Inter-library loan

If a library visitor asks us:

How can I get a book that is not in the TU Libraries collection?

The first reply would be:

We have an inter-library loan service.

The visitor may wish to know who can use inter-library loan. Our answer:

Any member of the TU community.

The next concern may be whether it costs anything, or how much it costs.

If you ask for duplicates or digital copies, copying and postage have a service charge. For digital copies, it is 100 baht per item.

Then library users may want to know how long it takes to get a digital copy or duplicate of material by interlibrary loan. We may reply:

It takes three working days.

If the visitor decides to follow up on the interlibrary loan process, the next question may be about where to get further information.

Just ask anyone at the circulation counter.

The visitor may think that only librarians can help with inter-library loan, so we may assure them:

Any library staff member should be able to help with inter-library loan.

Usually it is not necessary to explain that the visitor will have to fill out a form for inter-library loan, since this should be expected. Also, that the form should be given in to a library staff member at the circulation counter. There may be doubts about how many books may be requested at the same time by any library visitor.

Up to three books at a time may be requested by interlibrary loan.

Then there is the question of how long the library user will be able to keep the materials after they arrive.

The time that materials may be borrowed depends on the library that has loaned them. We will let you know that as soon as the materials arrive.

As students and ajarns are often in hurry, and requests for research materials are sometimes urgent and made at the last minute, how long the process takes is also a matter of interest:

Please allow seven working days for the request to be processed.

If the library user needs an item for a Thai library, it is worth mentioning TU-THAIPUL, an inter-library loan service agreement between Thammasat University Libraries, Rangsit University Library, University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce Library, Dhurakij Pundit University Library, and Bangkok University Library. We do not need to go into detail about which libraries participate in this program, but again, visitors may want to know who is permitted to borrow materials through this service:

TU faculty members, staff and students.

If this is of interest for the library user, we can direct them to EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS) to make requests for printed materials and electronic resources, including books, journal articles, theses, and research. How many items may be borrowed by this method? Three items may be borrowed at one time.

The visitor may wonder how long these items may be kept. In this case, we have a definite answer:

21 days.

How soon will these materials be available?

Four working days after the request is received.

How the materials will be delivered is another possible concern.

Printed materials will be sent in the mail, and electronic files by email.

Finally, some library users may be concerned about costs or fees. We can reassure them:

There is no charge for members of the TU community.

(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)