Collections Access
Details about how to access physical materials, online resources, and collections-related services.
How to Access Library Materials
Access to library materials is available for NYU community members, Consortium students and faculty, and some external community members. Check our access guide for more information about services available to you.
Physical Materials
Physical access to general collections is available and stacks are open for self-service browsing. Checkout materials at the circulation desk or using the self-check machines.
Special Collections
Physical access to Special Collections is available by appointment to current NYU students, faculty, and staff. External researchers should contact the collections directly about remote services.
Online Resources
NYU students, faculty and staff can access millions of resources online through our catalog. Login with your NetID and password.
Course Reserves
Course reserves services provide digital and physical access to course materials.
Delivery and Scanning Services
We offer contactless locker delivery, circulation desk delivery, and scanning services for all NYU users, and home delivery for some users. Use the library catalog to place requests.
Smart lockers for contactless pickup are available at Bobst, Dibner, and Brause Libraries.
Material from non-NYU Libraries
We offer several options for accessing material not available at NYU. NYU users may request materials using Interlibrary Loan (ILL), or EZBorrow (physical books only).
NYU users have access and borrowing privileges at Cooper Union, The New School, and New York School of Interior Design.
Please check hours and access processes at the library you wish to visit first.
Accommodations for Alternative Formats and Accessible PDFs
To procure accessible alternatives, eligible users should contact lib-acccommodations@nyu.edu.
Accessibility Services for Locker Delivery Pickups
If you need an accessible height locker (below four feet), you can let our staff know by registering in the Luxer One app. Information about the app is included in the email confirmation you receive from our delivery services team.
If you need the entire physical copy and cannot pick it up from a locker, email bobst-access@nyu.edu and we will move the items to the hold shelf or arrange home delivery.
If you need assistance retrieving books and materials from our libraries contact lib-accommodations@nyu.edu in advance of your library visit.
For more information visit our Accessibility Services page.
Service Options for Material Not Available Electronically
- Self-service
- Locker Delivery: Bobst and Dibner
- Circulation Desk Delivery: Bobst
- Scanning
- Home Delivery
Unfortunately, we cannot provide scanning services for any material available electronically.
Delivery Times
Delivery times are based on demand, delivery option chosen, and delivery distance. We will process requests as quickly as possible within the delivery windows.
A Guide for Choosing the Best Service Option for You
| Service | Best for… | And you need… | Estimated delivery window |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-Service | Students and faculty in the building | Materials located on site that are listed as available | Same day. Pull items from the shelves in the stacks and check them out using Self-Check machines, or at the Circulation Desk during business hours. |
| Locker Delivery: Bobst, Dibner, and Jack Brause | Students and faculty who come to Washington Square, Midtown, or Tandon (Brooklyn) campuses frequently, or visit the library outside of service desk hours. | General book and journal collections at Bobst, Dibner, Offsite, Brause, and Courant. IFA and AFC (CDs and DVDs) materials are available for Bobst locker pickup only. | 2-3 business days depending on location of material. Allow for an additional 2 business days for delivery of items from offsite, or between libraries (i.e. Bobst materials going to Dibner Library or vice versa). |
| Circulation Desk Delivery: Bobst | Students and faculty who come to Washington Square regularly, and who would like more time to pick up their book after it arrives. | General book and journal collections at Bobst, Dibner, Offsite, Brause, and Courant. IFA and AFC material is available for Bobst locker pickup only. | 2-3 business days depending on location of material. Allow for an additional 2 business days for delivery of items from offsite, or between libraries (i.e. Bobst materials going to Dibner Library or vice versa). |
| Scanning | Students and faculty outside of NYC and/or if you only need an article or a couple of chapters. | Book chapters, articles from journals, and government documents located in Bobst Library, IFA, ISAW, Dibner Library, Courant, or Jack Brause. Some collections are not eligible for scanning; contact Delivery Services if you have questions about a specific item. |
2-3 business days for Bobst materials. 3-5 business days for materials from other NYU Libraries. |
| Home Delivery | Faculty and PhDs living outside of NYC or those who cannot come in person to the library. You can return items to the library either in person or by mail. | General book and journal collections at Bobst, Dibner, Offsite, Brause, IFA, Courant. | 5-9 business days, depending on date of request, distance shipped, and location of material. We ship UPS Ground. |
Self-service from the Stacks
You can browse the open stacks and pull materials for immediate checkout.
Best for students and faculty who need something ASAP and plan to be in the building.
Collections Available for Self-service
Main Collection items listed as “Available”. Note: offsite collections are not available for self-service.
Turnaround Time
Same day.
Requirements
- In order to pick up your items, you must have completed the University’s requirements for coming on campus.
- NYU ID card
Self-service Process
- Browse the stacks or use the online catalog to find a specific item and note its call number
- Use our Call Numbers and Floor Maps of Bobst Library page to determine floor and area of the stacks the item is located
- Pull the item from the shelf and take it to the circulation desk (during business hours) or use the self-check machines anytime.
Locker Delivery for Pickup at Bobst, Dibner, and Jack Brause Libraries
You may choose to have your items delivered to lockers located in Bobst Library (floor 1 southeast), Dibner Library (lobby), Jack Brause Library (5th floor study area).
Tip: If you’re requesting an item that’s assigned for a course, instead of locker delivery, you can ask for it to be added to course reserves so your entire class has access to it. Use the Course Reserves Student Request Form to get started.
Locker Delivery is best for students and faculty who come to Washington Square, Midtown, or Tandon (Brooklyn) campuses frequently, and/or who usually visit the library outside of service point hours
Collections Available for Locker Delivery
- General book and journal collections at Bobst, Dibner, Offsite, Brause, and Courant.
- IFA material (Bobst locker delivery only)
- Avery Fisher Center (AFC) CDs and DVDs (Bobst locker delivery only)
Delivery Time
2-3 business days depending upon materials requested, time of request and demand-level.
Service Details
Requirements
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In order to pick up your items, you must have completed the University’s requirements for coming on campus.
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Limit your requests to no more than 5 items per week.
Pick-up Process
Items will be checked out to your library account before we put them in the locker. All you need to do is pick them up, or have someone else with NYU building access pick them up for you
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When your items are ready, we will email you. The email will include the location and access instructions.
- Please pick up your items within 5 days of receiving the email.
- You may pick up items anytime when the buildings are open.
- To ensure we have enough lockers for everyone:
- We cannot provide extensions to the pickup window
- Someone else with NYU building access can pick things up for you if you share your one-time access code with them.
- Circulation staff can move your item to the hold shelf if you need a longer pickup window to pick things up yourself.
- Books still in lockers after the 5 day time frame will be removed from your account and sent back to the stacks.
- We cannot provide extensions to the pickup window
Returning Materials
You are responsible for returning items to the library either in-person or via mail. You may renew items as needed.
Please mail items to:
NYU Bobst Library
ATTN: RMLL2-04
70 Washington Sq. South
New York, NY 10012
Help Information
Contact us for help with this service at lib-ill@nyu.edu
Circulation Desk Delivery for Pickup at Bobst
You may choose to have your items delivered to the main service desk located in Bobst Library (floor 1) for pickup during service hours.
Tip: If you’re requesting an item that’s assigned for a course, instead of desk delivery, you can ask for it to be added to course reserves so your entire class has access to it. Use the Course Reserves Student Request Form to get started.
Desk Delivery is best for students and faculty who regularly come to Washington Square, and who need more than 5 days to pick up item(s), or who order books from various locations.
Collections Available for Desk Delivery
General book and journal collections at Bobst, Dibner, Offsite, Brause, and Courant.
Delivery Time
2-3 business days depending upon materials requested, time of request and demand-level.
Service Details
Requirements
-
In order to pick up your items, you must have completed the University’s requirements for coming on campus.
-
When your items are ready, we will email you. The email will include the item information and a hold expiration date to let you know the deadline for pickup.
Pick-up Process
Items will be placed on hold behind the Circulation desk for pickup during service desk hours.
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You will have 10 days to pick up your item(s). Extensions can be granted by Circulation staff.
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Books still on hold after this time frame will be removed from your account and sent back to the stacks.
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Only you will be able to pick up your item(s), unless you are a faculty member that has already added an additional borrower, known as a proxy, to your account. Other NYU users, including family members and research assistants, will not be able to access your holds.
- Faculty and administrators can email lib-circulation@nyu.edu to request a proxy borrower be added to their account.
Returning Materials
You are responsible for returning items to the library either in-person or via mail. You may renew items as needed.
Please mail items to:
NYU Bobst Library
ATTN: RMLL2-33
70 Washington Sq. South
New York, NY 10012
Help Information
Contact us for help with this service at lib-circulation@nyu.edu
Scanning
You may request scans from book chapters, articles from journals, and government documents located in Bobst, IFA, ISAW, Dibner, Courant, or Jack Brause Libraries. Some collections aren’t eligible for scanning; contact Delivery Services if you have questions about a specific item.
Scanning is best for students and faculty outside of NYC and/or those who only need an article or a couple of chapters.
Delivery Time
2-3 days depending upon materials requested, time of request and demand-level.
Service Details
Requirements
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To ensure fastest processing of your request, provide the most complete item citation, including page numbers and chapters. If you aren’t sure, we are happy to scan the table of contents for you.
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Library scanning services are subject to copyright restrictions. Limit your requests to the smallest viable part of the text you need. At most, we will only be able to scan 1 chapter. If you don’t know the section you need you can request the Table of Contents first
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Limit your requests to no more than 5 items per week.
Delivery Process
You will be notified via your NYU email when your scan is ready.
Help Information
Contact us for help with this service at lib-deliveryservices@nyu.edu.
Home Delivery (Faculty and PhD Students Only)
Collections Available for Home Delivery
- General book and journal collections at Bobst, Dibner, Offsite, Brause, and Courant.
- Institute of Fine Arts (IFA) material.
Home delivery is best for students and faculty living outside of NYC or those who cannot come in person to the library.
You will need to return items to the library either in person or by mail.
Delivery Time
Estimated delivery window is 5-9 days from time of request. Use our scanning or locker pick-up service if you need materials sooner.
In order to provide predictable delivery times and reduce shipping and handling costs, we ship items requested for home delivery based on the following schedule. All items are shipped UPS Ground.
| If your last name begins with… | items requested by 5pm with confirmed shipping address | will be shipped via UPS Ground |
|---|---|---|
| A-C | Sunday | Tuesday |
| D-J | Monday | Wednesday |
| K-N | Tuesday | Thursday |
| O-Z | Wednesday | Friday |
Service Details
Requirements
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We cannot ship to P.O. Boxes
- Home delivery is only available in the continental U.S. 48. If you live outside of the continental US, consider using our scanning service or requesting help at one of NYU’s global campuses or global sites locations, if you are near those locations.
- Limit your requests to 5 items per week. If you place multiple orders within a few days, all items will be shipped together to reduce shipping costs.
Delivery Process
- After we receive your request, we will contact you via your NYU email to confirm your shipping address. We must have a confirmed addressin order to ship your items.
- You will receive an email notification when your requests are sent as well as a notice from UPS with a tracking number.
- Please keep track of your delivery notifications and tracking numbers. Notify Delivery Services as soon as possible if you do not receive your package so that a trace or claim can be filed.
Returning Materials
-
Items will be checked out to you when shipped. You are responsible for returning items to the library either in-person or via mail, and for notifying the library in a timely manner if your package is not received.
- Please mail items to:
NYU Bobst Library
ATTN: RMLL2-33
70 Washington Sq. South
New York, NY 10012
- Please mail items to:
-
You may renew items as needed.
Help Information
Contact us for help with this service at lib-deliveryservices@nyu.edu