Returning Students

Your University Card is activated with Library access once you arrive. Your borrowing privileges will be activated once you have attended a Library induction session during the first week of Michaelmas Term. Our full induction information can be found on our Library Induction page.

The Library is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 (or 366) days a year. Library staff are available Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm. Simple use your university card to get access to the library whenever you like.

You can visit our webpage that has a video of  our library space.

We have additional information for those that need further assistance or disability students on more detailed space descriptions of the library.

You can contact staff for further information by emailing, calling or booking an appointment with us. We can also provide additional photos of the library space. 

Do not worry we have plenty of information and staff are always happy to help you find what you are looking for.

Working Library is the term we use for our main library that houses our 21st century material. The first floor is the Reading Room that also serves as a study area. Most of the material you will be needing for your course can be found in the Working Library. Self issue machines,  to borrow books without staff assistance, are to the left of the first floor in the Working Library. 

Booklets on the general use of the library: Undergraduate Library Guide  and Postgraduate Library Guide

Information on our Library

Videos of library space and services

Information on Borrowing/Returning books

Information on Finding Resources 

Disability/ Assistive Resources

Computers/Printing

For further information please contact us or book an appointment to speak to a member of staff

Your Raven password, together with your CRSid (your University ID) lets you log in to the University’s computing services such as Wi-Fi, your Cambridge email, Moodle, CamSIS and other online resources protected by Raven authentication.

A service is provided by University Information Services so you can check that your login to the Raven web authentication service is working.

For further information on Accounts and Passwords.

You may bring a sealed drink into the library but food is not permitted. Alternatively, you may eat your food at the Library Corridor (corridor before going up the stairs to the first floor where the library is located). The Library Corridor is a non quiet zone that has a number of seats and tables where you can enjoy your food.

Yes, you may leave  books in the Reading Room for later consultation, so long as you fill in a ‘Books in Use’ slip, which can be found throughout the Reading Room.

Books left longer than 3 days without an updated slip will be reshelved. Non-Christ's books will be placed in the Lost & Found (opposite the self-issue machines, first floor)

Yes but your belongings are left at your own risk, and Library staff reserve the right to move unattended things to the Lost & Found (opposite self-issue machines), especially when it impedes use of the Reading Room. A "Take a Break" green slip found throughout the Reading Room, First Floor can be used to reserve your items when on a short break from the library. 

You can apply for a Library locker to store your things.

We have stationery and ergonomic equipment that you can use during your library stay. Please have a look at our list on ergonomic equipment  that is part of our accessibility collection.

Our books are listed on the University catalogue, iDiscover. Please make sure that you click on the item’s title to see a full list of libraries that possess that item – Christ’s is not always the first in the list. For further information please visit our page on iDiscover or our page on how to find, borrow and return books.

We have a  dedicated page on a virtual induction of iDiscover. The webpage includes visual guides and practical exercises on iDiscover.  

Alternatively If you need further help on iDiscover please contact staff for further assistance. 

Step 1:  iDiscover search

• Enter few distinct key words from your title
• Author's surname
• Any distinctive additional information like year of publication or ISBN 

Filters can be found on the side bar on the right of the screen or use the "Advanced search" on the top right of the search engine.

Step 2 : Getting your book/eresource

• Physical items: Go to the individual library book information on iDiscover. You will need a few clicks to get there. From there write down the "classmark" (letter-number code next to the library name) and the floor number. Come physically into the library and find your book on the library shelf by classmark and floor. For further information have a look at our page on Finding, Borrowing and Returning books. 
• Eresources: Click on the link given on iDiscover to be directed to the host website. From there you will need to have a look what sort of access you have e.g can I have this as a PDF? Further information can be found on our page Online Resources 

Step 3: Borrowing 

• Go to the self-issue machines on Floor 1 of the library. Follow the instructions on the self-issue machines so you can place the book on your library account. You can borrow up to 15 items for 14 days.

You can also ask a member of staff to place it on your account in person or remotely. You will still need to pick up the book from the library. 

You can manage your borrowed books by logging in to your library account

• For eresources you can simply access it online without coming into the library.

Step 4: Returning the book

•  You will need to physically bring the book back to the library if you are finished with it and wish to return it. Return the book at the self- issue machines on the First floor or ask a member of staff in person or remotely for help.

• To finish place the book on the "return books trolley" next to the self- issue machines.

Troubleshooting:

Ask a member of staff in person or remotely in any step of the above process. Email: library@christs.cam.ac.uk

If the book is owned by the Library but out on loan to another user, it can still be requested. Please visit our that has further information on "Recalls" 

Alternatively, it is always worth checking your Faculty or Departmental Library and/or the University Library. 

Books not owned by the Library can also be requested for purchase. Please visit our Book Recommendation page.

If you requested a book either from another user or to be purchased for the Library, it will be placed on the Book Requests shelf in the Reading Room , first floor (just to the left of the door when you enter). You will receive an email when the book is ready for collection.

Borrowing rights are available to all Christ's members. Cambridge University students can consult material in the Working Library by prior appointment under certain circumstances, but cannot borrow.

Please check your own College, Faculty or Departmental Library and the University Library for borrowing rights. 

Step 3: Borrowing 

• Go to the self-issue machines on Floor 1 of the library. Follow the instructions on the self-issue machines so you can place the book on your library account. You can borrow up to 15 items for 14 days.

You can also ask a member of staff to place it on your account in person or remotely. You will still need to pick up the book from the library. 

You can manage your borrowed books by logging in to your library account

• For eresources you can simply access it online without coming into the library.

Step 4: Returning the book

•  You will need to physically bring the book back to the library if you are finished with it and wish to return it. Return the book at the self- issue machines on the First floor or ask a member of staff in person or remotely for help.

• To finish place the book on the "return books trolley" next to the self- issue machines.

If you have any issues concerning the  borrowing and returning of books please contact library staff as they have remote access to your library account :

• a brief summary of the issue or concern
• Details of the book at hand e.g title, author, ISBN (on barcode of book) and/ iDiscover link
• If it is on behalf of someone else please provide their contact information e.g email 

This is done via iDiscover. In the upper right hand corner, click on 'Login to iDiscover', then click the 'My Library Account' option. You will need to sign in with your Raven details. This brings you to your account page and under 'Loans' you can select the 'Renew All' option or click on 'Loans' to selectively renew certain titles.

On our iDiscover page we have a visual guide on how to log in to your library account and your library account features. 

If you cannot renew your books online, this means either that another user has requested the book or that you have exhausted your renewal period. Please return the books to the Library.

If you still need the item, you can check it out again unless another user has requested it – in which case you will have to place your own request via iDiscover. For further information please visit the "Recalls" section on our Borrowing and Returning information page.  

Please email library@christs.cam.ac.uk if you have any difficulties or further questions. Library staff have remote access to your library account. 

Yes. Details of how to do this will be posted in the Library and on our Latest Updates page at least one week before the end of term. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact a member of staff. 

An example of a vacation loan is : Easter vacation loans start on Wednesday xx March. Any items borrowed on or after that date will not be due back until the 1st Friday of Easter term, Friday xx April.

Yes, we have a printing room with printing and scanning equipment, located on the Library’s Mezzanine (top floor). We also have a number of computers that you can log into your student user profile and print. Full information on our Printing Services can be found on our Computers and Printing page. 

Unfortunately Library staff cannot help you set up your account or connect to our printing devices but will help you with any printing issues or concerns while printing material in the library, in person or remotely. You can either do this yourself or ask IT support for help. 

Steps:

• You will need to add money on your printing account balance in order to print : www.ds.cam.ac.uk
• You or IT services can set you up to print on all printers in the library. 
• You will need to connect your laptop separately  to the Library Printers. There are separate instructions for Android, Chrome, IOS, Windows: help.uis.cam.ac.uk/service/printing

During term, IT support is normally available 9.30am-4.30pm Monday-Friday in the Library IT Support Office, located on the Library’s Mezzanine. You can also email helpdesk@christs.cam.ac.uk to make an appointment with a member of the College’s IT team, if they are temporarily unavailable in the library.

Yes you can.

We offer an Accessibility Collection (on the right of the library entrance, first floor), we also offer laptop stands to use in the library in the form of adjustable laptop tables, writing slopes and tablet/mobile stands. 

For Printing: You will need to connect your laptop to the library printers by following the instructions on this page help.uis.cam.ac.uk/service/printing . The setting up may take some time so make sure to do it before coming to the library. Once the laptop is connected to the library printers, make sure you have enough credit on you printing balance and then print as normal. Full information on our Printing Services can be found on our Computers and Printing page.

In our library we also encourage our students to take regular breaks. You can either use the Library corridor with comfortable sofas and armchairs or take a stroll at our college gardens. The city center is also a step away. Please visit our wellbeing page for information about Library, College and Cambridge support for our users. 

• Please also have a look at our page on Library Anxiety for tips on how to deal with it. 
• You can also visit the Welfare and Support Christ's page for further information on services available to you. You will need your Raven password for access to that website.
• Have a look at our General Interest Collection on the First Floor that includes fiction and non fiction. It is also part of our wellbeing collection on topics suggested by our own College Nurse such as sleeping, mindfulness, good nutrition, anxiety, exam preparation etc.

• If you are able, we encourage our users to speak to our dedicated library staff . Staff can answer your personal questions and making the library experience less overwhelming.  You can contact staff in a number of different ways as we try to accommodate all our users.

• Have a look at our website on topics like Wellbeing and Library Anxiety.

• We also offer quick student guides for all the main information on our library services: Undergraduate Library Guide and Postgraduate

• Library staff have remote access to your library account and can reserve items for collection. Email at library@christs.cam.ac.uk 

• If you for whatever reason cannot come to the library we offer limited remote services for our users. These services are subject to staff availability and some require for you to be registered with the Disability Resource Center. Please visit our page for our Assistive Resources.

Our library building is not the best for mobility accessibility but we try our best to accommodate all our users. Please visit our dedicated page on Disability/ Assistive Resources for information on our accessibility and disability resources in Christ's and Cambridge Libraries. 

Furthermore staff are happy to help and discuss any concerns, adjustments or suggestions on better accessibility. Information on Contacting Library Staff. 

Resource Databases : Provides a traditional A-Z list of all ejournals licensed for use by current members of the University of Cambridge. 

There are a number of restrictions when accessing the databases but those restrictions should be clear on the host website. 

You can access online resources by using iDiscover . By filtering the iDiscover search engine to "Articles and Online" Resources you can find online resources available in Cambridge Libraries. When you find the item that you want in an online format, simply follow the link provided by iDiscover. There are a number of restrictions when accessing online material but those restrictions should be clear on the item record. 

Please visit our website for further information on Online Resources 

Christ's college provides an extensive guide of online learning resources organized by Cambridge Course. Simply find your course and see what is on offer for you.

We are also in the process of creating Academic skills resources for our members. 

Our library also consists:

Law Library : Accessible to Law students, it is a small study space with law textbooks for borrowing. Additional law material can be found in the Working Library.

Lower Old Library : Material can be borrowed from the 20th and 19th century sections. Material needs to  be fetched by staff. 

Old Library : Material can be consulted during staff working hours, Monday - Friday 9-5. Please contact staff at library@christs.cam.ac.uk

Unfortunately you may not study in the Old Library. 

You can visit the Old Library and bring family/friends by arranging an appointment by contacting library staff. From there we can set a date and time  for your viewing. Alternatively  we hold exhibitions in the Old Library throughout the year.