Below are some questions we often receive about ILL. Click on the questions to show and hide answers. If your question is not answered here, please feel free to contact us.
General Questions
Who can use ILL Services?
- Interlibrary Loan services through the Health Sciences Library can be used by all faculty, active volunteer faculty, staff, and currently enrolled students at the UCF College of Medicine. Here is some extra information if you’re not sure you fall into one of these four categories:
- Students must be enrolled in at least one class for the current semester.
- Volunteer faculty must currently be actively involved in the medical school curriculum in order to be eligible for ILL privileges.
- Community patrons do not have ILL privileges with the Health Sciences Library. You can use the Loansome Doc service provided through the University of Florida Health Science Center.
- If you are still not sure if you qualify for ILL services, please contact us.
Who qualifies for Document Delivery services?
- Document Delivery services are available to the following members of the UCF College of Medicine community:
- Faculty
- Staff
- Students
- If you are still not sure if you qualify for Document Delivery services, please contact us.
What can be requested through ILL?
- Here is a list of items that can be requested through ILL:
- Articles
- Books
- Book chapters
- Conference Proceedings
- Reports and papers
- Newspaper Microfilm
- These items can be requested through ILL, though many libraries will not lend them:
- Dissertations & Theses
- DVDs & VHS tapes
- Music CDs
- Standards
- Bestsellers
- Textbooks
- Items that cannot usually be borrowed through ILL include:
- Books published before 1800
- Genealogical material such as vital records, military records, etc.
- Materials owned by foreign libraries
- Software
- Rare books
- Popular music and films
- Electronic books
Can I request textbooks?
- We strongly advise against requesting your textbooks through Interlibrary Loan. Many libraries will not lend them, since most libraries keep textbooks on reserve for their own patrons. Also, books borrowed through ILL are for short-term use only; loan periods are usually three to five weeks, with only one two-week renewal allowed. It is not possible to keep a book borrowed through ILL for an entire semester.
How long will it take for my items to arrive?
- For Interlibrary Loan, articles in journals and books owned by other libraries usually take 1 to 4 business days to arrive. For articles that are found in books and journals that are held by only a few libraries, it could take a little bit longer. Books owned by other libraries take 7 to 10 business days to arrive. If a book is widely held by other libraries, it usually arrives faster than books owned by only a few libraries. Multimedia items such as CDs and DVDs usually take longer to arrive, as fewer libraries are willing to lend these types of items.For Document Delivery, articles in journals and books owned by the Health Sciences Library usually take up to 72 hours to process and deliver to the patron.
How do I pick up my Interlibrary Loan Books?
- Once you’ve been notified that your book has arrived at the Health Sciences Library, stop by the library front desk to pick it up; a library staff member will retrieve the book for you and have you sign it out.
How do I return my items?
- When you’ve finished with your book, please return it to the Health Sciences Library front desk. Please be sure the book is returned to a member of our library staff and not just placed on the desk. Patrons who are away from the library and College of Medicine campus can mail their items back to us.
Special Situations
Can I have someone else pick up my books?
- Yes, you can. Once you receive notification that your book has arrived, email us at medlibraryILL@ucf.edu to let us know who will be picking up your book. Make sure to let these people know that they need to bring a photo I.D. when they pick up your items. Contact us if you have any questions.