Interlibrary Loan is a service through which members of the University of Delaware community may obtain material that is needed for research and is not available in University of Delaware Library collections. This service is limited to University of Delaware faculty, students, and staff, as well as Osher Lifelong Learning Institute program participants and spouses of UD faculty and staff members. All non-University of Delaware users, including those with library-issued borrower cards, should contact their local public library, workplace library, or other appropriate institution to obtain Interlibrary Loan service.
Interlibrary Loan items may be retrieved at the Help Center in Morris Library once you are notified that they are available. The office is currently closed to library users, but staff is available Monday – Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM to answer your questions virtually through AskILL.
Please check DELCAT Discovery to verify library holdings before submitting an Interlibrary Loan request.
Submitting Requests
Requests will only be accepted through the University of Delaware Interlibrary Loan Office and should be submitted through the Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery System.
When requesting material via Interlibrary Loan, please take care to complete all fields as accurately and completely as possible. Avoid using abbreviations and include the source of the citation in case the Collections Sharing and Delivery staff needs to locate additional information to fulfill the request. Note that the average turnaround time for borrowing physical materials is 7-10 business days. Please submit requests well in advance of when material is needed. The average turnaround time for PDFs is 2 business days.
Due to staffing and budget constraints, we are unable to accept requests for alternate formats. If an item is available in UD’s collections, we cannot request an alternate format from another library. If you are having trouble using electronic material, please visit the University’s Office of Disability Support Services (DSS) technology page. They provide resources on reducing eye strain, using text-to-speech tools, and more. If further assistance with assistive technology is required, students and employees may register with DSS for additional accommodations.
Picking Up Requested Material
Scanned articles will be provided in PDF format for pickup via users’ ILL accounts. Notification of the item’s availability and instructions for viewing will be sent to the user’s University of Delaware email address. Books, microforms, and other non-photocopy items must be picked up at the Help Center in Morris Library. A valid University of Delaware ID card must be presented by all users to pick up material. Users will be notified by email when an item is available or if there are any problems with fulfilling a request.
Loan Period
The loan period for books, microforms, and other borrowed items is determined by the lending institution. Renewals are contingent upon the lending institution. Institutions that loan materials reserve the right to recall items at any time for their users.
Renewal Requests
All requests for renewals of Interlibrary Loan materials should be submitted on or before the due date listed on the item’s paperwork. If the paperwork indicates that renewals are not permitted, the lending library has already set that restriction on their materials and renewal requests will not be processed. Requests to renew borrowed items should be sent to askill@udel.libanswers.com, and staff will request a new due date from the lending library. Renewal requests will not be accepted for any material that has already been renewed or that is overdue by 30 days or more. Renewals are granted at the discretion of the lending library; if our renewal request is denied, materials must be returned immediately.
Returning Borrowed Material
If at all possible, please return ILL items inside Morris Library by either placing them in the book return or handing them directly to a Help Center staff member. Items can be returned to the book drop outside Morris Library if the library is closed.
ILL materials must be returned by the due date listed on the item’s paperwork. Failure to return ILL materials within 60 days of the item’s due date will result in the temporary suspension of ILL privileges until the overdue item(s) are returned.
Long overdue, lost, or damaged materials will be billed for replacement based on the charges assessed by the lending library. Billable damage includes, but is not limited to: writing in, highlighting, cutting, or other acts of defacement; water damage; food or beverage residue; and failing to return booklets or other items packaged with a CD or DVD. All charges will include a $25.00 processing fee which is non-refundable, even if overdue material is returned. A notification will be sent to users’ University of Delaware email account prior to billing.
Lending libraries may recall ILL materials at any time. Recalled ILL items must be returned immediately. Failure to return recalled ILL materials will result in the temporary suspension of ILL privileges and University of Delaware Library borrowing privileges until all recalled items are returned.
Items Difficult to Obtain Through ILL
Some materials which may difficult to obtain through Interlibrary Loan include:
- Entire volumes or issues of periodicals. Photocopies of specific articles may be requested.
- Ebooks
- Reference works
- Rare materials, including manuscripts
- Bulky or fragile materials that are difficult to ship
- Multimedia items
- Technical standards
- Requests which may violate copyright limitations
Interlibrary Loan supports the instructional, research and scholarly activities of University of Delaware faculty, staff and students. The CSD Office will only request materials needed for scholarly research, and CSD staff reserve the right to cancel requests that do not fall into this category. Please visit your local public library to obtain personal interest/entertainment materials.
Ebooks are often not available through Interlibrary Loan due to licensing agreements: many libraries contract with e-book providers to offer titles to their local users only. We can attempt to borrow an ebook from another institution, but we can’t guarantee that we’ll be successful. Print copies are much easier to obtain through Interlibrary Loan.
Article DELivery Service
Copies of journal articles and book chapters held by the Library are available to eligible users. Please see the Article DELivery Service page for more information about this service.
Copyright Restrictions
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction in excess of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.