Note to distance learners. The UWRF Library provides library and information support for the University of Wisconsin-River Falls distance learning students and off-campus faculty and staff. Please consult the Distance Education website for services the interlibrary loan staff provides.
If you are currently not a part of one of these groups:
Please see your local public library for interlibrary loan options.
The interlibrary loan staff obtains books, articles, dissertations, DVDs, CDs, musical scores, reports, and other material from outside libraries and institutions.
While many academic institutions charge for ILL services, we offer these services at no charge to eligible users. We are happy to provide for our patrons' research, teaching, and study needs and will do our best to acquire needed materials as efficiently as possible.
However, we ask our patrons to be mindful that ILL services are not free for the UWRF Library. In fact, some items are quite expensive to obtain. Please be judicious in making your requests. That way, you can help to ensure that the UWRF Library is able to continue providing ILL services free of charge for eligible users.
Many factors determine when ILL items arrive. Typically, but not always, electronic journal articles and book chapters arrive anywhere between 2-7 days. Books, audio-visual items, and other loans typically take 4-8 days, as they have to travel via the postal service.
Books, musical scores, CDs, DVDs, and other loans will be picked up at the main circulation desk during the hours the library portion of the building is open. You need your UWRF ID to check out ILL items. Curbside pickup is also available.
Though rare, some ILL loans will be designated library-use only. These designations will be in the notification emails.
The library who lends the materials to us determines due dates for all items they loan, not the UWRF Library. Typically, but not always, loan periods are about four weeks, with one two week renewal if requested. Your due date will be noted on the pink slip in your book.
Renewals are at the discretion of the lending libraries, and the length is determined by them.
The interlibrary loan staff does its best to process requests as soon as it receives them. After the ILL staff processes a request, it is up to another library to decide when - or if - it can lend or copy an item.
If you need an item very quickly, please contact library staff we may be able to estimate how long material will take to arrive.
Phone: 715-425-3321
Email: circulation@uwrf.edu
No. The interlibrary loan staff is not able to obtain textbooks. Undergraduates needing textbooks for their class please contact Textbook Services.
Graduates may purchase textbooks at the UWRF Bookstore or other sources. Interlibrary loan should not be considered a substitute for purchasing a textbook.
At this time Interlibrary Loan can't support the medium of Ebooks and therefore we cannot borrow them.
We can submit requests for the physical version of Ebooks if available.
See this guide for more information on Ebooks.
Yes, we can request a physical item for you. These items are subject to the lending library's due dates.