Holiday Library Update

In less unusual times, we know that many of our students would be heading away from SGUL right now to enjoy a few weeks’ holiday; and while it’s easy lately for the days and weeks to blend into one, we hope that everyone does get a chance to take some time off over the coming weeks (even if our entertainment options these days are a little different than in the past).

That said, we know that many of you will also be working to stay on top of your studies. With that in mind, here are three quick reminders of some of the ways your library can help.

1. Access online resources with your SGUL password

Hunter allows you to search a huge collection of online journal articles that you can access with your SGUL login. For tips on finding articles in Hunter, check the Hunter FAQs.

Or browse a list of learning resources – including HSTalks for lecture videos, Cite them Right for referencing help, our most popular online resource BMJ Best Practice, and many more – that can also be accessed with your SGUL login.

Help with offsite access

Our quick video shows you the easiest way to log in to journals and other online resources when you’re offsite. There’s also a PDF helpsheet to guide you through the process.

If you’re having problems logging in to any of our journals or online resources, let us know at journals@sgul.ac.uk. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.

Resetting your SGUL password

You can reset your SGUL password here, as long as you’ve registered an alternate email address; if you haven’t done this yet, contact the Student Life Centre to set one up.

If you have problems resetting you password, email ITAV@sgul.ac.uk.

2. Explore e-books

There are now over 3000 e-books available in Hunter – so whatever your topic, it’s quite likely there’s an e-book that can help. To find out, search in Hunter for Books and more; then select Online Resources in the filter at the left to see which titles you can access straight away using your SGUL login.

See our short video on finding and accessing e-books in Hunter.

Use the Online Resources filter to see e-books only

Temporary access to extra e-books

A number of publishers are making their e-book collections freely available during the Covid-19 health crisis – so you may be able to view e-books now that you wouldn’t usually be able to access.

From Monday 13th April you’ll be able to access all of these through Hunter while free access lasts. For now, you can log in to publishers’ websites to see what’s available and start reading. Try:

• E-book Central from Proquest – access to titles from 150 publishers until mid-June
• LWW Health Library – e-books and videos in a range of medical disciplines until 22nd May
• ScienceDirect Textbooks from Elsevier – 256 textbooks available until 10th June

For a full list of these offers – as well as a growing collection of free resources on Covid-19 – check the new list in our Databases A-Z. We’re updating this list as new resources become available.

Borrowed books?

We’ve suspended holds for now, so you won’t be asked to return any books you’ve borrowed until further notice. Books will continue to renew automatically.

3. Get 1-2-1 help from a librarian

Working from home

The library team may now be working from kitchens, bedrooms, sitting-rooms and a few other places besides – but we’re as committed as always to getting you the information, research and referencing help you need.

We continue to provide 1:1 support for everyone at St George’s. To make an appointment, please email us at liaison@sgul.ac.uk. In these unusual circumstances, we use Microsoft Teams to guide you through the databases and answer any questions you might have.

We are focusing our efforts on developing online material on Canvas and helping you make the most of our e-resources. For any queries or help needed email us at liaison@sgul.ac.uk. We are happy to help!

Holiday Checklist

Wherever you plan to be over the holidays, your SGUL library membership can help you keep studying. Check our three quick tips below to help you make the most of our resources no matter where you are.

1. Reset your SGUL password

Your SGUL login and password give you access to a huge range of online resources – including e-journals and e-books and tools such as Acland’s Anatomy, BMJ Best Practice and Cite Them Right – from anywhere with an internet connection. So you probably don’t want to find your password has expired when you’re 200 (or 2000) miles from campus.

To avoid this, we recommend resetting your password before you leave SGUL to ensure it won’t expire for another three months. Use the password change link, or drop in and see us at the Library Helpdesk between 8am and 6pm on weekdays.

Forgotten/expired password?

If your password does expire while you’re away – or you’ve forgotten it – you may be able to reset it using this link. For this to work, you must have previously registered a personal email address, and you can do that here (current login required).

2. If you’ve borrowed books, keep an eye on renewals

Any books that you’ve borrowed will renew automatically as long as no-one else requests them. So in most cases, the only reminder you’ll receive is an email telling you that your items have successfully renewed.

But if one of your books is requested by another user, you’ll receive an email and will need to try and return it by the due date if possible.

Due dates – good news!

All books that renew on or after 17th December will have an earliest due date of 2nd January. Three-week loan books are already renewing until January.

If you’re unable to return a recalled book by the due date…

…we recommend signing in to your account in Hunter where you can attempt to renew it manually. If another copy of the book has been returned, your renewal will succeed – so try this over several days to increase your chances.

Find more detailed guidance in our blog post here.

 

3. Register to study in a library near you

SGUL Library is a member of the SCONUL access scheme, allowing our users reference access to over 170 other university libraries across the UK and Ireland. (Postgraduates may also get limited borrowing rights in some cases.)

To start using the scheme, follow the steps on the SCONUL Access page. Within a few days*, and provided there are no fines on your Library account, you’ll receive an email from us which you can take to your chosen library along with your SGUL ID for access.

Free WiFi with Eduroam

Like SGUL, many universities in the UK and worldwide use Eduroam for WiFi. If you’re visiting another university – or just passing nearby – you’ll often pick up the network on a WiFi-enabled phone or laptop and will be able to connect using your SGUL username (remember to include @sgul.ac.uk) and password.

*We’ll be unable to reply to SCONUL requests from 21st December to 1st January inclusive. If you plan to visit another library during this period, we also recommend checking opening dates on their website.

 

Summer Holiday Checklist

Planning to be away from SGUL over the next few months? We’ve put together three quick tips that we hope will help keep your studies going smoothly over the summer.

1. Reset your SGUL password

Resetting your password before you leave campus ensures it won’t expire for the next three months. Use the password change link, or drop in to the Library Helpdesk between 8am and 6pm on weekdays.

Forgotten/Expired password?

If your password does expire while you’re away, you may be able to reset it from offsite using this link.

Note: you must have already set up an external email address and if you don’t receive the reset link, check your junk mail folder.

Access e-resources with your SGUL login

Your SGUL login and password give you access to a wide range of online resources – including electronic journals, e-books and tools such as Acland’s Anatomy and BMJ Best Practice – from anywhere with an internet connection.

Check our helpsheet (PDF) for advice about accessing e-resources while you’re away from SGUL.

2. Keep an eye on book renewals

Any books that you’ve borrowed will renew automatically as long as no-one else requests them. So in most cases, the only reminder you’ll receive is an email telling you that your items have successfully renewed.

But if one of your books is requested by another user, you’ll receive an email asking you to return it by the due date.

If your book is requested while you’re away from SGUL…

…you will still need to return it by the due date if possible. Overdue books are fined at 20p per day and are invoiced after two weeks.

But if you’re unable to return a book by the due date, we recommend signing in to your account in Hunter where you can attempt to renew it manually. If another copy of the book has been returned, your renewal will succeed – so try this over several days to increase your chances.

Find more detailed guidance in our blog post here.

3. Register to study in a library near you

SGUL Library is a member of the SCONUL access scheme, allowing our users reference access to over 170 other university libraries across the UK and Ireland. (Postgraduates may also get limited borrowing rights in some cases.)

To start using the scheme, follow the steps on the SCONUL Access page. Within a few days, and provided there are no fines on your Library account, you’ll receive an email from us which you can take to your chosen library along with your SGUL ID card to apply for access.

Free WiFi with Eduroam

Like SGUL, many universities in the UK and worldwide use Eduroam for WiFi. If you’re visiting another university – or just passing nearby – you’ll often pick up the network on a WiFi-enabled phone or laptop and will be able to connect using your SGUL username (remember to include @sgul.ac.uk) and password.

Holiday Checklist

Going to be away from SGUL over the next few weeks? We’ve put together three quick tips that we hope will help with any studying you plan to do, no matter where you are.

1. Reset your SGUL password
2. Bring books to the library to renew
3. Register to study in a library near you

1. Reset your SGUL password

With your SGUL login and password, you can use our journals and e-books, and online resources such as Acland’s Anatomy from anywhere with internet access.

We recommend you reset your password before you leave as this ensures you won’t need to change it again for 3 months.

If your password expires or you’ve forgotten it, you can usually reset it from offsite. Note: you must have already set up an external email address and if you don’t receive the reset link, check your junk mail folder.

If you’re using Hunter to find resources, signing in first with your SGUL password will make it quicker and easier to access journals and e-books from offsite. Read more about the advantages of signing in to Hunter in our blog post.

2. Bring books to the Library to renew

Return and reissue your books to extend your renewal limit

Books and other items you have borrowed from us will now be automatically renewed 10 times, unless another library user has requested them.

To make sure you don’t reach your 10 renewal limit while you’re away from SGUL, we recommend bringing items into the Library so you can return and reissue them on our self-service machines before you leave.

3. Register to study in a library near you

SGUL Library is a member of the SCONUL scheme, which allows our users reference access to around 170 other university libraries across the UK and Ireland. Postgraduates may also get limited borrowing rights in some cases.

To use the scheme,  follow the steps on the SCONUL Access page. Within a few days, and provided there are no fines on your Library account, you’ll receive an email from us which you can take to your chosen library along with your SGUL ID card to apply for access.

Like SGUL, many academic institutions in the UK and worldwide use Eduroam for WiFi. If  you are near a university and have WiFi enabled on phone or laptop, you should immediately pick up the network. If you are using Eduroam for the first  time, remember to enter your full SGUL username (including @sgul.ac.uk) and password.

Our website library.sgul.ac.uk is a great jumping off point for accessing the services and resources mentioned in this post.