Services for
students from other colleges


If you are living locally and studying at another North Dakota college or university through a distance education program, you can obtain a Special Borrowing Permit at no charge.  Stop by the Circulation Desk, near the main library entrance, to acquire your permit. You must present some proof of your enrollment in the program, either a valid student ID or some other document from the institution.  The permit is good for the entire semester and can be renewed.  You may borrow any circulating materials from the NDSU Libraries using your Special Borrowing Permit for up to four weeks.

If you are participating in a distance education program originating from a non-ND institution, you must purchase the Special Borrowing Permit ($25 per year).

NDSU does not accept Interlibrary Loan (ILL) requests from Special Borrowing Permit holders, however the ILL office may be able to forward requests to the distance learner's home institution for processing.  Distance learners should also inquire at their local public library for ILL needs.

In addition to our book and periodical collections, the NDSU Libraries offers a number of computer databases that can be of use to the distance learner.  The NDSU Libraries Home Page can give you an overview of the resources available, as well as some potentially valuable web links in your subject area.  Please note that most of our online databases are available ONLY on computers on campus.

There are a number of computers in the reference area of the main library specifically set up for online research.  If you have questions about any of our libraries' resources, feel free to ask a reference librarian.  In addition to visiting the reference desk at the Library, you may contact a reference librarian by phone at 231-8886 or by e-mail at help@earl.lib.ndsu.nodak.edu.  The reference desk is open all hours that the Library is open, except it closes at 10 p.m. on days the Library closes at midnight.