Navigating Information: A Guide to Pacific University Library Resources

The Pacific University Libraries are dedicated to empowering all learners to become proficient and ethical consumers of information. They aim to equip individuals with the skills to find, evaluate, integrate, and communicate information effectively, which is critical for academic, personal, and professional success. To support this mission, the Libraries offer a comprehensive range of information services and resources to all students, faculty, and staff across Pacific's campuses and online programs.

Accessing Library Support

The Libraries faculty and staff are available to provide assistance both in person and online. They can answer questions, offer research consultations, and work with groups or classes. Orientations and instruction sessions are available across all of Pacific’s undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs, and can be tailored to meet specific learning objectives or research needs.

Diverse Information Resources

The Libraries provide access to a wide array of resources through both physical and online collections. These include books, e-books, journal and magazine articles, audio and video media, and various databases and search tools to help in finding relevant information. The Libraries also participate in resource-sharing partnerships, expanding access to resources owned by other libraries regionally and globally.

Physical Collections

The Libraries' physical collections, housed in the Tim and Cathy Tran Library, Hillsboro Campus Library, and Eugene and Woodburn resource collections, include over 148,000 print books. These collections also feature print journals, DVDs, CDs and LPs, music scores, microform, and rare books. The University Archives, located in the Tran Library, contain documents, photographs, and other primary research materials focused on the history of Pacific University, Washington County, and the Pacific Northwest.

Databases

Research databases are organized collections of digital information, such as periodical articles, books, graphics, and multimedia. These databases can be searched to retrieve general or subject-oriented information, complete with bibliographic citations, abstracts, and full-text content. The sources indexed are generally written by scholars, professionals, or generalists and are peer-reviewed. The Libraries provide access to over 50,000 journal titles. Access to these databases is governed by contracts and licenses with vendors and publishers.

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E-books

Electronic books (e-books) are available in various formats, ranging from those closely resembling traditional print books to more interactive versions. The format and functionality of each e-book depend on the publisher and platform. The Libraries offer access to e-books from a variety of publishers, generally prioritizing those without usage or download restrictions. Currently, the Libraries provide access to over 290,000 e-books.

Course Reserves

The Libraries collaborate with faculty to ensure students can access required course readings. Instructors can request that physical books or media be placed on course reserve at the front desk of the Tran or Hillsboro Campus libraries. Materials on reserve have short borrowing periods (from several hours to a few days) to allow more students in the course to access the Libraries’ copies.

Faculty can also add electronic copies of required course readings to their Moodle courses. The Libraries can assist faculty with scanning and adding limited portions of print materials (e.g., a book chapter or journal article) to their Moodle courses. Faculty can also link directly to e-journal articles, e-books, or streaming media to which the Libraries already have access.

Subject Guides

The Libraries create and maintain online subject guides, both general and course-related, to support asynchronous student learning. These guides curate direct access to databases and specific library resources (e.g., e-books, journals, streaming videos, etc.) that are most relevant to a subject or discipline. These guides often include tutorials on using specific library resources effectively or on general research strategies, using text, images, or short videos. The goal of these guides is to save researchers time by directing them to relevant tools and resources for their topic or discipline.

Interlibrary Loan

The Libraries’ Interlibrary Loan service allows students, faculty, and staff to request materials from other libraries for free. This service is available for physical resources not available through Summit or for digital resources, such as copies of journal articles or book chapters. Requests can be placed using ILLiad, the Libraries’ interlibrary lending platform, and digital items are delivered directly to your ILLiad account for download.

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Summit

Summit is a resource-sharing partnership among 38 academic libraries throughout Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Resources (books and audio-visual media) from these libraries appear in the Libraries catalog and can be requested through the catalog for delivery to the Tran or Hillsboro Campus libraries (on the Eugene campus, Summit materials may be requested through the LCC catalog for delivery to LCC). Requests usually arrive within 3-4 business days.

Distance Learning

All Libraries resources and services are available to distance learners, including students in fully online degree programs, those participating in extended off-site learning experiences, and those students, staff, and faculty unable to come to Forest Grove or Hillsboro. Distance learners can use their PUNetID to access all online library resources and to request resources through Interlibrary Loan. Requested articles and book chapters are delivered as PDFs to the user's ILLiad account. The Libraries also suggest checking nearby libraries for Visiting Summit Patron policies, as some libraries will "adopt" Pacific University patrons, allowing them to pick up Summit items.

General Information and Accessing Resources

If a resource cannot be found via the catalog search at Pacific University or through Summit, Interlibrary Loan (ILL) can be used to obtain it from other libraries worldwide for free. ILL can also be used to access the full text of an article or book chapter. Interlibrary Loan requests are placed via ILLiad.

Physical items can be picked up from Pacific’s Forest Grove Campus (Tran Library) and Hillsboro Campus Libraries. For those unable to pick up from Pacific’s Forest Grove or Hillsboro Campus Libraries, physical items will be sent free, including free return shipping. ILLiad is used to deliver articles (PDFs) and manage physical loans.

To use ILLiad, users must log in with their PUNetID and fill in the required information. This only needs to be done once. If any information changes (name, address, etc.), users can log in and update it at any time. If unable to pick up from Forest Grove or Hillsboro campuses, users should select "Distance/Online Learner" from the "Pacific Campus or Office Location" dropdown. ILL also provides scans of chapters/articles held in the Libraries in print. Most chapters/articles arrive in 2-3 days and are posted to the user's ILLiad account as a PDF.

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Requesting Articles/Book Chapters Manually in ILLiad

Find the citation for the item.
Log in to ILLiad with your PUNet ID.
At the top of the page, click “New Requests” and then “Scanned Copies (articles/chapters)”.
Fill out the form using the citation information, including as much information as you have.
Use the “Notes” field to include any additional information that may be helpful.
Submit the request.

Requesting Books and Other Physical Items

ILL can borrow books and other physical items (DVDs, CDs, scores, etc.) from libraries worldwide. If studying/working on Forest Grove or Hillsboro campus, the items will be available to pick up from the library front desk. Make sure the correct campus location is chosen when setting up the ILLiad account. If studying or working remotely, ILL will send items free of charge with free return shipping. ILL is always completely free. Most physical items take 10-14 days to arrive (sometimes faster!) plus additional days if they need to be sent to your home. Items are requested using ILLiad.

If items need to be sent and you are not an MFA student, use ILLiad for all requests, even if Pacific owns it. Please put a note in each request that you need the item(s) sent to you. MFA students should use a specific form to request all physical items, even if Pacific owns it.

If able to pick up at Forest Grove (Tran Library) or Hillsboro Campus Library, search the library catalog first. Items from Pacific University or regional requests through Summit will arrive more quickly. If you can’t get what you’re looking for, try Interlibrary Loan.

For items you would like the Libraries to own, you can also Request a Purchase as another way to get materials we don’t already have.

Requesting a Book or Other Item Manually in ILLiad

Find the citation for your item.
Sign in with your PUNet ID.
At the top of the page, click on “New Requests” and then “Borrow Items (books, videos, etc.)”
Fill out the form using your citation information, including as much information as you have.
Use the “Notes” field to include any additional information that may be helpful, including if you are studying remotely and need items sent to you (always free) or if you cannot accept an e-book.
Submit request.

Additional Library Services and Resources

Pacific University Libraries offer a wide range of additional services and resources to support the academic and research needs of its community. These include:

Open Educational Resources: The Libraries provide access to Open Educational Resources (OER), which are freely available teaching and learning materials that can be used and adapted without permission.
Streaming Videos: Guidelines are available for requesting and accessing streaming videos for courses.
New Library Resources: Information on newly acquired library resources is regularly updated.
Request a Purchase: Faculty, students, and staff can request the Libraries to purchase materials for research, learning, teaching, or recreation.
Troubleshooting Access Services: Assistance is available for troubleshooting any issues related to accessing library resources.
Library Instruction Sessions: The Libraries offer instruction sessions to help users effectively utilize library resources and develop research skills.
Citation Tools: Support and resources are available for properly citing sources in academic work.
Copyright Guidance: The Libraries provide guidance on copyright issues related to teaching, learning, personal research, and scholarship. This includes information on fair use, the TEACH Act, and getting permission to use copyrighted materials.
Makerspace: Pacific University has a Makerspace, offering tools and equipment for creative projects.
CommonKnowledge: Pacific University's institutional repository, CommonKnowledge, provides access to theses, dissertations, capstones, and other scholarly works.

Requesting Purchases: Guidelines

The Libraries offer a service where current Pacific University faculty, students, and staff can request the purchase of library materials. This service is available to those teaching, working, and learning at the Forest Grove, Hillsboro, Eugene, and Woodburn campuses, as well as distance learners and faculty.

General Guidelines for Purchase Requests

The Libraries will do their best to fulfill purchase requests for:

Print books
Music scores
Ebooks
Music CDs
DVDs
Streaming videos to use with a class (faculty)

Interlibrary Loan can help with article or book chapter scans.

Course textbook requests may be filled if they are available as ebooks that the library can buy, depending on availability and price. If a library ebook is purchased for a requested textbook, both the requester and the instructor will be notified. The Libraries are unable to purchase print textbooks on request.

Some requested resources may not be available due to cost or publisher restrictions. If a request cannot be filled, the requester will be notified. If purchasing is not possible, requested resources may be available through Interlibrary Loan.

Instructors, Faculty, and Staff can request resources for research, teaching, and recreation. They can request ebook versions of textbooks, with limited or unrestricted access depending on availability and price. If an ebook is not available, and excerpts need to be posted on Moodle, copyright guidelines should be checked. A print copy may be purchased for scanning. Physical resources can also be requested to be placed on course reserve. If a streaming video is needed for instruction, guidelines on requesting and accessing digital media should be reviewed before placing a request.

Additional Online Resources

ccMixter: A community music remixing site featuring remixes and samples licensed under Creative Commons licenses. Users are free to download and sample from music on this site and share the results with anyone, anywhere, anytime.
Arkyves: An Open Access digital index of Medieval works of art, containing a wide variety of mediums and styles.
Science: A leading outlet for scientific news, commentary, and cutting-edge research.

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