Services for Students
Welcome to our library! We love it when you visit in person, but please be aware that we have rules:
If you break them, the first time it will be kept on file. The second time, you will not be able to check out books or use off-campus access. The third time you will be reported to the University for discipline.
Here is a list of all of our library policies. Any ULM campus policies also apply.
Also, if you are a student with Special Needs, you can learn more about our services for you here.
Research is hard, but it doesn't have to feel hard. Here's a Top Ten list of things you should know about if you want to make your academic career easier and happier:
1. We are here to help you.
The Librarians at the Reference Department are here to help you; it is what we do. If we ever seem too busy, remember that. Visit our Reference web page to find out what we can do and how to contact us.
2. A Tour of the Library
Here's a brief pictorial tour of the library.
3. Subject Guides
These guides, written by our own Librarians, can get you going in the right direction by giving you an overview of what we have.
4. Frequently Asked Questions
Answers basic questions about the library, like accounts, how to find things, and more.
5. Tutorials and Presentations
The Library has a number of presentations for classes and the web. You can view them here, or even link to them.
6. Play, Play, Play
After you graduate, you likely won't have these resources anymore, which include journals, magazines, newspapers, and more. Try searching for things at interest you in EBSCO, LexisNexis, or JSTOR.
The more you use these resources, the easier it is.
7. Off-Campus access
The Library can be anywhere. Go to this page to learn how.
You can also sometimes create accounts with our databases that organize your research. Some of our databases have ways of keeping track of your searches. EBSCO and JSTOR can do this.
Even our catalog keeps track of your library account. Just click "my account" and again use your CWID and your birth month and birth year in the format "MMYY" PIN to log in.
8. The Library Computer Lab
At The Computer Lab ULM students can print and access programs such as Microsoft Office, SciFinder Scholar 2007, End Note, and more.
9. Yeah, About Wikipedia...
It's not a secret, your professors know you're using it and don't like it one bit. Never try to use this as a resource without expressed approval. However, sometimes it will list references to the source the information came from. If that's a trusted resource you can use that instead.
How can you know if a source is one you can trust? We have a page with some tips for that here And what's the difference between a scholarly and popular? We have a page for that too.
10. Yeah, About Google...
We all use it, but it can only get you free information. The Library resources cost money. It can be useful to know how to Google well, though. Searching "in quotes" for exact phrases and using + or - to mean "and" or "not" helps. Simply putting words into Google won't always work; try out the Advanced Search to be specific. There is also a version of Google just for U.S. Government sites.
If you break them, the first time it will be kept on file. The second time, you will not be able to check out books or use off-campus access. The third time you will be reported to the University for discipline.
Here is a list of all of our library policies. Any ULM campus policies also apply.
Also, if you are a student with Special Needs, you can learn more about our services for you here.
Top Ten Things to Know About
Research is hard, but it doesn't have to feel hard. Here's a Top Ten list of things you should know about if you want to make your academic career easier and happier:
1. We are here to help you.
The Librarians at the Reference Department are here to help you; it is what we do. If we ever seem too busy, remember that. Visit our Reference web page to find out what we can do and how to contact us.
2. A Tour of the Library
Here's a brief pictorial tour of the library.
3. Subject Guides
These guides, written by our own Librarians, can get you going in the right direction by giving you an overview of what we have.
4. Frequently Asked Questions
Answers basic questions about the library, like accounts, how to find things, and more.
5. Tutorials and Presentations
The Library has a number of presentations for classes and the web. You can view them here, or even link to them.
6. Play, Play, Play
After you graduate, you likely won't have these resources anymore, which include journals, magazines, newspapers, and more. Try searching for things at interest you in EBSCO, LexisNexis, or JSTOR.
The more you use these resources, the easier it is.
7. Off-Campus access
The Library can be anywhere. Go to this page to learn how.
You can also sometimes create accounts with our databases that organize your research. Some of our databases have ways of keeping track of your searches. EBSCO and JSTOR can do this.
Even our catalog keeps track of your library account. Just click "my account" and again use your CWID and your birth month and birth year in the format "MMYY" PIN to log in.
8. The Library Computer Lab
At The Computer Lab ULM students can print and access programs such as Microsoft Office, SciFinder Scholar 2007, End Note, and more.
9. Yeah, About Wikipedia...
It's not a secret, your professors know you're using it and don't like it one bit. Never try to use this as a resource without expressed approval. However, sometimes it will list references to the source the information came from. If that's a trusted resource you can use that instead.
How can you know if a source is one you can trust? We have a page with some tips for that here And what's the difference between a scholarly and popular? We have a page for that too.
10. Yeah, About Google...
We all use it, but it can only get you free information. The Library resources cost money. It can be useful to know how to Google well, though. Searching "in quotes" for exact phrases and using + or - to mean "and" or "not" helps. Simply putting words into Google won't always work; try out the Advanced Search to be specific. There is also a version of Google just for U.S. Government sites.