we will revert to normal term-time opening hours.
Both Library buildings will be closed for the University Easter Closure between Wednesday 17 and Monday 22 April.
Please see our opening hours webpage for more information.
To help with all that revision over the break, it will be ‘business as usual’ with loan periods remaining the same in vacation as all term. However, no items will be due for return between Wednesday 17 and Monday 22 April; during the University closure period.
Please keep up to date with your Library account as due dates could change as items are recalled.
Please visit our website for more information.
Matthew Pearson, Library User Services.
The British Council’s Language for Resilience exhibitionruns until 29 March at Reading.
In partnership with the University, the British Council has brought the Language for Resilience exhibition to Reading. Running until 29 March, this free and public exhibition is hosted in the University Library building’s new exhibition space on its ground floor, created as part of the Library Refurbishment Project.
Based on research by the University’s Dr Tony Capstick and in collaboration with international institutions across the Middle East, Africa, EU and Americas, this interactive exhibition demonstrates the ways language is used to build resilience among the millions of people that have been displaced from their homes by conflict and civil unrest.
Language learning is imperative to helping refugees and communities overcome miscommunications and social barriers. This exhibition is a valuable opportunity to understand the challenges associated with building resilience, and gives a voice to the young people and adults who deserve to have their stories heard.
The Language for Resilience exhibition celebrates items used in teaching languages as well as people involved.
Refugees displaced by conflict often find themselves far from home, without essential language skills for even basic communication, which hinders the education and career opportunities for both themselves and their children. The exhibition aims to break down barriers by protecting the use of refugee’s home languages and allowing refugee communities to integrate with their host communities so they can feel valued within their new society. Building language resilience will reduce isolation and play a huge role in helping create a safe space for refugees to address the trauma caused by their displacement.
As it stands, only 1 to 5 percent of young refugees are currently enrolled in a university programme in their host countries. Improving language skills will allow more refugees to access the information required to progress in the education system and start to rebuild their lives.
For more information please visit the project Language for Resilience website. To learn more about language and migration research at the University of Reading, please visit the Centre for Literacy and Multilingualism.
Rachel Redrup, Marketing Co-ordinator with Tim Yates, Marketing Communications and Engagement Team
Easter’s coming up fast, and you’re probably still completing assignments for the end of term. Exams might still seem a long way off now but they’ll be here before you know it. It’s a good time to start thinking about your revision – and the Library and Study Advice are here to help.
It’s important to have a plan, to make sure you have time to cover all the topics you need to. Avoid making your revision plan too detailed and prescriptive though – you will need to build in time for relaxation, exercise – and the unexpected!
The Study Advice guide on preparing for exams includes tips for planning your revision, including how to work out your revision schedule. You might also find our video tutorials on time management helpful – we have tips on planning and avoiding procrastination, for instance.
You will probably start by reading through your lecture notes, and then looking at texts on your reading list. The Library has guidance on finding different types of publication as well as videos that will help you to get the most out of the Library.
You should also check the subject resources and guidance for information resources in your topic – much more reliable than ‘just Googling it’. And remember that, whether you’re revising on or off campus, our ebooks and ejournals are accessible 24/7.
It’s good to think about the place that you study best. Some students prefer to study at home or in Halls, and 24/7 access to e-resources makes this a viable option without taking mountains of books home. If you do this, make sure you make a schedule and stick to it – it’s easy to watch just one more episode of that box set!
Many students prefer to study in the Library, and study spaces will be available in the URS Building and the Library as usual. However it’s worth considering some of the other places to study on campus; being somewhere different may help you to avoid distractions. Or consider other places off-campus like public libraries. Going to a new place that you’ve identified as a ‘place to do revision’ can help you to focus.
Wherever you revise, remember to take breaks. Library@URS may be open 24 hours but that doesn’t mean you have to work through the night – your brain needs rest and time for processing information.
If you can find six minutes in your busy schedule, you have enough time to watch the Study Advice video tutorial on effective revision – and save yourself a lot of wasted time. Our guide on preparing for exams also has tips on revision and memory techniques. If you’re taking exams in the UK for the first time, have a look at our information on assessment by examination in UK higher education to give you a clearer idea of how they may differ from what you have done in the past.
Remember that the purpose of revision is not to memorise everything you can find about the subject, but to prepare yourself to answer exam questions. Check the Past Paper archive on the Exams Office website to find examples of questions for your modules which you can use to write practice answers – to time and by hand, ideally. We have a Study Seminar on Writing for University Exams on Wed 20 March 2019, 2-3pm in Edith Morley G25 – no need to book. And have a look at our video tutorials on exams for guidance on the best way to prepare for different kinds of exams.
This is one of a series of tips to help you save time and effort finding or using information.
This tip was written by Kim Shahabudin, Michelle Reid, Sonia Hood and Linda Shroeder (Study Advice team).
