Interlibrary Loan (ILL) is a service that borrows library materials that are not available in the Southwest libraries and that are needed for serious research (ILL is not used to request material from another Southwest library). This service is available to Southwest faculty, staff, currently enrolled students and public patrons who are in good standing. While students from other local colleges are able to borrow items from the Southwest libraries under a reciprocal agreement, these students are not eligible to use the ILL service; they should request materials through the ILL department of their own college. Additionally, at this time the Southwest libraries will not honor requests for materials from any of the local reciprocal colleges, since our users already have the capability to borrow items from them without using ILL.
Most published materials, including books, dissertations, theses and photocopies of journal/newspaper articles can be requested. Photocopy requests are subject to copyright restrictions. Requests are accepted for materials determined to be unavailable for the Southwest libraries.
Loan policies for colleges and universities may vary, but the following are seldom available for loan: a complete volume of a periodical, rare and valuable books, books difficult or expensive to mail, reference or reserve material, and recent acquisitions.
Items ordered through ILL will be searched and ordered within 5 days. However, delivery times for materials will vary widely depending on the location of the supplying library, internal processing at that library, and method of delivery (e.g. fax, e-mail or regular mail).
Some libraries impose fees of up to $20 to lend materials or to supply photocopies. If a fee is required, the user will be consulted before the request is processed.
The ILL periods and other restrictions on the use of the material are set by the supplying institution. Renewals are the exception rather than the rule.
Overdue materials are subject to fines as designated by the supplying library. The borrower is responsible for any damage or for loss of the borrowed material while in his or her possession. To insure proper release of responsibility, material should be returned to the ILL coordinator, not to the book drop. Processing and replacement costs will be assessed and charged for lost or damaged material.
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