Can I get a book or article if the Library doesn’t have it?

Five Things to Know

Interlibrary Loan (ILL) is a service that allows you to borrow items from other libraries, including books, journal articles, theses and dissertations, music scores, and audio/video materials.
ILL is available to PSU students, staff, and faculty for FREE!
After placing an ILL request, you will be notified via email when your item is available.
Books and other physical items typically take between a few days to a few weeks to deliver, and they can be picked up at the Information Desk.
Digital materials like journal articles are delivered via email, usually within a few days.

Check the status of your ILL request or due date of an item anytime by logging into your Interlibrary Loan account.
To start a request, log in to your ILL account and click on the blue “Create Request” button. Use the “Article/Book Chapter” tab to request digital items and the “Book/Media” tab to request physical items, then fill in the required fields.
The easiest way to request an item is to search for it in the library catalog and use the blue “Request Item through Interlibrary Loan” button in the catalog record under “Access Options.” (You may need to click “Libraries Worldwide” on the left navigation to find your item.)
If you aren’t sure if Lamson has access to the item you need, please ask a Librarian!
Librarians can walk you through how to fill out an ILL request.

This resource was last updated on January 12, 2023

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