Research Techniques: Using Your Library

Library staff can help you develop your IT skills and digital literacies, as well as supporting you to improve your confidence with a range of software.

The IT Skills Guide provides you with tips specific to the types of assignments required of CU Group students. Students can also access LinkedIn Learning, an online skills development library of 7,500+ video courses and tutorials across a wide range of subject areas (including most IT skills, common software you'll need to use for assignments, and broader skills to prepare you for the workplace).

As a core support to your studies as CU Group, you have access to a dedicated Academic Writing Service. AWS is available to students of all levels.

We can:

• help you become a more confident and independent writer
• teach you about academic integrity in your writing
• help you develop good academic writing practices

Our Academic Writing Developers can support you at any stage of your writing process, and on any type of writing assignment. All our support takes place through 1-to-1 individual appointments and workshops.

The AWS can help you in a number of ways. These include:

• Analysing and understanding assignment briefs
• Writing critically
• Writing different assignment types successfully
• Using and integrating sources
• Organising and structuring assignments

Sigma provides free mathematics and statistics support for all Coventry University students and staff.

We provide a wide range of resources online. Throughout the year we run various workshops and training courses to improve your skills in areas such as statistics, mathematical software packages, PGCE numeracy tests, and employer's numerical reasoning tests.

All CU Group students are able to attend the online workshops as well as book 1-1 appointments.

CU Group recognises that students have a range of additional support requirements. As such, we offer a variety of services to support students who have disabilities, mental health conditions, long-term health conditions or additional needs. These include:

• Additional Support – e.g. accessing resources or using the computer
• Book Fetch – Students can request books in advance from the Library and Learning Services Desk. Please allow three hours before collection.
• Laptop Loans – Borrow a laptop for up to 6 hours at a time while on campus. Lower access specific laptops are also available.
• Coloured paper – Yellow, pink, blue or white
• Photocopying and Printing – Support with copying documents, enlarging files and accessing evidence of printing costs for DSA
• Academic Writing Support – By appointment for all students with our Academic Writing Tutor
• Online Library – Access a wide-range of e-books, journals and articles using Locate and Libguides with your username and password.
• Workshops – Our Library and Learning Services team run a variety of workshops including referencing, Locate and academic writing.

If there are other support services that you feel that you require in order to assist you with your studies then please contact our Disability and Welfare team. Portal link**

Books, eBooks, journal articles and newspaper articles can all be found via our library catalogue, called Locate.

Students and staff have access to:

• 310,000+ ebooks
• 142,000 ejournals
• over 54 million journal articles

Using Locate you can:

• Find print books in the library using the shelf mark number
• Access thousands of eBooks
• Access hundreds of thousands of academic journal articles
• Access newspaper articles
• Refine results and save items to your favourites
• Check your library account
• Reserve items

Take a look at the Locate tutorial pages to find out more!

  Borrowing

• All you need is your student ID card. If you're unsure how to find a book, a member of staff will be able to help you.
• Books are issued for 1 week or 3 weeks depending on the book.
• Book renewals are automatic unless a reservation has been made or there is a fine or block on your library account.
• Laptops are issued for 6 hours and cannot be renewed.
• Borrowing is free, but for the late return of books that cannot be renewed there is a charge.  There is also a charge of £1 per hour for late laptops.

Automatic Renewals

The library operates an automatic renewal system.  To avoid incurring fines, please check your university email regularly for notices from the  library.  Items will automatically be renewed, as long as:

• Another user has not requested them.
• They have not reached their maximum loan period of one calendar year.
• Your account does not have any fines attached to it.
• Your account is not blocked as a result of overdue items or financial blocks.
• Your account has not expired or will expire before the renewal date.

Late returns incur £1 fine per item, per day.

For more FAQs, see our Frequently Asked Questions on LibAnswers.