Borrowing/Distance Learner

Books in I-Share | Books Not in I-Share | Articles

Books in I-Share Catalog

If you live close to one of over 70 I-Share libraries, you may search for books in the I-Share Catalog and request that the book be sent to whatever library is convenient for you. This usually takes about a week.

If you do not live near an I-Share Library and are not taking any on-campus classes in Springfield, the library will mail your books. This usually takes about a week, if the book is held at the UIS library, or two weeks if we have to request the book from another I-Share library. Otherwise, you are expected to come to the library to pick up books. To request I-Share books if you are not near an I-Share Library, login into My ILL under My Accounts and select Book under New Request.

Books Not in I-Share Catalog

If the book you need is not in the I-Share Catalog, login into My ILL under My Accounts and select Book under New Request to submit a request.

If you do not have a complete citation for the book, you can search for it in WorldCat. This FirstSearch database offers citation and holdings information for over 49 million records from thousands of libraries around the world. Once you locate the book you want, click on the ILL button at the top of the screen and fill out the form.

Articles

First, you need to determine if the article is available in full text in one of our databases, or if the UIS library owns a print or microfilm copy of the journal/magazine/newspaper you need. Go to Journals @ UIS. Type in the name of the journal in the box. This directory will tell you if the library has a physical print subscription to the journal, or has access to it in one of our full text databases. Note: you will need to allow pop-ups from this site in order to use this database.

If it is available in full text in one of our databases, the databases will be listed, along with the date range. Click on the "GO" button to jump to the particular database, and it will either provide a list of issues, or you will have to perform a keyword search to locate your specific article.

For print or microfilm holdings, it will give you the call number and the date range. Note the call number and the format for the year you need. (If it does not indicate a format, then it is in print, versus microfilm format.)

Requesting Articles

If the UIS library owns the periodical, and you do not live near Springfield, and you are not taking any on-campus classes in Springfield, then you may request that the library e-mail or mail you a copy of the article you need. login into My ILL under My Accounts and select Article under New Request. Please allow 4 business days for delivery.
If the UIS library owns the periodical, and you reside near Springfield or are taking an on-campus class, you are expected to come to the library and retrieve the articles you need. Note the call number for the periodical, and whether the year you need is in paper or microfilm format.
If the UIS library does not own the periodical you need, login into My ILL under My Accounts and select Article under New Request to submit a request. An electronic version of the article will be available in your My ILL account when it arrives.
For questions on status, renewals, or processing of ILL requests please e-mail the ILL department at lib-ill@uis.edu or call 217-206-6601.