Borrowing and returning

The majority of the library stock can be borrowed. The lending periods can be:

• 4 weeks (normal loan),
• 1 week (short loan) and
• Books in presence, which can be borrowed overnight or over the weekend.

The signs directly on the book will tell you what type of lending it is. Short-term and on-call lendings have a sticker above the signature label. Normal lendings does not have a sticker.

Please check all media for damage before borrowing! If you notice any damage, please report it to the service desk before borrowing. Otherwise you are liable for the damage.

If you find media in the library catalogue at another location that you need at another Ostfalia location, you can order them there free of charge. We will send literature to any Ostfalia library location on request.

• Please make a note of the corresponding shelfmarks (letter-number combinations of the book) of the media from our library catalogue.
• Then send us the signatures of the media you require by email,
• Your library number and
• the location where you would like to collect them.
• It usually takes one to three days for your ordered media to be available at the Ostfalia location of your choice.
• You have seven days to collect the items once they have been made available.

You can renew items online up to seven times as long as they are not reserved and no fees are outstanding.

Please check carefully after each renewal whether and for which media the lending period has actually been extended!

If you need media beyond this period, you must present them at the library for a new lending.

As a service, the library will send e-mails to your (Ostfalia) e-mail address:

• three days before the lending period expires,
• when reservations or interlibrary lendings are received and
• when you place a hold on your borrowed media.

Please check your user account regularly.

This service is non-binding!

Books can be returned at any location and only at the circulation desk during opening hours.

Outside opening hours, a book return box is available at each location.

No library card is required to return media.

It is also possible to return items by post, although you are liable for any damage or loss. The postmark is decisive for the time limit.

If you exceed the lending period, a reminder will be sent to your registered (Ostfalia) e-mail address. Please pay all outstanding fees immediately, as all lending and renewal functions will be automatically blocked. The fee scale is structured as follows:

• 1. Reminder level: 2 Euro
• 2. Reminder level: 5 euros
• 3. Reminder level: 10 euros.

The amounts add up at each level. After consultation with the library, reminder fees can be transferred. Payment by Ostfalia Card is not possible. EC-cards are accepted.

Detailed information can be found in the Fee Regulations (external link, opens in a new window) of the State of Lower Saxony for Academic Libraries.

Please remember to return or extend the deadline in good time!

Are you writing your thesis soon or doing an internship abroad?

No problem! We give Ostfalia students the opportunity to borrow books for a longer period of time.

For Bachelor's and Master's graduates:

Submit a copy of your completed application for admission to the Bachelor's or Master's thesis as a copy, scan or forward the examination board's email to the library of an Ostfalia location of your choice. The start of the processing period and the submission date of the thesis should be indicated. (Contact: Library Wolfenbüttel (opens your email program), Library Wolfsburg (opens your email program), Library Salzgitter (opens your email program), Library Suderburg (opens your email program))

For interns:

The Student Service Office (SSB) will issue you with the relevant certificate.

External users are always welcome at the Ostfalia Library!

You can find everything you need to know about registration and terms of use in the following points or in our clever Ostfalia clip "External users" (external link, opens in a new window).

Registration

To use our library, you need a library card, which you can obtain at all Ostfalia Library locations.

We offer the following usage models:

• 3 months : 5,00 EUR
• 12 months : 12,00 EUR

The membership fee can be paid in cash or by ec card.

To issue a library card, we need from you

• valid identity card or passport with registration certificate (not older than ½ year)

Please note:

Minors also require a declaration of consent (PDF, 21.84 KB) (opens in a new window), (not accessible) completed by their parents and a copy of one parent's identity card (front and back).

Exempt from the obligation to pay fees are

• Pupils under the age of 18,
• Vocational school students
• Welfare recipients and the unemployed,
• Students of the TU Braunschweig, HBK Braunschweig and Leuphana University Lüneburg.

Appropriate identification/proof must be presented at the library. Only a fee of EUR 5.00 will be charged for issuing the library card.

Borrowing and usage modalities

We offer the following services for external users:

• borrow up to 10 books/journals (volumes) at the same time
• time limits for borrowed media can be extended up to 7 times online and independently in the lending account
• use our library PCs for working and for internet and database searches (registration at the service desk required)
• copy and print on site for a fee (please enquire about prices at the service desk)
• use the book scanner free of charge using a USB stick you have brought with you
• reminders are sent by post