Navigating Resources at Drew University Library: A Comprehensive Guide

The Rose Memorial Library at Drew University serves as a central hub for academic exploration, offering a vast array of resources to support students, faculty, staff, and even alumni in their research and learning endeavors. From traditional print materials to cutting-edge digital databases, the library provides access to a wealth of information spanning the academic spectrum. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the resources available at Drew University Library and how to effectively utilize them.

The Expansive Collection: A Gateway to Knowledge

The university library boasts an impressive collection, encompassing over 200 electronic research resources, more than 900,000 print and electronic books, and over 100,000 print and electronic journals. This extensive collection ensures that users have access to a wide range of materials to support their academic pursuits. Reference books and ebooks include the most current encyclopedic and specialized sources.

Physical Resources: Books, Journals, and More

Most items in the Library are available for circulation. Books are shelved in stacks which are open to the public. A circulating CD-ROM, audio CD, DVD and record collection is located on level C. Some theses and dissertations can be borrowed. Most United States and New Jersey government documents also circulate.

Digital Resources: Databases and Online Collections

In today's digital age, online resources are essential for research. The Drew University Library provides access to a vast collection of databases, e-books, and online journals. For remote access to electronic resources, including journal articles and e-books, visit our Research Resources page. For instructions, refer to the Remote User Services page.

Understanding Databases

A database is simply a collection of organized information designed for search and retrieval. Databases come in various forms and can be used for different research such as business or newspapers. One of the most important roles of an academic library (and where a significant portion of its budget goes) is providing access to select Licensed (closed) databases.

Read also: Missouri Tiger to Pro

Key Databases for Research

PubMed: Comprises more than 37 million citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books.
CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature): The core research tool for all areas of nursing and allied health. Over 5,500 nursing and allied health journals, evidence-based care sheets, quick lessons, CEs, books, dissertations, conference proceedings, standards of practice, software, and more are components of this resource. Covers nursing, allied health, alternative and complementary medicine, consumer health, and more.
ProQuest Public Health: Covers the core public health literature, with access to over 750 publications (520+ full-text), including journals, news, trade publications, reports & dissertations. Additionally, the database covers a wide variety of disciplines ranging from the social and biological sciences to business for current hot topics such as disaster preparedness, obesity, etc.
UpToDate: An evidence-based, physician-authored clinical decision support resource (Point of Care) that covers more than 10,000 topics in 22 medical specialties which includes articles, graphics, patient information handouts, medical calculators, a drug database and drug interactions tool (in partnership with Lexicomp®).
PsycINFO: Supplies access to international literature in psychology, mental health, and the behavioral sciences. The database is enriched with literature from related disciplines such as psychiatry, education, business, medicine, nursing, pharmacology, law, linguistics, and social work. All records from 1967 to the present are indexed using the Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms.
Business Source Complete: Database contains full text for more than 2,100 journals and over 1,700 peer-reviewed, full text journals; CDU linked. This database offers finance, management, and marketing literature resources. Current company profiles and Datamonitor/MarketLine Reports are included.
Google Scholar: Searches for articles, books, and other scholarly content from many publishers, and attempts to provide links to the full text.
Bates’ Visual Guide to Physical Examination: This video database is a supplement to the Bates Examination textbook. The videos are head-to-toe and systems-based physical exam demonstrations with diverse patients from newborn to geriatric. These demonstrations emphasize clinical accuracy and patient care.
Ebook Central: Is a collection of scholarly ebooks (500,000+) from leading publishers. It covers the arts, business, education, health & medicine, history, law, literature & language, religion & philosophy, science & technology and the social sciences; as well as fiction titles. The ebook platform also includes a wide selection of encyclopediias, dictionaries, handbooks and other reference works.
LWW Health Library: The LWW Health Library platform (Lippincott) is a medical education resource that will help CDU health care and medical students throughout their studies: textbooks, journals, video and audio, self assessments, cases, and clinical skills. The service covers medical education, internal medicine, clerkship/rotation, and MD/DO Board prep resources.

Special Collections and University Archives

The Special Collections and University Archives Department of the University Libraries is committed to supporting and advancing the educational mission of Drew University. Comprised of a number of distinctive collections, our mission is to acquire, preserve, provide access to, and promote the use of primary and special secondary resources in all formats. The Special Collections & University Archives department has digitized thousands of images and made them freely available online. All of the images are made available through the public section of ArtSTOR. All images are available to download and use for free.

We are working to digitize and add our collections to JSTOR. Our newest additions are the Byron Society Collection, Betty T. We have digitized more than 5,000 images related to Methodist history. The ongoing digitization of the school newspaper is a joint project of the University Library and the Digital Humanities Summer Institute. Nestorian crosses are decorative ornaments with religious motifs that were created in China during the Yuan Dynasty (1272-1368). All exhibits in Special Collections & University Archives are made available online.

Access and Borrowing Privileges

Your Drew University ID card serves as your library card. Drew alumni may register with an alumni card, issued by the alumni office. Resident borrower cards are available for purchase by New Jersey residents over eighteen; ask at the Circulation Desk for details.

Loan Periods and Renewals

For all students, books are due on January 1, June 1, and September 1. For University staff, alumni, and residents, the borrowing period is 30 days. Faculty members have longer borrowing periods for books. A book is assumed lost when it is 35 days overdue, and a replacement fee of $100.00 is automatically assessed. A large portion of this $100.00 lost book charge may be reduced if the book is returned.

Books may be renewed by University students and faculty, unless requested by another borrower or needed for Reserves. Materials may be renewed online or with a renewal form. Staff may renew books online up to four times. Books listed as “Checked Out” in the online catalog may be recalled if the borrower has had the book for at least 20 days. A search may be requested for books listed in the catalog as “Stacks” which cannot be located. Ask at the Circulation Counter for assistance.

Read also: Allar: High School to NFL

Access for Alumni and Residents

Drew alumni are eligible for free annual borrowing privileges at the library but they must first obtain an Alumni Card with the Alumni Community office. A Resident borrowing card is available to New Jersey residents only for a fee of $75/year. A Resident Clergy borrowing card is available to New Jersey clergy for $25/year. (Fees may be paid by check, payable to Drew University.) Resident and Resident Clergy patrons may check out up to 10 items at one time for a 30-day, non-renewable loan period, with no access to E-resources, interlibrary loan and recall options.

VALE Reciprocal Borrowing

Drew University is a member of VALE (the Virtual Academic Library Environment) consortium, whose participating members are listed at VALE Reciprocal Borrowing List. In order to participate, faculty, staff and students at VALE-affiliate institutions must first complete the applicant section of the VALE Reciprocal Borrowing Application. The form must then be completed by a designated representative of the applicant’s home library. Original, completed applications should be brought to the Drew Circulation Desk, where an Access Services Supervisor will review it and then issue the applicant a library card. VALE library card patrons may check out up to 10 items for a 30-day loan period.

Library Environment and Spaces

In an effort to make the library a more user-friendly environment for everyone, Drew Library has created a zone system for our physical spaces. Social Zones, where patrons’ conversation and collaboration are welcome, are indicated by green signs. Quiet Zones, where speaking volume should be kept to a minimum, are indicated by yellow signs. In Silent Zones, indicated by red signs, patrons must maintain silence and be respectful of others’ privacy.

Food Policy

Food and beverages are welcome in most areas of the library, with the expectation that proper disposal of garbage will be the responsibility of those doing the eating and drinking. Our goal is to make the library a welcoming and comfortable place for students to meet, hang out and study.

Study Spaces

Group study spaces: Our library offers five group study rooms available by reservation.

Read also: Tuition Fees at Drew

Private study space: We currently offer five Day Carrels (small, cubicle-like rooms) that you can check out for the day.

There are many public study carrels and tables throughout the Library. The Library also offers a limited number of day carrels to any Drew student for private study; day carrels can be checked out at the Circulation/Reserve counter. Assigned carrels and lockers are allotted to qualifying students and faculty engaged in extensive Library-based research. The Doctoral Study Lounge is located off the Pilling Room on Level E. Access is by swipe (ID) card.

Utilizing Library Services

Placing Holds

If available, click on the “Place a Hold” icon, and a new “Place Hold” menu will appear, listing the item’s info and where to pick it up. If the “Place Hold” button appears on an item that is not available, it means that the item is checked out by another patron. However, you may still place a hold on it. Click the “Place a Hold” icon and a new “Place Hold” menu will appear, showing an option to receive the first available copy of the item.

To remove a hold, sign in and click on the “My Bookshelf” icon at the top of the catalog home page and a new My Bookshelf menu will appear. Click on the “remove hold” button at the lower right corner of your hold item and a popup will appear asking if you’re sure you want to remove the hold. Item holds will be available at the library’s Circulation Desk within 24 hours and labeled with the patron’s name. All items must be checked out by our circulation staff when picked up. Hold requests are limited to 10 items per patron and will be held for a maximum of 10 days.

Media Collection

If you’d like to view a film in our physical media collection stop by the circulation desk. We can find the desired item and help you choose the best option for viewing. If you want to view something on your own laptop, we have headphones and external disk drives.

ScholarSearch

To begin a search for books or journal articles that Drew may have, check ScholarSearch.

Browsing and Checking Out Materials

All patrons are welcome to browse our stacks and select the items they wish to check out. To check out a book from the library’s circulating collection, you may retrieve it from the stacks and bring it to the circulation desk, or place it on hold and it will be ready to pick up at Circulation. To view your loans or renew items, login to my library account . Reserve books may be checked out for two hours and reserve films for up to four hours, for use within the library only.

Interlibrary Loan (ILL)

If you would like to request loans or scans of material that Drew does not own, you may place an ILL request. Scan/copy requests typically take 1-to-2 business days, while loan requests may take from 1-to-2 weeks. If you need a specific format (for example, an eBook rather than a physical book loan) please be sure to include that in the request notes prior to submitting your ILL request.

Before submitting a request, please check the Drew Library Catalog for books or Journal List to be sure that the material is not available here. You may also submit an ILL request directly through Worldcat and many of our other electronic databases. Note: Books may take up to 2 weeks to arrive. Articles may arrive more quickly (sometimes the same day!) but please allow at least 5 business days for arrival.

A database of all the books and other items cataloged by OCLC member libraries. Click “borrow this item from another library” to request an item via Interlibrary Loan.

Special Collections and Archives Access

We welcome visitors to our Special Collections and Archives.

Technology and Support

Computer Access and Printing

In the Academic Commons area of Level C (the library’s main floor), several PC and Mac computers are available for use by Drew University patrons only. Login-required computers are restricted to Drew users, and have Microsoft Office Suite installed. Users are able to access other Drew software via CloudPC.

Color and B/W printers are available, on the main floor of the Library, for use by Drew Community Members. A scanning station is available in the Academic Commons area of Level C (the library’s main floor), and users are able to send scans to either a USB device or their Google Drive. For distance students, some limited scanning of materials by Library staff may be available.

Technical Support

The University Technology Helpdesk provides walk up services for computer problems, and also accepts appointments for equipment pickup/drop-off. You can also call 973-408-4357 (HELP) Mon-Wed: 10am-5pm, Thur: 10am-3pm; 4-5pm, and Fri: 10am-12:30pm. The Instructional Technology Department blends technology and education together to help support students, faculty and staff across campus.

Academic Support Services

Need some extra help? Visit the Center for Academic Excellence (CAE)! They offer support resources for all Drew students at no extra cost and are dedicated to helping you with writing, math, science, and academic coaching. The University Writing Center (UWC) offers undergraduate and graduate students one-on-one or group support for writing.

Tools for Researchers

The New York Times Academic Pass: Provides each Drew student, faculty and staff member an online subscription to the nytimes.com site, including full access to NYTimes.com and NYTimes mobile apps for any device, as well as their international editions.
LibKey Nomad: Is a browser extension that gives you fast, one-click access to scholarly articles. This extension connects your web browser to all of the content available to you through the Drew University Library.
Zotero: Is a free citation management software that allows you to collect, organize, cite, and share the sources that you come across in your research.
Endnote Online: Is a web-based version of the classic citation manager software Endnote. It allows you to collect, track, and manage the citations for articles you're using for papers or research, and to output those citations in any citation style.

tags: #drew #university #library #resources