Welcome to Girton College Library

The Main Library is open to current members of Girton College, and to others by special arrangement:

Full Term

• Monday – Sunday: 9.00am – 11.00pm

Outside Full Term:

• Monday – Friday: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm (Extended to 9 pm for three weeks of the Easter Vacation)
• During the summer vacation, the Library is closed over lunch.

Late Summer Closure:

• The Main Library closes for two weeks in late summer. During the long vacation, details will be posted on Library noticeboards and on the "Library News" section of the website.

Summer Visits:

• If you plan to visit the Library during the summer, please contact them in advance at phone 01223 338970 or email library@girton.cam.ac.uk, as sometimes it is necessary to close at short notice.

Archive and Special Collections:

• Anyone wishing to use the Archive or Special Collections should note that there are separate opening hours.

Study Rooms:

• Study rooms D33, D34, D35, and the Middle & Top Chapel Wing Reading Rooms are available but must be pre-booked.

Postgraduate Only Study Room:

• There is also a study room for Postgraduates only (F.40), which must be pre-booked.

Main Library (McMorran Library):

The Main Library, sometimes called the McMorran Library, is on the main College site. It holds books on all the subjects covered by the Cambridge Tripos, although generally with an emphasis on the needs of Part I. It also contains a variety of types of study space as well as a large IT Resources Area. The Main Library is spread over two storeys, referred to as the Lower Library and Upper Library. It has a three-storey Extension on one side and the modern Duke Building on the other. The Duke Building also contains a purpose-built store for the Archive and the Special Collections.

Group Study Rooms:

• Group study rooms D33, D34, and D35 are located on the main College site in the nearby Hyphen corridor.

Reading Rooms:

• The Middle & Top Chapel Wing Reading Rooms are located in the Chapel Wing.

Postgraduate Study Room:

• The Postgraduate Study Room F40 is situated on the F corridor, near the Library.

As a member of Girton College, you are welcome to book to use any or all of these library facilities. However, anyone who is not a member of Girton needs to arrange their visit with the Librarian or, if using the Archive, the Archivist.

Books

Girton College Library aims to stock as much as possible of the recommended reading for Part I of your Tripos. We do hold books to support later years, but as you become more specialised, you will increasingly need to use other libraries. However, if there is a book that you think we should have, you are very welcome to recommend it to us for purchase (we shall need to check with your Director of Studies first as budgets are limited).

Please, use the catalogue (described below) to check which items we have, where we have classified them and whether they are available for loan. If you have problems finding anything, please do not hesitate to ask.

Journals or periodicals

Current issues of the hard-copy journals to which Girton subscribes can be found in the periodical display racks in the Extension, Lower and Upper Libraries. Back runs of all the law journals and some history, philosophy and theology journals are held in the Extension, which may be borrowed overnight. Back runs of all other journals, bound or unbound, are stored in other rooms.

DVDs

DVD cases are displayed near the catalogue computers; please ask at the issue desk for the disks themselves. They can be played on the computers in the IT Resources Area (using headphones) or borrowed on the same basis as books, with each disk counting towards the total of 10 items that you can have on loan at any time. You can also borrow an external DVD reader from the issue desk if needed. For copyright reasons, the Library’s DVDs are for personal use only and should not be used for performances.

Tripos papers (reference only)

Bound volumes of University examination papers (1986 onwards) are kept at the bottom of the staircase linking the Lower and Upper Libraries.

Study guides

There is a small collection of study guides in the stairwell near the Tripos volumes. These can be borrowed the same way as the other books in the Library’s collections. Online advice about study skills can be found on Moodle.

The Self-care and Wellbeing Collection

A collection of Self-care and Well-Being books is located in the stairwell near the Tripos volumes and in the Extension (ground floor). These books cover a wide range of personal issues and can be borrowed confidentially and anonymously.

Books rest, whiteboards and USB fans

You can borrow bookrests, hand-held whiteboards and mini USB fans for use within the Library only. These can be found on the large table near the entrance; please make sure that you disinfect any item that you use before and after you use it, replacing it on the table where you found it.

Using the catalogue to find items

All books and DVDs in the Main Library are catalogued in Girton’s library catalogue (Heritage). The catalogue is available from the Library’s website. When searching Girton’s catalogue, you can make your search as broad or as specific as you wish. For example, if you want to search for a specific book, you could combine a word from the author’s name with a word from the title by using AND in between; e.g. chaucer AND canterbury or voet AND biochemistry. There are also guided and advanced search options. Help with searching the catalogue is available on the Library’s website or ask a member of the Library team.

You can use the iDiscover catalogue to find out if other libraries in the University hold the items you are looking for. iDiscover lets you search simultaneously not only for print items held in libraries within the University but also the content of the electronic resources (ebooks, e-journals and databases) to which the University subscribes and the open access items in the University’s repository. Most of Girton’s holdings are listed in iDiscover; this includes everything we have bought since January 1998 in all subjects plus all older books in Anthropology, Archaeology, Economics, English, French, Geography, History, Law, Politics, and Spanish; we are gradually adding more. However, iDiscover will not tell you if Girton’s copy is on loan or not, so we always advise you to double-check using our own catalogue.

Please do not lend items that you have borrowed to friends from this or other colleges. Items can be lost, and you remain responsible for paying the fines or, if necessary, for a replacement copy.

PINs, enabling you to reserve items or renew loans via the Girton Library catalogue, are available on request. Please ask at the issue desk during office hours or email library@girton.cam.ac.uk.

Borrowing

Students may borrow up to 10 standard loan items from the Main Library for 14 days during Full Term. At the end of the Full Term, up to 10 standard loan items may be borrowed for the length of the vacation.

If you have booked to use the Library, please bring the items you wish to borrow to the issue desk together with your University Card. Alternatively, please use the “click & collect” service.

Loans should be returned via drop boxes outside the Library, or at the Issue Desk.

Books in the other study rooms are reference only and are not to be removed.

Renewing

You can renew standard loan items up to two times during Full Term. You can do this online via the Girton library catalogue if you have a PIN, or by emailing the Library or by phoning 01223 338970.

Full information about how to renew books online can be found in the eGuides section of our website. You should note that vacation loans cannot be renewed, nor can any items that are already overdue or have been reserved by someone else. If you have already renewed the same item three times, please return it to the Library for 24 hours before borrowing it again.

Overnight loan

Items can be borrowed only after 9pm or 30 minutes before closing, whichever is earlier. They must be returned on the next day on which the Library is open. The purpose of overnight loan copies is to ensure that key texts are available in the Library throughout the day; if there is something that is in heavy demand and needs to be put on an overnight loan, please let us know.

Reserving

If an item that you want to use or borrow is on loan to someone else, you can reserve it. When that item has been returned to the Library, we will arrange for you to collect it from the Porters’ Lodge. You can reserve items yourself via the Girton Library catalogue if you have a PIN. If you don’t have a PIN or if you need the item before it is due to be returned, please fill in a printed reservation form and give it to a member of the Library team. Please note that we may not be able to retrieve the item in time if your deadline is very tight.

If you have another session booked in the Library within 3 days and wish to use continue using the same library books without borrowing them, please fill in a “please leave” slip and put both the books and the slip onto one of the designated “please leave” trolleys.

You can use the iDiscover catalogue to search for both print and electronic resources.

As a member of the University of Cambridge and thanks to subscriptions paid by the University of Cambridge, you have access to over 100,000 electronic journals (usually called e-journals or e-journals) and around 1.5 million electronic books (ebooks or e-books), databases and subscription-only web sites. Some of these can only be used on specific computers in specific libraries elsewhere in the University, but many can be accessed from anywhere using your Raven password. More information about these resources can be found via the University Library.

Library staff are on hand to advise on all aspects of the use of electronic resources – from finding information to evaluating it and finally citing it in your work. You can book one-to-one training sessions with us or just come and find us when you need us. There is also a lot of information on our website tailored to your specific needs, see the library's information for current members.

The IT Resources Area in the Main Library offers access to the University’s Desktop Services network. There are four networked computers, four monitor docking stations, a laser printer and a DS printer. You will need your UIS/Raven password. From these computers, you can gain access to:

• Electronic resources – including bibliographic and full-text databases, electronic journals and ebooks
• Girton Library catalogue (Heritage) and the catalogues of other libraries within the university (iDiscover)
• Printers – 4p per side for black and white, 15p per side for colour. You can find out more about paying for printer credit online at https://help.uis.cam.ac.uk/service/printing.

Please note that the IT Resources Area is one of the busiest parts of the Library. It is close to the issue desk and the staff offices, so a certain amount of noise is to be expected in this area.

WiFi

WiFi is available throughout the Library (apart from the Extension) using Eduroam. A Raven password is required.

In addition to the Library’s facilities, there are other study rooms on the main site. 

• D33 (Hyphen corridor) is a group study room for two people. It features an interactive whiteboard
• D34 (Hyphen corridor) is a group study room for up to three people.  It also contains a small collection of general books.
• D35 (Hyphen corridor) is a group study room for up to four people. It features an interactive whiteboard.
• Middle & Top Chapel Wing study rooms are both quiet study rooms.
• Graduate-only study room F.40 (anyone wishing to use the F.40 postgraduate study room MUST please book).

The primary function of these study rooms is to provide study space. No borrowing is allowed from any of these rooms. If you need to make a special arrangement, don't hesitate to get in touch with the Librarian and your Director of Studies to discuss the matter.

Please help us protect these facilities for fellow college members by using the study rooms responsibly. Please pay regard to security and personal safety and do not admit anyone who is not a member of Girton. Please contact the Porters’ Lodge if you have any security concerns or the Library to discuss any other aspect.

Please do:

• Ask us if you have any questions or need advice
• Turn your mobile phone to silent when you come into the Library
• Return your loans on time
• Take all your rubbish away with you after using the Library or study rooms

Please don’t:

• Bring food or drink, other than bottles of water or hot drinks in keep-cups, into the Library or the study rooms
• Mark, annotate or in any way deface library materials

We welcome feedback and recommendations of all kinds. Some of our popular recent initiatives—including stocking book rests, fans, and whiteboards—were the result of student suggestions. Recommendations for book purchases can be made using the printed forms in the Library or the online version on our website. All book recommendations are subject to the approval of your Director of Studies.

If you would like to make comments or suggestions, please come and talk to the Librarian or another member of the Library team. Additionally, the JCR and MCR are represented on the College’s Education Board, which meets once a term to discuss matters of general policy, including that of the Library.

• View the whole Library and Duke Building - PDF
• View Lower Library - PDF
• View Upper Library - PDF

The Library & Archive building itself has level access throughout its ground floor, with a mixture of hard flooring, carpet tiles and a rug. We regret that there is no hearing loop and no lift access to the upper floors.

There is level access to toilet facilities. One cubicle is currently only available for hand-washing and access to drinking water. An accessible cubicle with a baby-changing unit is available for use by all.

Please see the College's accessibility guide for more information.

Each college has a library for its students. Some are larger than others and Girton’s is one of the larger libraries. Most college libraries are for use only by members of that college and this is also true for Girton. So please don’t bring non-Girton students into the Library at Girton, and make sure that you ask permission from another college’s librarian before using that library.

At Girton, our main focus is on undergraduate needs and we aim to stock as much as possible of the recommended books for Part I of your Tripos. As you become more specialised, you will increasingly need to use other libraries. However, if there is a book that you think we should have, you are very welcome to recommend it to us for purchase.

The majority of departments have their own libraries. Depending on your subject, you might have one department/faculty library where you spend a lot of time (e.g. the Seeley History Library, if you are studying history) or you might have several (e.g. if you are studying medicine).  Each library has its own rules and different opening hours.

You can find out more about each library using the libraries directory.

Most department/faculty libraries usually admit members of the University studying other subjects, and some also let them borrow. Please note that you should check before visiting any library you are not familiar with.

All members of the University can use the UL and most can borrow its books. It is a library of legal deposit, which means it is entitled to claim a copy of every book published in the UK, sometimes in hard copy, sometimes in electronic form. All new undergraduate and postgraduate students are registered with the UL, so you don’t need to apply to join. You no longer need to book to study, browse or borrow in the UL - unless you are wanting to view Special Collections or other non-borrowable material. An outline of their current policies can be found on their website. 

You can find out more about the UL from its website.

Tours of the UL can be booked via https://training.cam.ac.uk/cul/event-timetable.

iDiscover can help you find out which libraries hold the items you’re looking for. For help using iDiscover, see our eGuide: iDiscover.

Most of Girton’s holdings are listed in iDiscover. All of Girton’s holdings are listed in our own catalogue (Heritage). Use it to see if books are already on loan, see which items you have borrowed from Girton and renew them. You can reserve items that are on loan to someone else.

Help using Girton’s catalogue is available in our various eGuides: 

• Searching for books using the Girton Library catalogue
• Reserving books using the Girton Library catalogue
• Renewing books using the Girton Library catalogue

We understand that everyone has their unique preferences when it comes to studying—whether it's through books, computers, or a combination of both; in a serene, quiet environment or a more social and lively one. We are committed to assisting you in discovering the ideal study space that suits your needs and preferences.

For additional options, you can also explore Spacefinder to discover more study spaces elsewhere.