Services for Undergraduate Students

Welcome to the SFU Library!  This guide provides answers to questions frequently asked by people new to the Simon Fraser University Library.  If you don't find the answer to your question, try our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) database or talk to a library staff member. ASK US ANYTHING! We want to help you make the most of the library. PDF version of this guide

Where is the SFU Library?

Simon Fraser University offers library services and collections at three locations.  All SFU students are welcome to use the Bennett, Belzberg, or SFU Surrey Libraries.

The entrance to the Bennett Library (Burnaby campus)  is on the north side of Convocation Mall on the SFU Burnaby campus. The Belzberg Library (SFU Vancouver campus) is at 515 West Hastings Street in Vancouver, between Richards and Seymour Streets. The SFU Surrey Library is on SFU's Surrey campus, part of Central City Mall, which is located on the west side of King George Highway, between 100th Avenue / Old Yale Road and 102nd Avenue in Surrey, adjacent to the Surrey Central SkyTrain station. Detailed directions are available in our FAQ database.

The information about the SFU Library, as well as many library resources, is available through the SFU Library web site at http://www.lib.sfu.ca, or call the Library Info Line at 778.782.3869.

When is the library open?

NOTE: Library hours may differ during exam periods, holidays, summer session, and semester breaks. Call the Library hours line at 778.782.4351 or check Hours on the Library homepage for Bennett Library, Belzberg Library and Surrey Library. Remember that there are other ways to get help. Ask Us! 

How do I get a library card?

Your student ID card is your library card.  Your library barcode number is diferent from your student number, and it appears below your name, in small print, directly above the barcode on your student card, starting with the numbers 2 9345....

If you're a new student on the Burnaby campus, you can get your card from the Registrar & Information Services, in the Maggie Benston Centre (MBC 3300) during regular office hours.  SFU Vancouver students and SFU Surrey students can get their Library /ID cards from Information and Registration Services. You can get your Library/ID card 24 hours after you have enrolled in a course. Have your student number and picture ID ready if you want to speed the process. 

Where are the readings my prof assigned?

Required reading materials for specific courses are kept in the Reserves area on the 3rd floor of the Bennett Library beside the Circulation Services Desk. Reserves are kept in several locations near the Reference Desk at the Belzberg Library, and at SFU Surrey.  Reserves materials have short loan periods (2 hours to 7 days) to ensure that all students in the course have access. Online Reserves material or online lecture recordings may be available for some classes.

Click on the Reserves link on the Library web site to get a list of these materials by course number or instructor's name, or to get online course lectures. If you need assistance with this, the Reserves or Reference staff are happy to help.

Where can I learn to do research effectively?

The Reference Desks in the SFU Library are a great place to get help with research, whenever you need it.  Friendly research experts will discuss the best sources and strategies to use for your topic.  We also create research guides that outline information sources for each academic program taught at SFU.

The Bennett Library Ask Us Desk (or Reference Desk) is on the 3rd floor, visible straight ahead of you from the entrance, or phone 778.782.5735.  The Belzberg Library Reference Desk is opposite the entrance to the library or phone 778.782.5051. The SFU Surrey Library Reference Desk is visible as soon as you enter the library, or call 778.782.7414. You can also use our AskAway chat reference service, or send a question by email.

At the beginning of each term, the SFU Library offers hands-on, drop-in classes to teach you how to find books and articles. See the schedule of Lib Skills classes at Bennett and Belzberg, or pick up a brochure at the Reference Desk.

The Library also offers a variety of course-oriented library workshops, taught by the Liaison Librarian for that academic department. See the schedule of these workshops, or ask at the 3rd floor Ask Us Desk. Liaison Librarians specialize in the information sources and approaches used in each department for which they have liaison responsibilities.  They can be consulted by phone, email, or during an in-person  appointment.  Students with complex questions, requiring subject expertise, will be referred from the Desk to their Liaison Librarian.

You can find books by searching in the Library Catalogue by author, title, or topic. The catalogue record for each book will help you decide if a book will be useful to you, by giving you the subject(s) of the book and the date of publication.  It will also give information about the location of each book and whether it's available to be borrowed. Learn some tips on how to search the Library catalogue!
 

Where can I check out my books?

Near the entrance to all three SFU libraries is Circulation Services.  Come here to check out books, pay fines, borrow laptops, pick up holds or items requested from another library. See our guide to Borrowing materials from SFU Library for details.

 

AVOID FINES!  Library fines are steep, from $1.00 per day for general collection items to $1.00 per hour for Reserve items. Don't get caught!   Keep track of your date due slip or look up your due dates in your library record. You will receive courtesy email notices to your official SFU email three days before your books are due to allow you time to return or renew. You will also receive email notices when your holds are ready for pickup.

You can return SFU Library materials to Bennett, Belzberg or Surrey, except for Reserve materials which must be returned to the library where they were borrowed. Library materials may be returned down the Book Return chute in the middle of the 3rd floor at the Bennett Library and in a slot in the Circulation Desk in the Belzberg library.  Books may be returned when the library is closed.  At the Bennett Library, there is a book drop outside, to the left of the entrance.  At the Belzberg Library, the book drop is outside the library door, available when SFU Vancouver campus is open.

How do I find journals?

Journal, magazine, and newspaper articles are a great way to find current information on a topic. To find out if SFU Library subscribes to a specific journal, search the Library catalogue. Journals, magazines and newspapers may not be borrowed but photocopiers are available for student use.

In the Bennett Library, print journals are shelved on the 6th floor, alphabetically by their title. Recent issues of journals and newspapers are in the Current Journals area. Older issues are bound like books and shelved by title throughout the floor. Back issues of newspapers are often found on microfilm. Access e-journals through the Electronic Journal Database or through the Library catalogue.

For help searching for journal articles, ask for help at the Information Commons Desk on the 3rd floor. For help locating journals on the 6th floor, ask for assistance via the Journals & Microforms Assistance phone (to the left of the Current Journals, Newspapers & Magazines section).
 

How do I find journal articles on my topic?

You can use the Library catalogue to see if SFU subscribes to a specific journal but it doesn't list the articles published within the journal. To identify individual articles on your topic, from a variety of journals, you need to use a periodicals index.  Find the best index for your topic by looking at the subject listings on the Article Indexes and Databases page of the Library web site or ask for help at the Reference Desk.

To help you keep track of your research, you can use RefWorks software, which is free for all current students, faculty and staff. It allows you to store your references and export citations from a variety of article indexes and databases into your personal RefWorks account.

I can't find what I want at SFU. What do I do?

If SFU Library does not own the book or journal article you want, you may be able to get it from another library through our Interlibrary Loans service. Your requests can be placed online, at no charge, and can take from a few days to a few weeks for delivery. Ask at the Reference Desk for help to make an interlibrary loan request or to find alternative information sources.

Where can I study in the library? Are there group study areas?

There are several quiet study areas in the Bennett Library: Room 5102 has been designated as a silent study room. There are also designated quiet study carrells on floor 4, floor 5, floor 6 and floor 7.

For students with group projects, there are two options for group study space in the Bennett Library. On the East side of the 2nd floor, there is an open group study area, available on a drop-in basis.  There are also small group study rooms on the 2nd floor that may be booked online for use during the hours that the library is open.  These rooms seat from 4 to 8 people and may be booked for a maximum of two hours per day per group.

Where are the photocopiers? Printers? Laptops?

Photocopiers are found at Bennett (1st, 3rd, and 6th floors), Belzberg and SFU Surrey. Buy a printing/copying card from the dispensers on the 3rd floor of the Bennett library. The same card can also be used for printers in other labs on campus. Belzberg sells these cards at the Circulation Desk. Microform reader/printers at the Bennett and Belzberg libraries use the same card.

You can also use these cards to print Word documents from the Information Commons printers and library searches from printers on the 3rd, 5th and 6th floors of the Bennett library.

You can borrow a laptop, a projector or headphones in the library at all locations (Bennett, Belzberg and Surrey) for a period of 4 hours. Ask at the Circulation Desk.

Where can I word process my assignments? Send email?

The Bennett Library provides computers with application software, such as word processing, course software and email, in our 3rd floor Information Commons. As well, the 2nd, 4th, 5th & 6th floors have computers with application software (MS Office 2007). There are also several Academic Computing Services labs spread across campus.  At the SFU Vancouver campus, the Royal Bank Instructional Computing Centre is just down the hall from the Belzberg Library, in Harbour Centre.

Important: There are no computers with floppy drives anywhere on campus, including the Library. Every member of the SFU community with a valid SFU computing account has what is called "personal file space". You can use your personal file space to save your documents at home and then open them again on campus. For the instructions on how to access your file space on campus or off-campus click here.

Do I need a computing account?

You need a computing account at SFU to access lab facilities. Academic Computing Services accounts are free to all registered students. New SFU students can activate their computing account via the Student Information System linked from the SFU homepage. To access many of the web-based information resources on campus and to access Library databases from home, you need to identify yourself as an SFU user. You can do this by using your SFU computing account user name & password.

Can I borrow materials from other libraries?

Apart from being able to request materials from another university library through our Interlibrary Loans service, you are eligible for library services at many other Canadian universities through the Canadian University Reciprocal Borrowing Agreement program.You need to have the appropriate identification, which is a COPPUL card, before visiting another Canadian university library.

To apply for a COPPUL card, you should check with Circulation Services at any SFU Library. Distance Education students should contact the Telebook office at the Bennett Library. See here for details.

You are also eligible to borrow materials at Douglas College, Kwantlen College and University College of Fraser Valley. See here for details.