Currently, the University of Belize Library employs twenty-three staff who run the libraries. At each branch, one will find the Circulation Desk well-equipped with courteous and able staff. The Circulation Desk liaises directly everyday with the Library’s patrons and as a result, must always greet patrons with a smile. You will find friendly, supportive, willing and able staff who assist you in any way possible, for your research or library needs.

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UB Lecturers are invited and encouraged to leave current course materials for students to access at the library. Materials such as books, test papers, magazines, Audio/Visual items, handouts, etc... can be securely housed in the library. The purpose of this service allows the lecturer to ensure that students have access to their materials, which might consist of reference or additional readings assigned to the class. Furthormore, this service allows a lecturer to make use of limited materials such as single books, which they might want all students to read and prepare for class.

It is left entirely up to the lecturer to limit the time of use time for the materials in the Faculty Reserve. The lecturer can allow the materials to be used only in the Library or borrowed, by students, for one night. The Library staff is in charge of ensuring that a system is in place to record and track materials.

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All libraries house textbooks of courses provided by the university. Students may make use of the textbooks during normal opening hours. Students must sign a reading room form and can only use the textbooks in the library. Both a proper name and identification number must be printed on the form. Students must present student identification cards at all times.

There is no time limit on the use of the textbook within the library, but students are asked not to leave their tables or textbooks, since other students may require their use. In such instances, the library staff reserves the right to recall textbooks from a student who allows the textbook to sit without being used.

If a course textbook is not found in the library, it is probably a result of the lecturer using a different textbook than the one required, or the UB - Bookstore has no more in stock. Students also tend to use the textbooks to photocopy certain pages for their use. In general, the Library houses textbooks for each course. Feel free to make use of this valuable service.

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One of the premier services offered to patrons, by the Library, is the ability to do online searches. This is more geared towards students who are unsuccessful in finding information or students who do not have the time to spend in the library or computer lab to conduct research. After filling out a search form, students are entitled to have the library staff do a thorough internet/online search of the topic(s) they wish to oncover.

Students must note that:

1.  There is a grace period of 48 hours involving the return of information.

2.  Students have the option of requesting the library staff: e-mail the information, save the information on the student's diskette/flash drive or print the *information.

*The library charges a fee of $0.25 per page for the research if the student wishes to take this avenue.

Faculty and staff are also encouraged to make use of this service. Faculty can ask staff to download e-books or find newsworthy materials that are relevant to their class. Please note, we have an online database that contains millions of articles published from reknowned publications such as the Chronicle of Higher Education ® , Time Magazine ®, National Geographic ® , PC Magazine ®, among others.

To learn more about the online database, click here.

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This unique service provides the opportunity for patrons to leave materials in the library for their colleagues to retrieve, at a more convenient time. Patrons tend to have differing schedules and on occasion they might coincide. The library provides a medium for students, faculty and staff to share materials securely, with no hassles.

Patrons must fill out a short form stating who is leaving the item(s) and to whom the item(s) is being left. The receiver can retrieve the material at his or her convenience. The library opening hours offers a flexible and extended timeframe for one to retrieve the material.

Please note however, that the library accepts neither money nor jewelry items. Ask your nearest library for more information on this unique service. Remember, we are here to serve you.

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Photocopying service are available to library patrons, at a small fee. They are as follows:

- 25 cents fo each page (single-sided)

- 50 cents for each page (double-sided)

* Please note, the maximum nubmer of copies that can be made in one order is - 40

The library takes this opportunity to stress the importance associated with plagiarism. Do you know what is plagiarism?

Plagiarism occurs whenever you take a series of: words, ideas, or a single concept from someone else's work and re-create it in your project or term paper, without citing the original author as a source. It is very important to "Attribute all words, ideas, or concepts to its original contributor or source".

To learn more about citing, please visit the Reference Department's page.

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