Services

General Collection

The library's general collection exceeds 98,000 print volumes. This collection is devoted to the curriculum and research needs of all high school, college, and seminary students and faculty.

Reference Collection

The reference collection is made up of encyclopedias, dictionaries, statistical sources, and other resources covering a wide variety of topics. Here a student will also find biblical commentaries, lexicons, concordances, atlases, and Bible handbooks. Due to user demand, access to these materials is restricted to the library.

Periodicals

The library has over 100 current periodical subscriptions most of which are titles unavailable in electronic databases. The library also maintains a collection of bound back issues from most of our subscriptions. Periodical titles and volumes available can be searched by doing a title search in our catalogue. Current and back issues of periodicals do not circulate outside of the library.

Audiovisual Collection

This collection is comprised of teaching tapes, video recordings, and classical CD sound recordings. Equipment for listening and viewing is available in the library. All AV titles may be searched for on the public access catalogue. CD recordings and audio cassettes circulate for two weeks. Video cassettes and DVDs circulate for three days.

Online Resources

The library subscribes to a number electronic databases. All databases combined provide access to about 14,000 periodical titles. The library also has a number of E-book collections, totaling over 200,000 titles.

Microform Collection

The library's microform collection includes both microfiche and microfilm materials. The microform collection currently numbers over 400,000 units. A substantial portion of this collection is taken up with the ERIC microfiche collection of Reports in Education (RIE). TREN (Theological Research Exchange Network, a collection of theses and dissertations in theology, Bible, and ministry) also forms a major part of the collection. Books, periodicals, and historical documents are also available. This collection is for in-house use only; however, the library does have a fiche photocopier.

Briercrest Recordings

Going back as far as 1974, these tapes include speakers from Youth Quake, Fall Conference, and student chapels. The tapes are arranged by ID# and may be searched for on the public access catalogue.

If you have questions about the library or if you require assistance with library research, drop by the reference desk. We would be happy to answer any questions you might have about using the library catalogue, searching online products, accessing library collections, using library equipment, or finding information for a research paper.

You may also contact reference staff by phoning 306.801.4481/4698 or emailing library@briercrest.ca. Please note that reference assistance is available to non-residents of Caronport.

Reserve items are taken from the general stacks and set aside for restricted access due to high demand for class assignments. The reserve collection is located at the circulation desk. Items may be requested from the reserve list binder on the circulation desk. Only one reserve item may be checked out at a time. Items may not be reserved in advance.

Two-Hour Reserve

A two hour reserve item is to be used only in the library and are due back within two hours of check-out. Overnight check-out is allowed within two hours of closing, and the item is then due back within one hour of re-opening.

Five-Hour Reserve

These items can be taken from the library at any time and are due back within five hours of check-out. Overnight check-out is allowing within five hours of closing, and the item is then due back within one hour of re-opening.

Two-Day Reserve

These items are checked out for two days at a time. They should be returned before closing on the due date.

Reserve Fines

The fine for an overdue two or five-hour reserve item is $0.25 an hour. The fine for an overdue two-day reserve item is $1 per day. The maximum fine on any reserve item is $10.

The library provides interlibrary loan service to faculty and local students who require books or periodical articles that are not available in the library. The Archibald Library participates in the Saskatchewan Provincial Library System; however, requests are not limited to the province. Please note that there may be a cost for this service.

We are able to provide interlibrary loan service for journal articles to off campus students. For full details, please consult our Off Campus Student page.

Online Interlibrary Loan Request form

For those who wish to borrow items from our collection, please request an ILL through your local regional public library branch or school library.

There are 16 lockable study carrels reserved specifically for seminary students. The purpose of these carrels is to provide seminary students with unrestricted carrel access at any time the library is open. This also allows students to store personal items and library research in their carrels. These carrels include built-in lighting, power for laptops, etc. Carrels are rented on a semester basis for a $30 fee. Demand is usually high and carrels are awarded on the basis of need. To apply for a carrel, please contact the librarian.

The library has one photocopier that is operated by coin or pre-valued debit cards. These cards may be purchased at the circulation desk.

Costs:

• 50 copies: $6.00
• 100 copies: $10.00
• 200 copies: $18.00
• 500 copies: $41.00

If an old card is returned for recycling at the time of purchase, a $1 discount will be given.

Students who return a card with credit value remaining will be refunded half that amount.

Have a well-loved book that needs repair? The library has a bindery that is able to fix almost any book. They even re-cover bibles. Drop by the library with your item to see our book binder and get more information.