Interlibrary Loan Service

Please note that physically delivered items (ie, books) are not currently available, due to budget limitations.

Service has been expanded to ALL faculty, including part-time line faculty and adjuncts as well as all students, Graduate and Undergraduate. 

• New: Interlibrary loan video how-to
• What is interlibrary loan?
• Am I eligible?
• What can I borrow?
• How to request an item
• How to renew an item
• Interlibrary loan FAQ

What is interlibrary loan?

Interlibrary loan is a service that allows members of one library to borrow books, journal articles and other materials from other libraries.

Note: The college does not obtain or ship books outside the continental U.S.

Eligibility to use interlibrary loan:

• Graduate students, Undergraduate students, all faculty and staff are eligible to use interlibrary loan; if you are not eligible, there may be alternatives.

Available through interlibrary loan:

• electronic book chapters
• electronic journal, magazine and newspaper articles

Not available through interlibrary loan:

• materials that have to be delivered physically
• textbooks
• multivolume sets
• government documents
• theses and dissertations
• rare books
• archival materials
• microfilm/microfiche
• software

Request an item:

Ebook chapters and online versions of articles can be requested directly from the library's Article Databases or OneSearch on the library homepage. 

You can also follow these steps: 

1. First, check to see if the item you want is available through the Empire State College Online Library; use E-Journals A-Z to check for the journal containing the article and E-book Search to check books.
2. If you haven't registered already, click "Register;" if you already are registered, skip to step 4.
3. Complete your information and submit the form.
4. Go back and click the log-in link.
5. Enter the citation information for the item you want and submit the form.
6. Watch for notification emails.

Renew an item:
Renewals are not required for electronically delivered items. Physically delivered items are not currently available.

1. In the left column of the page, click "Checked Out Items".
2. Select the item you wish to renew by clicking the appropriate transaction number to the left of the item's title; you will see detailed information about the item.
3. Check at the bottom of the page to see if renewals are allowed.
4. If renewals are allowed, click "Request Renewal" at the top-right corner of the screen.

Note: Renewals are not allowed after the initial due date or for recalled items; for some items, they are not allowed at all.

Return envelope:

Return envelopes are not necessary for electronically delivered items. Physically delivered items are not currently available.

• If you need a new return envelope, please fill out the Ask a Librarian Form with your mailing address and identify what you will put in the envelope. 

Note: Do not write, highlight or fold pages in the books that you borrow. You will have to pay for damages.