FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions

Students are automatically registered upon enrolment. The student ID card also serves as a user ID card.
Guests and employees of the University of Greifswald must register in person at the service desk of the Central Library. In addition to their identity card, employees must also present their current employment contract.
The registration form is available at the service desk or can be downloaded in advance.

Further information is available here.

If someone under the age of 18 wishes to become a user of Greifswald University Library, a declaration of consent from a parent or guardian is required in addition to the registration form. If the parent or guardian is unable to come to the library in person to present their identity card at the time of registration, a copy of the identity certificate, which must be given to the minor, is sufficient.

To log in to your user account, you need the user number on your library card (0009XXXXXX) and a password. You must request a password before logging in for the first time. You will then receive a temporary password at the email address stored in your user account. You must then change the temporary password to a password of your choice.
Further information is available here:
Information video about passwords

Notifications to users of the university library are primarily sent by email to the university email address.

If the user card has been lost, the user account must first be blocked to prevent misuse. This can be done in person or by telephone at the service desk during service hours (Mon-Fri 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.) or by email (ausleihe@uni-greifswald.de).

Students must also contact the Student Secretariat, as the user card also serves as a student ID card.

A replacement card for employees and external users costs €4.70 according to the current fee regulations.

Changes of address should be reported to the University Library immediately.
This can be done by email (ausleiheuni-greifswaldde) or in person or by telephone at the service desk during service hours (Mon-Fri 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.).

Users of the University Library can borrow books either during service hours (Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.) directly at the service desk or independently at one of the self-checkout stations, which can be used outside of service hours.

All media that can be borrowed can be ordered. This can be done via the Discovery system or the OPAC. The ordered media can be picked up in the self-service area on the following working day.
Interlibrary loan orders must be picked up by all users at the service desk of the Central University Library (exception: employees with pick-up location departmental library, Old University Library or courier service).

Journals from the stacks cannot be ordered via OPAC. To do so, a white loan slip must be filled out, which is available at the service desk. Journals can be ordered electronically via the Discovery System.
Journals (issues/volumes) cannot be borrowed and can only be used on the library premises.

 

The Self-Service Pick Up Area contains media that have been reserved and ordered by users. These can usually be collected there on the working day following the order.
Media that have not been collected after 10 days are returned to the library.

Newspapers, magazines and books from the magazines that cannot be borrowed may only be used in the library. These are available for inspection at the service desk during service hours (Mon - Fri 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.). The departmental library does not have its own reading area, which is why all media are made available in the reading area of the Central University Library.

The course reserved collections contain literature that lecturers require for their courses. The media cannot be borrowed and are located in the Central University Library, the departmental library or the Old University Library, depending on the subject area. They are compiled anew at the beginning of each semester.

The standard loan period for books from the open access collection and the stacks is 30 days.

If a book has already been borrowed by another user, it is possible to reserve the title via the user account. The book can then no longer be renewed by the borrower and must be returned after the loan period has expired.
The person who reserved the book will then receive a notification at the email address stored in their user account. The book will then be available for collection in the Self-Service Pick Up Area for 10 days.

The loan period can be extended five times via the user account. After that, the literature must be returned or borrowed again at the service desk. It is then possible to make five more extensions.

Books may no longer be renewed for the following reasons:

• The loan period has been exceeded.
• The book has been reserved by another user.
• The book has already been renewed five times and must be re-borrowed at the service desk.

Return machines are available to users in the Central Library and the Departmental Library and can be used during all opening hours. The user's account is then immediately credited. Media that are not accepted there can be returned via one of the return boxes. The last emptying currently takes place Mon-Fri at 3.30 p.m. Media deposited after this time will not be credited back to the user's account until the next service day, which may result in late fees.
Books can also be returned in person at the service desks during service hours.

All media can be returned to either location, regardless of subject area.

If the loan period of 30 days is exceeded, overdue fines will be charged:

• 1st reminder: €1.50 per media item
• 2nd reminder: €3.00 per media item
• 3rd reminder: €5.00 per media item

If the fees remain in the user account for longer than 3 months or exceed €9.00, the user account will be blocked until the fee is paid. It will then no longer be possible to borrow or renew books.

Fee Regulations

The University Library offers the Discovery System as a modern search portal.
In addition to local media, some journal articles and, by default, the catalogues of the interlibrary loan network libraries can also be searched.

The OPAC (Online Public Access Catalogue) is the online catalogue of the University Library, where you can search for printed and electronic media in the local holdings of all institutions of the University Library of Greifswald.

The electronic card catalogues contain scanned catalogue cards from the alphabetically arranged card catalogues of the Central Library. Books published up to 1989 that are not listed in OPAC or the Discovery System can be searched for in the electronic card catalogues.
The alphabetical catalogues are divided into three periods according to publication year:

AK I: 1850 - 1908

AK II: 1909 - 1973

Orders can no longer be placed via AK II. This inventory is listed in full in our online catalogues.

AK III: 1974 - 1989

Literature published before 1850 and after 1990 is listed in the Discovery System and in OPAC. If journal articles are to be included in the search, the Discovery System is the most effective search tool.

Literature published between 1850 and 1989 is only partially included in the electronic card catalogues. If your search in the OPAC or Discovery System is unsuccessful, you should use the card catalogues (AK I - III).

Search tips for the individual catalogues can be found here.

The university library has a steadily growing collection of electronic resources. These include e-books, electronic journals and databases.
Access is automatically available within the campus network by matching the IP address of the end device. Clicking on the link in the catalogue takes you directly to the full text.
Access outside the campus network is possible via Shibboleth. You will need to log in to the publisher's website using your university login (e.g. as in HIS).
Access to online publications that do not support Shibboleth is via VPN, provided the licence includes the relevant access. A proxy server must also be set up in the browser. The University Library offers an information video on this. Apple users should not use the Safari browser.

All further information on access to online publications is summarised here.

If the desired book is not available in Greifswald, it can be ordered via interlibrary loan from one of the network libraries.

To do this, you must set up an interlibrary loan account at the service desk and top up your credit account.
An interlibrary loan order incurs an administration fee of €1.50 (per book or copy).

Books that are not available at Greifswald University Library can be searched for and ordered from the collections of participating libraries via the union catalogue. Both loan and copy orders are possible. The user will receive a notification when the book is ready for collection at the service desk.
Further information is available here.

Our website contains all the important information for first-year students.
However, you should bring the following items with you when visiting the university library:

• Padlock
• User card/student card

The Central University Library on the Beitzplatz campus houses the mathematics and natural sciences, medicine, law and economics, gender studies and art history.
The Departmental Library on the Loefflerstraße campus houses the humanities and theology.
The Magazine Library on Schießwall contains less frequently requested literature from both locations. The holdings must be ordered via OPAC or the Discovery System and will be made available in the respective self-collection area on the following working day.
The Old University Library houses the special collections of old books and manuscripts as well as Pomeranica. The open-access area also contains the holdings of church music and musicology.

 

To make it easier to find your way around the Central Library, the Departmental Library and the Old Library, the University Library provides users with the V:Scout room information system.
It offers an overview of the various services and subject areas available at these locations. By linking the individual titles in the OPAC or Discovery system to their location, the route to the medium you are looking for can be displayed right down to the shelf.

The University Library offers all university members Internet access via the wireless LAN ‘eduroam’. Information on configuring your own device is available on the Computer Centre's website. The libraries also provide stationary PC workstations. You can log in using your university login details.
The open Wi-Fi network ‘UniHGW offen’ is available to guests of the University of Greifswald. Information on this can also be found on the computer centre's website.

Members of the University of Greifswald can reserve individual and group study rooms, known as carrels, in both the Central Library and the departmental libraries.
The Central Library also has 21 SoloCubes and 9 MeetingCubes available.
In addition, 2 audio cabins for individual use can be found in the Departmental Library.
These rooms can be booked via our room information system, V:Scout. More information can be found here.

Ten workstation trolleys are available to all students in the Central University Library. In addition, there are 24 loan lockers in the Central Library and 12 loan lockers in the Departmental Library. You can apply for one month's use at the relevant service desk. In addition to your own documents and materials, you may also store borrowed media in the APWs or lockers.

Both the Central University Library and the Departmental Library are accessible. Both buildings have cloakroom lockers, lifts and sanitary facilities accessible at ground level.

The Old University Library has a ramp to the left of the main entrance leading to the side entrance, which is located in the courtyard. The counter staff can be notified via the bell and access to the ground floor can be granted. The upper floor is not accessible. However, the staff will provide library assistance.

An overview of our services can be found here.
The library staff will be happy to assist with any further requests or questions.

For further illustration and explanation, the University Library offers information videos and virtual tours for some of its services.
In addition to the official website, users can also find information on the Greifswald University Library's Instagram and Facebook profiles.