Well, my tips last week went over well so I decided to continue them. I'll try to focus on buildings this week. I will also get another feature going about the Marquis Series this year so stay tuned!
TIP ONE: Study rooms are awesome but they are in high demand.
The second floor has some great study rooms complete with whiteboards. The only problem is that they are usually occupied when you want them. So get there early if you want a room for the night. For instance, getting to the library right after dinner, so 5:30 PM or so, should give you a fighting chance for a room. And if you're studying during the day, morning or early afternoon is a good time to nab a room.
TIP TWO: Find multiple spots in the library that are your favorites.
I am a library lover and have found many favorite places in Stewart Memorial Library; each place has been designated for a certain type of studying. If I'm feeling sociable, I like sitting at the long tables on the second floor because I can see friends and get work done. If I want an area less used, then I might go to the Reading Room on the right hand side of the first floor. It's usually pretty quiet. And if I really need to get things done, then I'll go up to the third floor and find a cubicle in a corner not near a window (because I will get distracted at watching people walk by!). The first week at Coe, you'll visit the library a lot and you'll quickly figure out what areas of the library you like the best.
TIP THREE: Use the library for just more than studying.
The Stewart Memorial Library is a fantastic library. It has so much more to offer than just study space and computers. Although a lot of students want to go for the internet sites when working on a paper, there are great books out in the stacks for you to use. And, we do have some great movies for you to check out too. A reference librarian is on the first floor during the day and can answer any questions you have and help you find anything. Make sure to use them as a resource -- you won't be sorry.
TIP FOUR: Don't be scared when you look at the call numbers in the stacks and go, "THAT ISN'T THE DEWY DECIMAL SYSTEM!"
Our library is organized by the Library of Congress Classification (LCC). Now, I'm going to geek out in library facts. Enjoy the history lesson. The LCC was developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century by the Library of Congress. Today, the LCC is used most frequently over the world and can be found in many academic libraries in the United States (aka Coe). The LCC is made up of 21 classes, each assigned a letter of the alphabet. These classes are then divided into subcategories and these subcategories can be subdivided and so on. The numbers might look scary at first, but it's not that bad. If you need help, ask a librarian or find me! (No seriously, if you need help in the library, I would be more than happy to help)
TIP FIVE: If you're looking for movies, look no further than the basement of the library.
Our AV collection is pretty intense. We've got basically everything from cartoons, to action, to romance, to foreign, to documentaries, to TV series to, well, you get my drift. Just be aware the movies are arranged in the LCC system so they might be hard to find at first. But once you're in there a few times you start to figure things out.
I'm sure I have more library tips but I can't think of them all right now. I'll add if I think of any more!