18 University of Florida Libraries
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA LIBRARIES
Lawton Chile Legal Information Center
The libraries of the University of Florida form the largest information resource system in the state of Florida and serve every college and center in the university. There are seven libraries, six of which comprise the George A. Smathers Libraries. The Smathers Libraries actively collaborate with the Lawton Chiles Legal Information Center, which is a part of the Levin College of Law.
The Smathers Libraries include the following:
Architecture and Fine Arts Library
Education Library
Health Science Center Libraries (UF campus and Borland Library in Jacksonville)
Library West (Humanities and Social Sciences)
Marston Science Library
Smathers Library (Special and Area Studies Collections, Latin American and Caribbean Collection, Map and Imagery Library)
Borrowing materials
Graduate students may have on loan a total of 250 items at any given time, for a period of eight weeks. Online renewal is available by navigating to the “My Accounts” section of the Libraries’ home page. Your Gator1 Card serves as your library card, and a full explanation of Smathers Libraries’ circulation privileges and policies is available at http://cms.uflib.ufl.edu/AccessSupport/graduate. The Libraries send email courtesy notices, overdue notices and other important communications to your GatorLink email account.
Carrels and study space
Marston Science Library has 198 study carrels for assignment to University of Florida graduate students, faculty, postdocs, and those writing dissertations in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Visit http://guides.uflib.ufl.edu/MSLcarrels/ for more information.
Twenty-eight study carrels are available on the 4th floor of Library West for graduate students completing their doctoral dissertations in the humanities or social sciences. Apply at http://cms.uflib.ufl.edu/librarywest/studycarrels.
The sixth floor of Library West is specifically designated for the use by UF graduate students and is designed to support both quiet study and collaborative work. Register at the 2nd floor Circulation Desk to have your Gator1 Card activated for elevator access to the 6th floor space.
Distance Learners
Many special services are available for students enrolled in online programs or geographically situated away from Gainesville. Services include remote access to databases, document delivery, interlibrary loan, and borrowing privileges at Florida state university system and community college libraries.
Reference assistance is available online via chat, email,or phone (866-281-6309). For more details, consult the Distance Learners LibGuide or UF Distance Learning.
Instructional Support
Graduate students teaching courses are encouraged to schedule library research workshops for their students. Our librarians can provide tailored library instruction that will support the learning outcomes of your course and equip students with the information literacy skills they need to succeed. To request instruction for your class, visit http://guides.uflib.ufl.edu/workshops_instruction.
Traditional and online course reserve services are available. With the ARES system, instructors can enjoy the convenience of adding materials such as class notes, exams, syllabi, homework, and student papers directly to the system. Materials are placed on reserve at the request of the instructor, and all reserve items must comply with copyright law and e-resource licensing. For information, see the Libraries’ Course Reserves page.
Library Subject Specialists & Research Consultation
The library staff consists of more than 80 library faculty, 179 professional/technical/clerical staff, 30 Other Personal Services (OPS) staff and 327 student assistants. Librarians at the University of Florida are faculty, and have graduate degrees in Library Science or Information Studies, and/or a graduate degree in a relevant subject area. Some teach for-credit courses and they often make presentations that are incorporated into courses across campus. Library faculty serve the university community in the following roles:
- General and specialized reference
- Faculty and department liaisons, and outreach
- Instruction in library-related classes, in courses and/or personalized one-on-one
- Collection managers and curators
- Subject specialists
- Principle Investigators
The Smathers Libraries have built a number of nationally significant research collections, mainly supporting graduate research programs. A directory of library faculty responsible for managing particular subject collections is available at http://apps.uflib.ufl.edu/staffdir/SubjectSpecialist.aspx. You are encouraged to contact your subject specialist about your research concerns or to recommend library purchases within their areas of expertise.
The Academic Research & Consulting Services (ARCS) group is comprised of library professionals who offer unique expertise and services to support your research activities. Request a consultation at http://arcs.uflib.ufl.edu/consultations/.
Databases & Citation Management
The libraries subscribe to numerous databases in order to support the curricular and research needs of students, faculty, and researchers of the University of Florida and its affiliates. To locate or connect to any of the Libraries’ databases, consult the database locator, a directory of UF’s databases. Many online journals are accessible via the UF Libraries’ catalog; to access a more in-depth listing of e-journals, check the Libraries’ journals page.
Subject specific databases and journal collections may also be found by referencing the library guide for a particular field of study (http://guides.uflib.ufl.edu/?b=s).
Additionally, as a student, you have free access to RefWorks and EndNote citation management software. These programs make it easy to store all of your citations and to construction bibliographies. Details can be found at http://guides.uflib.ufl.edu/citationsoftware.
Remote access to online library resources is available using your GatorLink credentials. For help troubleshooting connectivity issues with the Libraries’ e-resources, go to http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/help/access.html.
Computer Facilities
Library computer work stations provide access to library databases and research materials, as well as to university services such as ONE.UF and Canvas. All of the PCs and Macs in the Smathers Libraries provide students and faculty access to the very extensive list of software available to the UF community. A list of software available at all of the Computing Labs on campus can be found at https://labs.at.ufl.edu/about-at-labs/computer-software.
For specific information on computing and other technology services available in the Libraries, including details on wireless access, printing, accessibility software, and technologies available for checkout, visit http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/computing.html.
