Additional Services for Law Faculty Research Assistants: Interlibrary Loans
Interlibrary Loan is a service to help supplement the Boston University Libraries collections. Interlibrary Loan or ILL can be used if BU libraries do not own an item or if an item is unobtainable by a patron i.e., missing, billed, on search, at the bindery, or at the Medical Campus.
Please check the catalog and talk to a reference librarian before submitting an interlibrary loan. Reference staff are often able to locate materials in local libraries and can provide letters of introduction. This will often be faster than interlibrary loan requests.
Research assistants can request an item via the web by filling out a Material Request form.
Filling out the Delivery Section
Traditionally, ILL materials are requested by the research assistant and delivered to the faculty member directly. When the professor is the direct recipient, his/her name should be entered on the form, and the professor will have responsibility for the material. If the research assistant wants full responsibility, they can request that material be held for them by filling in their information and leaving the Professor name blank. The requestor will then be able to pick up the material at the Pappas Circulation desk when it arrives.
Typically, ILL takes from 7 to 10 days. This includes the processing time at the lending library of 3 days plus mailing time of 4 to 7 days. You will be notified as soon as the request is placed, when a lending library has filled the request, and when the material is received and ready for pickup.
Please fill out the request form as fully as possible. The more information we have the quicker we can get your material. If you have special requests such as rush service please use the comment section to make it clear on the form.