Borrowing

Loan Periods and Limits

Requests

Place a hold online through OneSearch or with someone at the front counter and you will be notified via your Office 365 when it's available. Allow a couple of days transit if the available item is at the other campus.

If the item you need is currently signed out for the semester, we will request that book be returned on your behalf. We guarantee a minimum two weeks with an item before it is recalled and the user has five days to return the requested material.

At the Coquitlam campus available items are kept for pick-up on a self-serve shelf in the public area near the front desk for a maximum of five days. At the New Westminster campus, just ask for your item at the front counter.

Rush Requests

Items with a status of "in process" or "on order" may be rushed through Technical Services by request. Place a hold on the item via OneSearch but keep in mind we can never be sure when an "on order" item may arrive. Example entry for a rush request:

1 copy being processed for Upper Level - New West
1 copy on order for Lower Level - Coquitlam

Renewals

• Renew online
• By phone: 604-527-5568 (New Westminster) or 604-777-6130 (Coquitlam)
• In person

Items on which recalls or bookings have been placed may not be renewed and must be returned by the due date to avoid fines.
 

Returns

Books can be returned 24/7 to either campus library but equipment must be returned to the campus from which it was borrowed.

When the Library is closed outside of our regular hours, contact a guard at the Security booth and they will arrange to open the front door so you can leave your media equipment securely in the foyer. Please do not return equipment through the external book drops or leave it unattended. 

End of Semester Returns

If materials are not returned by the final day of the semester the library will issue a replacement bill in addition to any fines that may have accrued.

Library users who have long overdue materials from the previous semester will have their name submitted to a collection agency by the Finance Office. If you have questions or concerns about the status of your library account, email us at library@douglascollege.ca.

Book Drop Locations

There is an internal book return bin at the front desk of both campus libraries as well as three external book return bins. See the location maps of one at Coquitlam and two at New Westminster. 

Coquitlam

Located outside the west entrance of the College, between the Security booth and the Library.

New Westminster 

There is one book return down the hallway to the left of the Library's front doors...

...and another in the back shipping bay accessible via 7th Street.

Fines

Fines are charged to encourage borrowers to return material on time. There are a limited number of materials which must be shared by a wide range of users and many reserve materials are required for course use. Fines can be paid in person or over the phone using a credit card, but we no longer accept cash. * Library privileges will be suspended when a borrower owes $10.00 or more.

Replacement Fees

These fees may seem high but, in fact, they do not truly reflect the cost to the Library of purchasing another copy and processing it so that it can go back on the shelves. Many valuable books are no longer in print. The Library would prefer to get all materials back, rather than try to replace them.

A full refund will be given for items that are later recovered. As a general practice, no refunds will be issued to patrons after the two-year period, however, at the discretion of the Collections Librarian, refunds may be granted. No refunds are provided on lost and found high demand items. Please see the full Access Policy for more information. 

Course Reserves

Items your instructor would like the class to read for their course are sometimes placed on short term loan at the front desk. This may include textbooks, articles, or other supplemental readings Faculty have requested we add to our collection. We do not by default order textbooks for all classes offered, only a select few high demand ones.

Guidelines

• Most course reserve items sign out for 4 or 24 hours and they are first come, first served. A hold cannot be placed on these items. 
• Students may borrow up to two items at a time and the return time is exact. A $1.00 fine per hour or part of an hour is assessed when an item is returned late. 
• To ensure fairness, reserve items cannot be renewed immediately. Patrons must wait 15 minutes before checking out the same reserve item again.

Interlibrary loans

Students and employees of Douglas College may borrow books, journal articles, and videos/DVDs/Blu-Rays from other libraries. Due to budgetary limitations, the number of interlibrary loan requests processed for any one user may be restricted.

• Books - normally filled within 10-14 days
• Articles - normally filled within 3-10 days
• Videos, DVDs & Blu-Ray - require a week's notice

Submit a Request
 

Contact

Illume Partner libraries

The Douglas College Library ILL Policy Page URL is https://library.douglascollege.ca/ILLPolicy

A full list of partner policy pages is hosted on Illume's website.

Guidelines & Regulations

• Check the discovery platform OneSearch or Ask a Librarian for assistance to make sure that the item you need is not already available at Douglas College. Items already in our library and required textbooks may not be borrowed through interlibrary loan. Requests are limited to materials in support of work or studies undertaken at the College.
   
• You will be contacted when the interlibrary loan is available for pick-up.
   
• In general, books must be returned within two weeks after our library receives them, however, one renewal may be allowed depending on the lending library's ILL policy. Books should be returned to the Douglas College Library. Email interlibrary loans or phone 604-527-5197 to see if your interlibrary loan can be renewed.
   
• Photocopies of periodical articles do not need to be returned.
   
• In compliance with copyright legislation, no more than 10% of a book or journal may be photocopied. More information about the use of copyrighted materials is available via the College Use of Copyrighted Works document.
   
• See the full ILL policy. 

Borrowing In-Person at Other Universities and Colleges

Who May Borrow
Douglas College students and employees may borrow materials from participating institutions, though reciprocal borrowing privileges are not extended to alumni or extramural borrowers.

Requirements
You must present a current Douglas College photo identification card when you apply to receive a library card with one of our reciprocal borrowing institutions. A COPPUL card is not required at these institutions. Restrictions to borrowing may exist.

Responsibilities and Fines
Library patrons are held accountable for all materials borrowed through the Reciprocal Borrowing agreement. It is the responsibility of the patrons to be familiar with and adhere to the lending policies of each library from which they borrow materials.

Any overdue fines and replacement costs for lost or damaged books will be charged to the patron by the lending library.

External Users Borrowing from Douglas

Douglas College Library extends free reciprocal borrowing to students and employees from other BC public post-secondary libraries. Picture ID, proof of current registration or employment, and current address are required to apply for a library card. COPPUL cards from students of Douglas College's out-of-province partnership agreement institutions are also accepted.

• Reciprocal borrowing is available for most circulating items in the collection with the exception of equipment, audio visual, and reserve materials.
• Borrowers may sign out up to five items at a time.
• Videos and DVDs are to be used in the Library only.
• An intercampus transfer of an available book may be requested, but holds can not be placed on checked out items.
• Library privileges expire at the end of each semester and need to be renewed.
• Access to electronic resources and interlibrary loans is only available through your own school library.

Reciprocal Borrowing Libraries

Douglas College students and employees may borrow for free from the following libraries, and the same privileges are extended in return. Check the individual institution for any restrictions they may have in place.

• British Columbia Institute of Technology
• Camosun College
• Capilano University
• Coast Mountain College
• College of New Caledonia
• College of the Rockies
• Douglas College
• Emily Carr University
• Justice Institute of BC
• Kwantlen Polytechnic University
• Langara College
• Nicola Valley Institute of Technology
• North Island College
• Northern Lights College
• Okanagan College
• Quest University
• Royal Roads University
• Selkirk College
• Simon Fraser University
• Thompson Rivers University
• Trinity Western University
• University of British Columbia
• University of Northern BC
• University of Victoria
• University of the Fraser Valley
• Vancouver Community College
• Vancouver Island University
• Yukon College

Alumni

As a Douglas alumnus, you have access to a wide range of library collections, services, and spaces to support your lifelong learning needs.

ACCESS TO COLLECTIONS

Your Douglas College Alumni Card is your Library card. It allows you to borrow books and select equipment and media from our physical library locations and access our two full-text online databases for alumni from home: Academic Search Alumni Edition and Business Source Alumni Edition.

HELP WITH RESEARCH

Our crackerjack librarian team can help you with your research by:

• recommending resources for finding information on your topic
• Suggesting the best strategy to approach your research question
• Assisting with search techniques and tracking down hard-to-find items

USE OF LIBRARY SPACES

Need a quiet space to read, write, or work? You are welcome to visit our library locations and use our study spaces. Please note that bookable group study rooms are for the exclusive use of students.

ACCESS TO READING EVENTS

The Library holds a number of reading events throughout the year to build community, encourage discussion and conversation, and highlight and amplify authors whose work is in our collections. These book clubs and book talk events are open to the entire Douglas College community – students, employees, and alumni. Join us by attending one of our upcoming events!

Community Borrowers

Members of the general public may obtain a Community Borrower's card for a fee of $25 per year. The card is valid for one year from the date issued and can be used at both campus locations. When applying, photo identification and proof of current address are required. The Community Borrower charge is waived for anyone over the age of 65. In order to obtain a library card, Community Borrowers under the age of 18 must provide a Responsibility Form signed by their legal guardian. A copy of the form can also be obtained at the front counter.

Reciprocal and Community Borrowers are limited to a maximum of five books, videos, or DVDs in total.

Distance Students

To discuss library services for students enrolled in distance education classes, such as those delivered via Blackboard, contact Alexandra Dobre at 604-527-5438.

Catalogue Alerts

Preferred searches allow you to store a search you regularly like to do in your personal library record. This can be useful in several ways:

• To receive email alerts of new items on a topic that interests you.
• To keep track of a particularly complex search that you might want to use again.
• To store a search that you will run on a regular basis.

How do I do a preferred search?

Log into your library account, click on the 'New Search' link on top of the page and enter your search terms. You can use the drop down menus to select the search type (keywords, title, etc.) and/or collection (books, videos, etc.) For example, you may wish to search for items on the Subject: Women in literature -- Great Britain -- History -- 19th century. Or you could perform a keyword search such as: (juvenile or youth or teen*) and (drug* or substance or alcohol*).

To save this search, click on the long 'Save as preferred search' button on the right side of the page. To view your list of saved searches, click the 'Return to your record' button at the top of the screen then 'Preferred Searches' on the left hand side of the page.

How do I receive email alerts of new items?

After you have saved a search, return to your library account and click on 'Preferred Search' on the left side of the screen. Tick the box labelled 'Mark for E-mail' next to the search in question. Click 'Update list' to save the change. You'll receive an email notice of new additions to the library with your chosen preferred searches at the start of each week.

Notices by Email

By default, the Library will send users email notifications to their student Office 365 email or employee Outlook accounts.

Library notices can include

• items you placed on hold that are ready for pickup
• information about holds that are unable to be filled
• courtesy reminder of materials that will be due soon
• overdue materials or fines
• reminder of the last day to return Library materials (i.e. last day of the semester)

Selected BC Libraries

• BCIT Library 
• Burnaby Public Library
• Camosun College Library
• Capilano University Library 
• Coquitlam Public Library
• Emily Carr University Library
• Fraser Valley Regional Library
• illume (search BC academic & public libraries)
• Justice Institute of BC Library
• Kwantlen Polytechnic University Library
• Langara College Library
• Legislative Library of BC 
• New Westminster Public Library
• Okanagan College Library
• Port Moody Public Library
• Royal Roads University Library
• Simon Fraser University
• Surrey Public Library
• Thompson Rivers University Library
• University of British Columbia Library
• University of the Fraser Valley Library
• University of Northern British Columbia
• University of Victoria Libraries
• Vancouver Community College Library
• Vancouver Island University 
• Vancouver Public Library
• West Vancouver Memorial Library
• WorkSafeBC Resources

International Libraries

• The British Library 
• The European Library 
• Google Books 
• Library of Congress (US) 
• WorldCat - Libraries worldwide. Search for an item in a library near you.

Directories

• BC Libraries (public libraries)
• Libraries.org - Library web pages, online catalogues and system profiles.
• illume (Books, videos, periodicals and more)
  This database allows you to search simultaneously post-secondary and public library catalogues in British Columbia to find books, videos, periodicals and other materials. Videos from BC university catalogues are also included.