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- Ph.D. Interlibrary Loan
InterLibrary Loan and Document Delivery Services for Ph.D. Students
Sawyer Library happily provides document delivery (ILL) services to obtain materials it does not already own or have direct access to.
A Note About Local Library Resources
Boston is an information-rich city with many academic libraries accessible to students and within walking distance from the subway system.
If the materials being sought are available from these libraries, the Ph.D. student is encouraged to visit these locations in person to use the collections directly. This approach is particularly useful if time is an issue in obtaining needed materials. Sawyer Library's reference librarians will help identify which library has the materials the requester is seeking. Or, to check for local holdings yourself, use WorldCat. Most local libraries welcome visitors and all have photocopying facilities that the general public can use to copy periodical articles.
Also, please do not assume that Suffolk does not own access to a journal just because the full-text does not link from a particular database. Always check the Full Text Search Engine and the Archer Online Catalog before visiting another library or ordering an article through ILL.
InterLibrary Loan
The Reference staff makes all reasonable accommodations to further research for Ph.D. students. ILL requests are accepted and promptly processed within the constraints of available staff resources. We ask that you not submit ILL requests for materials that we own and which are currently available (including titles we might own in eBook format). If you need assistance in verifying what is available and what is not, please consult a Reference Librarian.
Turnaround Time
Interlibrary loan requesters must allow at least two weeks for materials to arrive, although articles are often received much more promptly. In some cases materials may not be available for loan or photocopying, or provisions of the copyright law may restrict the library from requesting materials.
Dissertations and Master's Theses from other institutions are especially problematic. In many cases these items are single, archival originals at the issuing university's library. These are often NOT available for loan. We are happy to try to obtain these for you but we cannot promise success.
Number of Requests
Due to limited staff resources, the number of requests processed may be limited to two per day, per individual user. (That is, we impose no limit on the number of requests you can submit. We only warn that we may not be able to process all requests immediately.)
Receipt and Return of Materials
Ph.D. students will be notified by phone or e-mail when their materials have arrived in the library.
Some articles, obtained electronically, may be sent directly to your email account as a PDF or other attachment. Please indicate on your ILL forms if you prefer this email delivery of articles.
Some materials, including dissertations, may be limited to use within the library by the lending institution. If there is a photocopying restriction, it must be honored.
Books are checked out to the requester for the loan period determined by the lending library. Renewals are at the discretion of the lending library. Anyone who borrows a book is responsible for any charges for late, lost or damaged materials. When materials are returned late, or lost, it jeopardizes not only the requestor's borrowing privileges, but also the borrowing privileges of the Sawyer Library. Photocopies or faxes that are not picked up will be discarded 30 days after receipt.
Anyone who consistently abuses interlibrary loan borrowing privileges will be denied the use of the service.
InterLibrary Loan Request Forms
Ph.D. students may use paper forms available at the Reference Desk, or they may choose to use web-based ILL forms to request needed journal articles and/or books.
If you have any questions about our ILL service or how to verify or identify materials needed, please contact a Reference Librarian at 617-573-8532 or email us at sawlib@suffolk.edu. In addition, the ILL/Document Delivery Assistant, Phally Eth, may be reached at 617-573-8427 or via email at illsawlib@suffolk.edu.