Frequently Asked Questions
What types of material are available in the libraries?
Both libraries collect in all media: books, periodicals, audio and video cassettes.
We collect in several languages, with a particular emphasis on Spanish.
We also subscribe to many electronic databases which provide citations and even
full-text resources. When you need
an article or book which the library does not own, we can borrow it for you from
another library. This service is
called an inter-library loan. Request forms are always available on or near the
circulation desk.
What is the difference between the reference collection and
the circulating collection?
Titles in the reference collection cannot be checked out of the
library. The reference collection
consists of dictionaries, general and subject-specific encyclopedias,
concordances, handbooks, almanacs, indexes and many other types of material
which can help to answer questions or point you in the right direction.
I attended library orientation sessions, but so much
information was covered that I’m still not really comfortable finding my way
around the library. Is someone available to help?
It takes lots of practice to learn how to do library
research well. You are not expected to master the process in just 4 hours of
instruction. The librarian is a
guide whose job it is to find and acquire appropriate materials in various
formats and languages, organize those items for ease of access, and teach
students and faculty how to find what they need in the most efficient way
possible. We expect you to need
help and you can expect us to respond promptly to your questions. You are also welcome to make an appointment with the
librarian if you need to consult on an extensive research project, such as a master’s thesis.
I have a topic for a paper I’m going to write, but I
don’t know where to begin.
Often, a good place to start is with a subject-specific
encyclopedia. Students who are new
to college are often not aware of the existence and usefulness of this type of
encyclopedia. For instance, two of
the best resources for seminarians are The Catholic Encyclopedia and The
Encyclopedia of Religion. If
you have an idea for a paper topic, look it up in an appropriate encyclopedia
for general background and an initial bibliography.
(Good encyclopedias often have brief bibliographies at the end of each
article.) The encyclopedia is not to be used as the foundation for your paper,
but it can be a good stepping-off point.
How do
I find a book when I don’t know the author or title?
When you don’t know exactly which book you need, you
will have to search by either subject heading or keyword.
Subject headings are a controlled vocabulary, much like the Yellow Pages
in the phonebook. For example, if
you are searching for books on the topic of drug use in sports, you could do a
keyword search, combining the words drug and sports.
Or you can search by the subject heading which is doping in
sports. Subject headings
are not always intuitive, but when you find the correct SH, you can do a much
more focused search.
How do I
figure out what the subject heading is?
In many cases, you will need to ask the librarian for
help. A simple way to figure out
the SH is to find an appropriate title using a keyword search, then check the
subject headings at the bottom of that record.
If you have one book on a particular subject and want to find more,
another easy way to find the SH is to check the Library of Congress cataloging
record (called the cip—cataloging in publication) in the front of the
book.
Once I find
the call numbers, how do I locate the books?
The call numbers are assigned to books according to
their subject so that they can be arranged on the shelves in categories which make
browsing easy. Call numbers which fall into these ranges: B -- BJ1100
and C -- T are shelved in the philosophy library. The rest of the
collection is in the theology library.
How do
I find articles?
To find an article, you need an index, either print or
electronic. Indexes are compiled
for a large number of periodicals in specific academic fields.
For instance, psychologists use Psych Info.
Historians of religion will use the Religion Indexes.
One of the most useful indexes for seminarians is the Catholic
Periodical and Literature Index (CPLI) which is available online.
This index contains citations to journal articles, not full-text
articles. Once you have the
citation (author, article title, journal title, publication date, pagination),
you then check the library’s periodical holdings to see if we own that
particular issue. If we do not, you
will need to request the article through inter-library loan.
What is a
scholarly journal?
Many times, professors will tell students to use
articles only from scholarly journals. And
many times, students come to the library in a state of confusion.
A scholarly journal is usually easy to identify.
Typically, there are no advertisements; articles are signed and have
footnotes and bibliographies; the articles are written for an audience of
specialists in various disciplines; they often contain book reviews.
When in doubt, ask your professor or the librarian.
The terms journal and periodical are often used
interchangeably by librarians.
My professor has put some reading on reserve in the library.
How can I find it?
Reserve items are kept near the circulation desk. They may be checked out for 2-hour intervals.
The student on duty on the weekend couldn’t help me find
material for my paper. When can I talk to a librarian?
The
director of libraries, Pat Lyons, is available during normal working hours
(8:30am - 5pm). When
the librarian is not on campus, reference questions may be left with the
assistant at the circulation desk, or you may leave a voice mail or e-mail
message. You
will be contacted on the next business day.
I’d like to suggest a book for the library’s collection.
Can I do that?
Certainly. You
can submit the request directly to the librarian or through a
professor.
