Interlibrary loan (ILL) is the way the Seminary Library provides you with the books and articles that it does not own by borrowing a copy from other libraries. This service is available free for current students, faculty and staff of SCS.

There are two ways to request an ILL. (1) Search the DTL Catalog for the desired item, if it says, “At other libraries worldwide” then click on the title. Under Access Options (on the right), click on “Request item through Interlibrary Loan”. (2) Fill out the forms on the library website under Request Items | ILL Request Book or Article. You will be contacted by email or telephone when your material arrives.

Book (print) requests (through option 2) are usually received within 10 days. They are mailed to us via USPS, media rate. It is important that the borrowed item is returned by the due date written on the ILL band attached to the book’s cover. If you need the book past the due date, contact the SCS Librarian about the possibility for renewal by calling (619) 201-8967 or by email. In rare cases, if we cannot find a library willing to loan the book for free, you may be asked to pay for the loan. Book requests in e-book format (through option 1) will be purchased by DTL charged against SCS’s annual allowance and made available digitally to the re-questor.

Article requests, usually photocopies (either option 1 or 2), are normally received within 2-3 days. This is because they are typically sent to us electronically. You will not have to return a photocopied article. Because of the effort involved in locating and copying article requests, it is more common for libraries to charge for the request. Please fill in the “willing to pay” field in the ILL form on the SCS Library website (option 2). If the lending library charges, they typically set a $5-20 fee for photocopies.

If you are unable to visit the library personally to pick up a print book(s) during library hours, you have the option of (1) requesting items and using curbside pickup (they will be checked out to you and left in a bag on the library’s book return box outside the entrance), (2) requesting that they be sent via USPS mail (we pay the postage going out, you pay for it coming back—using media rate), or (3) asking the library to scan a reference work entry, book chapter or commentary passage and email it to you.

Another service we offer our distance/online students is reciprocal borrowing. Through a series of agreements our library has with other libraries, our students (based on good standing and their degree program) can visit these libraries and check out books. Each RBP (reciprocal borrowing program) has a map of participating libraries: ATLA, SCATLA, and ACL. There are limitations to these agreements, for example, SCATLA is only for graduate Bible students who live in Southern California. If you want to access a library in your area, please contact the SCS Library Director for a referral.

SCS has joined the original Digital Theological Library which is a “co-owned, born-digital library of religious, biblical and theological studies.” DTL is more than a list of databases, rather this is a comprehensive research library in religious studies with more than a 1,000 databases in the collection, including both e-books, journals/articles, streaming video (this also includes content in the Korean language).  In addition, DTL 1 supports our Behavioral Sciences program by including the APA databases and Psychotherapy.net (streaming videos).

If you need help searching the library catalog or the DTL, locating materials, or with any other research or reference need, call or email the library.