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Reserve Materials

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What are Reserve Materials?

Course reserve items are required or recommended readings or films shared by all members of a class. Each campus library has a reserve collection at the circulation desk. Reserve materials have short loan periods to insure that all students have equal access. The reserve collection is maintained for the benefit of all users, as a community resource. Deliberate non-compliance with reserve policies is considered a violation of the honor code.

What is on reserve?

  • Search OBIS by course or by professor/instructor.
  • Many professors provide reading materials in Blackboard.

What if the item I need is checked out?

Ask the desk attendant to place the item on "Do Not Renew." While we don't hold reserve items for specific borrowers, this will prevent the item from being renewed by the current borrower for 15 minutes after it is returned.

Borrowing Reserve Materials

  • Anyone with a valid Oberlin College ID may borrow reserve materials.
  • We limit you to a total of two reserve items at any time, no matter at which library you checked them out.
  • Circulation supervisors can extend borrowing privileges to courtesy borrowers who are enrolled in the class or obtain written permission from the instructor.

Loan Periods

Reserve policies are meant to ensure the greatest access to class materials to the greatest number of students.

Reserve loan periods range from 2 to 24 hours. Some materials are limited to in library use only, but most circulate overnight. Reserve materials have high overdue fines, so ALWAYS determine the exact date and time reserve materials are due before you leave the reserve counter.

Renewals

You may renew an item if no other patron has requested a "Do Not Renew" hold on it. If there is a hold, you must wait 15 minutes before you may check it out again. Reserve materials cannot be renewed online; you must renew in person at the circulation desk.

Fines

Overdue notices are emailed several times a day; contact the library as soon as possible if you believe our records are incorrect.

Overdue fines are $2.00 per hour, per item. Our goal is to encourage you to remember to return materials on time so that all members of your class will have access to the material.

More about fines.

Questions?

Ask at the circulation desk or email: reserve.main@oberlin.edu.

Last updated:
September 5, 2019