Rhodes>Library>Services>Access & Privileges>Inter-library Loans (ILL)

Inter-library Loans (ILL)

Can I request material from another institution?

  • All Rhodes University staff members and postgraduate students (Masters & Doctoral) may request material (books, journal articles and theses) from other institutions in the event that we do not have the material.
  • ILL requests can be made by using one of the following ways:
    1. Online
    2. Visiting the library
    3. Contact:  j.nene@ru.ac.za or by telephone: 046 603-8462

How long will it take for me to receive material requested on ILL?

  • Provided the requested item is on the shelf at the holding library, the average turnaround time for books is 2 - 3 weeks and for articles sent by mail 1 week. Articles sent via email should arrive within 2 - 5 days. The average turnaround time for overseas requests is 14 - 30 days.
  • If you have not heard from us after a reasonable interval has elapsed, please contact the Loans desk on 046-603 8463/62 during office hours for additional assistance.

How much will I have to pay for ILL?

              National requests: 

              Books / Theses:  R30.00 per request

              International Requests (All branches):

              Prices vary – please enquire from the Inter-library loans office

              A fee of R30.00 will be charged to your account for uncollected books.

Overseas requests

  • It is possible to request articles on Inter-Library Loan from overseas sources when the article cannot be obtained within South Africa. In these instances, the Inter-Library Loan staff try requesting the article through the OCLC Supply Centre. The cost of obtaining an article or a copy of a chapter in a book through the OCLC starts at approximately ZAR 200.00.
  • If back up searches are required for articles, please note that additional costs will be incurred. The ILL/Circulation desk will be able to advise you of these charges. Please note that we have to charge the full cost of each article requested as well as any applicable extra charges.

Delivery time

Provided the requested item is on the shelf at the holding library, the average turnaround time for books is 2 - 3 weeks. Books needed urgently can be obtained via courier, the courier cost will be covered by the requester. Articles sent via email should arrive within 2 - 5 days. The average turnaround time for overseas requests is 14 - 30 days. If you have not heard from us after a reasonable interval has elapsed, please contact the Loans desk on 046-603 8463/62 during office hours for additional assistance. For further information or assistance contact Loans desk at +27-046-603-8463/62, or email Jabu Nene at j.nene@ru.ac.za

Consultation hours: Weekdays : 08:30 - 13:00 and 14:00 - 17:00

Purpose

Inter-Library Loans is a facility which supplements the Library’s own stock by obtaining material which is not available in the Rhodes University Library for University academic staff and postgraduate students.

Procedure

In addition to its print holdings, the Library's impressive collection of electronic databases affords Rhodes users access to the full-text online, peer-reviewed, scholarly journals. With the enormous financial investment in these resources, it is imperative that articles are not requested on Inter-Library Loan if they are either held in print at Rhodes or could be retrieved from one of the databases.  It is important, therefore, that before submitting Inter-Library Loan Requests, users first use Search All to see if the article is available electronically or to find out if the book or journal is held in print. If you need guidance in using these or any other resources on the Library's homepage, please do not hesitate to ask for help. The Faculty Liaison Services Librarians are willing to demonstrate the various ways of searching for information online. Contact them at:

Principal Librarian: Commerce & Law
Jill Otto
E-mail: j.otto@ru.ac.za  Tel:  +27-046-603-8062

Acting Principal Librarian: Humanities & Education
Ayanda Qomfo
E-mail: a.qomfo@ru.ac.za   Tel:  +27-046-603-7340

Principal Librarian: Science & Pharmacy
Thandiwe Menze
E-mail:v.menze@ru.ac.za  Tel : +27-046-603-8689

Once you have established that the item is not available at Rhodes, either in print or electronically, you will need to complete an electronic book or article ILL Request form. It is not necessary to know where the item is held and users should indicate if the item is to be paid for in cash or charged to a student account.

Books:

Books and South African theses may be obtained on loan for a period stipulated by the lending library. The return date must be strictly adhered to, as the system depends entirely on the co-operation of users. Some books are not available for loan; for example, reference materials, or rare items. Loans from outside southern Africa are possible, but expensive and should be discussed with the Loans desk. Books obtained locally require only the postage costs to be borne by the borrower. 

DVDs: These items are not available for Inter-Library loan.

Periodicals/Journals: Original periodicals are almost never available for loan. Instead a journal/periodical article is supplied. Requesters need to be mindful of infringing copyright laws when requesting photocopies.

Title Abbreviations:

If you do not know the full title of the periodical, two sites which provide abbreviations are:

Patents:

Patents are not available on loan. If necessary, they can be bought through the Inter-Library Loans Department. Before resorting to this expensive option, however, visit the various patents sites on the Library's homepage as it is possible in most cases to obtain them free on the Internet. (If you need assistance in locating them, please ask the Principal Science and Pharmacy Faculty Librarian, Thandiwe Menze – v.menze@ru.ac.za

 

 

Last Modified: Tue, 01 Aug 2023 10:58:39 SAST