Check it Out: Demystifying the Inter-Library Loan System

Though we may sometimes forget, the St. Kate’s library is more than just a place to study. The shelves create wonderful enclaves to shelter you from distraction, but they are also lined with books from countless areas and disciplines. Physical books are easy to reference for research papers, and  retrieving one from the shelf can lead you to others . In the event that St. Kate’s library does not have a particular item, you can always order it from another library through the inter-library loan system. 

The inter-library loan system has historically been a convenient act of collaboration between Twin Cities area colleges. However, the system has encountered some barriers in the last few years that have made it difficult to check out books directly from anywhere other than your home library. St. Kate’s Access Services Manager Jade Erickson enlightened me about the changes  and what they mean for the student body .

What is the inter-library loan system?

 Interlibrary loan is the process of getting items from outside our library. We actually have two systems: CLICsearch and ILLiad ILL.

So, what is the difference between CLICsearch and ILLiad ILL?

CLICsearch Resource Sharing is probably the one you're most familiar with. By using our CLICsearch catalog, you are able to search the catalogs of all 6 CLIC schools  and directly request available items. These are the items that come within two business days. You can only request physical items with this service.

ILLiad Interlibrary Loan requests can be initiated in CLICsearch, but you'll find the option in some databases and Worldcat as well. This system is meant for requests for articles and chapters  and physical items not held by (or not available at) any CLIC library. Undergraduates have access to items held by libraries in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. These items must be manually processed and sent out by ILL staff, so they take a bit longer, especially because ILL staff doesn't work over the weekend. But we can still get the majority of items to you within five business days.

Can I use my St. Kate's ID to check out books at other ACTC libraries?

 Yes and no. ACTC schools are separate from CLIC schools, but there is some overlap in membership.

ACTC (Associated Colleges of the Twin Cities) is made up of St. Kate's, St. Thomas, Hamline, Macalester, and Augsburg. You can take classes at these schools, and if you are taking a class at one of these other schools you will get an ID you can use to check items out from that library directly. If the library is not part of CLIC, we can still get their items, but they must instead be requested through ILLiad ILL and will take a bit longer due to the manually processing that must occur.

CLIC (Cooperating Libraries in Consortium) is made up of St. Kate's, Bethel, Concordia, Hamline, Northwestern, and St. Thomas. These are the libraries whose items will show up in CLICsearch and you can request for them to be shipped to St. Kate's for pickup. You can also go in person to any of these libraries to check out items in person with your St. Kate's ID. 

How has the inter-library loan system changed over the last few years, and how has this impacted St. Kate's students?

 ILLiad ILL hasn't changed at all, but we did have a big change with our CLIC Resource Sharing service two years ago when we moved  to CLICsearch. We also had some membership changes in the last few years and two schools dropped out of CLIC. This resulted in a few changes.

Macalester left CLIC in 2014, and Augsburg left CLIC in 2017. Like I said, we can still access their collections through ILLiad ILL, but you can no longer directly request their items using CLICsearch.

In CLICnet, you could request an item to be delivered to any of the CLIC libraries and easily return it to any library. You could request an item from Concordia, pick it up at Hamline, check it out with your St. Kate's ID, return it to St. Thomas, and everything was good. Our new system, CLICsearch, separated us a bit more, so now items can only be picked up at your home institution , and must be returned there for it to come off your account. If you check out a book directly from St. Thomas and then return it to St. Kate's, it won't come off your account until it's checked in at St. Thomas. So now it's very important that you return items where you picked them up.

CLICsearch, however, did come with benefits. Instead of being just a normal catalog like CLICnet was, CLICsearch is a discovery layer, meaning you can search for articles and dissertations in addition to books and DVDs. This means you don't need to know the best database to search when you're just starting your research, and you will be able to find full-text articles, streaming videos, and physical items in the same search! We even have search filters " so you can easily find the different types of resources your professor might require, or so you can find resources the night before your paper is due and access them right now. 

Are there any schools in the system that are known for particularly strong collections in a specific area?

 The University of Minnesota owns pretty much everything, so they are probably the school we borrow the most from. Other than that, St. Thomas is strong in theology, law, and music; Bethel is strong in fun stuff like audiobooks, travel guides, and DVDs; Concordia is strong in curriculum and children's books; and St. Kate's is strong in nursing. We are also one of the only libraries in the US with some Montessori and ASL interpreting titles, so we get a lot of requests from other libraries for those materials. 

Are there any surprising items that you may be able to check out through inter-library loan?

 My favorite thing to mention is that Plum Creek Library has a set of baking pans, so you can request a mini doughnut pan through ILLiad ILL! And as always, don't forget that you can request fun things, like audiobooks, DVDs, and graphic novels. 

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I also asked student worker De Paw (Public Health Major ‘20 ) about her experiences with inter-library loan and how she sees students interact with the system.

Do you think that a lot of people use the library that don’t go to St. Kate’s?

 We do have neighbors come in and use the library, and sometimes students from other colleges. However, they usually just order books online. We have alums come in too, but they have to actually come into the library to check out books. They also don’t have access to other university libraries through inter-library loan.

Do a lot of people use inter-library loan? Do you think people know about it?

 Lots of people use it; faculty, students. A lot of people know about it but not everyone. I actually didn’t know about it until I worked here.

What is the inter-library loan process from the student worker side?

 It’s really easy since my supervisor is the one that actually has to request the book from the other library. I just write the name of the requested book down and give it to my supervisor to order. 

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Inter-library loan is a complex but highly useful system available to St. Kate’s students. It  can save students looking for last minute sources or help if you’re looking for a rare title. You can access almost anything through inter-library loan. You just have to go through the right channel, and you may need to be patient. Jade and the team of St. Kate’s librarians are there to help you get the information you need, so ask them if you are having trouble finding a book or article. There is a whole world of resources out there!