Q. How do I find books in the Library?

Search for the book you need on the Library Website

1. Check which library building the book is located in. 

It will say here whether it is available at the university library, the Ross library or the NCFM Library  

2. Check that the book that you require is available to borrow. 

If the book is on loan to another user and there are no copies available to borrow, then you can reserve the next available copy.

3. Hopefully the book is showing as available, in which case you will need to find it on the shelves. To do this, make a note of the shelf mark - don’t forget to write down the number and letters from the shelf mark, as you will need them both. 

4. Make a note of the collection that the book belongs to, for instance, Oversize, Journals, Law or Local History. If your book is part of the Main collection, it could be any of our libraries, so it’s important to check the homesite first. 

It is also useful to note the title of the book, the author and the edition number. 

5. In the University Library all books with a shelf mark between 0 to 649 are on the first  floor.  

• Books numbered between 650 and 999 are on the second floor
• Journals, Oversized books and the Law collection are on the third floor
• The Local History collection, the DVD collection and a range of  dissertations and theses on the ground floor
• Biomedical and Health Science related books form part of the Main collection but are located in the Ross Library on the first floor of the Lincoln Medical School

6. When you reach the shelves, you will see that the books are in numerical order. At the end of each bookcase, you will see a sign telling you which numbered books are on that shelf

7. After finding the right shelf, start by finding the section that matches the first three numbers of the shelf mark that you are looking for.   

• 153.35 CSI

8. The next step is to look for the numbers after the decimal point on the shelf mark 

• 153.35 CSI

9. Now you can look for the three letters at the end of the shelf mark  

• 153.35 CSI

10. You may see your book easily, or you may need to identify the title of the book and the edition, as some collections have multiple editions and titles of the same shelf mark

If you have any questions or need any help locating any books in the library, please ask a member of staff at the Enquiries desk, who will be more than happy to help.

You can also watch our video below on how to find your book in the University Libraries, Brayford Campus