Interlibrary Loan & Document Delivery Services

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ILL for Distance and Remote Learning | Contact Info

Welcome to Kutztown University Library's Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery (ILL) service.
ILL is available to current KU students, faculty, staff, and administrators. 
ILL requests are managed in our web-based application, Tipasa.

***Important***

Please note that "opting out" of Interlibrary Loan emails means that ILL staff cannot send communications regarding issues with your ILL requests.
For the best service, please do not opt out.

 

Requesting Articles
 

The easiest way to place your article request is to do so directly from within the searched database. Look for the "Check for Full Text" link near the article you need; if the Full Text search lists no online access, you can click the "Request via Interlibrary Loan" link near the bottom of the page and have the article data imported into Tipasa. 

If you have a citation in hand, please check to see if the library has access to your article before requesting it via ILL. If you need assistance, please contact the ILL office at kupill@kutztown.edu.

Check the e-journal search site

1. Search for the journal title (not the article's title)
2. Verify the year of your citation is within the date ranges indicated
3. If an "Article" link is present, this should go directly to the article
4. If a "Journal" link is present, this will allow online browsing of available issues
5. If a "Database" link is present, use this to search the database which should have access to the article.

Request using the Article Form in Tipasa - the article will be sent to you electronically.

 

Requesting Books and Other Items

When the library does not own an item, we provide easy ways to request it. WorldCat searches across library collections worldwide and requests items via Tipasa. Tipasa queries libraries that own the item to loan it to us for your use. The turnaround time for books and other loanable items is from 3-7 business days. Items which are more difficult to find or are in high demand may take longer.

1. Double-check the catalog to confirm whether or not the KU Library owns the item.
2. Check WorldCat - this service covers many library collections worldwide. When you locate an item you want, click "Interlibrary Loan." If there are only a few copies of a book listed in WorldCat, it is unlikely that we will be able to obtain that item.
3. For books and other materials not available using the services listed above, please request through Tipasa.

Please note:  Interlibrary Loan will not request the following types of materials:

• Textbooks. ILL compares requested items to publishers' catalogs to determine if they are considered textbooks. We also rely on Amazon item information to assist in the identification of textbooks before ordering. If you are having trouble obtaining your textbooks, you may also consult with your professor regarding Open Educational Resources (OER) for use in class. 
• eBooks or streaming audio/video (all e-media is currently ineligible for Interlibrary Loan). If you would like to request the purchase of an e-book for the library's collection, you can make a request here.
• Material already owned by the Kutztown University library.
• Multiple copies of a title or article.
• Unpublished or not-yet-published Items.
• New items.  Most materials less than two years old are considered "New" and cannot be loaned or borrowed.
• Kindles, e-Readers, and other tablet devices. If you require the use of a Kindle, many are available for loan from Rohrbach Library's Circulation.department. Click here to suggest Kindle titles for library purchase.
• Items in defunct formats. The library does not own the technology required to view or utilize film or audio reels. If you have access to the available technology elsewhere, please add this information to your request and we will review it.
• Psychological testing tools. These materials are unavailable through Interlibrary Loan, as their distribution is restricted. Test forms/booklets, answer sheets, and the scoring key can only be purchased through publishers. If you are a student, contact your professor about access to a copy of the testing materials required for your class or research.
• Legal materials and research materials pertaining to the law as it is practiced and interpreted. These items have a high rate of non-return and are extremely expensive to replace. For this reason, we will no longer request legal/law materials through Interlibrary Loan.

 

Interlibrary Loan for Distance and Remote Learning

Distance and remote students have direct access to full text electronic books and journal articles by searching the WorldCat Discovery catalog and subscription databases at the Rohrbach Library web site: https://library.kutztown.edu/home.

For those items not available online, distance and remote students can use Interlibrary Loan (ILL) to request books and articles needed for academic work.

If Rohrbach Library owns the book or journal:  

Distance and remote learners can borrow items owned by Rohrbach Library (books, book chapters, and articles) by submitting them as Interlibrary Loan requests. Books will be delivered to the address you provide in your request. Please enter a message in the notes field requesting shipment to your home address.

Please keep the packaging and prepaid return shipping label so you can return the books at no direct cost to you. Journal articles will be delivered electronically through your Rohrbach Library ILL account.

If Rohrbach Library does not own the journal:

Distance and remote learners can order articles from other libraries by submitting an ILL request for them. The article will be delivered to you through your ILL account.

If Rohrbach Library does not own the book:

Rohrbach Library ILL ships books from other libraries to distance and remote students. ILL items not owned by Rohrbach Library are limited to three (3) per user and shipment until they are returned to Rohrbach Library's ILL office. ILL items can only be shipped to street addresses within the continental United States.

 

Useful information about ILL delivery for distance and remote students

 

Shipping address: To receive books, please provide a street address in your ILL request. We cannot ship to a post office box.

Shipping time:  Before requesting a book, consider the shipping time. It takes an average of 10-14 days from the time of your request to delivery to your doorstep. Be sure to order early enough so that the books arrive in time for you to use them. Articles are delivered electronically and can arrive much faster, often within 48 hours.

Keep the packaging and prepaid label:  Each request will be sent to you with a prepaid return address label inside.  Please use this and the original packaging, and ship via UPS by affixing the new label on top of the old one.  A PDF of the return address label will also be sent to your e-mail address at the time of shipping. That way, if you lose the label, you can still print a copy.

Check the due date:  The due date on the book label is the date that it is due to be returned to the Rohrbach Library.  Please take delivery time into account when returning your book.  If you need additional time, you can request a renewal (if the lender allows renewals) through your Interlibrary Loan account:  https://4945.account.worldcat.org/profile/.

 

Things to remember

 

When requesting items to be shipped to your home address, please enter a message in the notes field of each ILL request that you would like the item shipped your home address. If this note is not included, the materials will go on the hold shelf to await pickup.

For books owned by Rohrbach Library:  Materials that are lost or not returned will incur a flat fee of $50 per item. Failure to return library books or pay lost item fees will result in lost ILL and circulation privileges in addition to blocks on your student account.

For ILL books not owned by Rohrbach Library:  Lost fines and fees are at the discretion of the library that provided the loan. You will be invoiced for lost and unreturned items. Failure to return ILL items or pay lost item fees will result in lost ILL and circulation privileges in addition to blocks on your student account.

 

COPYRIGHT RESTRICTIONS:

The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United State Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyright materials. Under certain conditions specified in the law, library and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified condition is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research." If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.