Resources for Distance Learners

What is document and book delivery?

• Document and book delivery services provide distance learning students at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette access to materials owned by Dupré Library, but not readily available electronically.
• Distance learning students who wish to request materials not owned by Dupré Library may do so via:

Who is eligible for the services?

• Document and book delivery services are intended for UL Lafayette distance learning students only. Students who regularly attend classes on campus, or who live within a 705xx zip code, must retrieve items from Dupré Library in person.
• Exceptions may be made for distance learning students with disabilities. Dupré Library works with the University's Office of Disability Services to make alternate arrangements for students with disabilities on a case-by-case basis.

How soon will my request be processed?

• Requests will be processed Monday-Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Dupré Library attempts to process requests within 48 hours of receipt, excluding weekends and state and University holidays.
• Dupré Library processes requests in the order in which they are received, and cannot prioritize requests for expedited orders. Distance learning students are encouraged to plan ahead when conducting research and placing document or book delivery requests.

Dupré Library provides copies of materials that the library owns in print format only if the materials are not available electronically. Distance learning students should check the library’s online catalog to determine if an article is available online through links to full-text databases or links to publishers’ websites.

Scans of journal articles and book chapters will be sent via electronic delivery.

Dupré Library’s document delivery services are in compliance with the copyright law of the United States (§ 107, 108):

• All copies must be used for research, scholarship, or private study.
• Dupré Library will copy no more than a single chapter from a book, or two articles from any journal issue.

To request a copy of an article or book chapter, use:

Materials held by Dupré Library will be mailed to an eligible student’s current residence. Dupré Library incurs the cost of mailing materials; users are responsible for returning items to the library by their due date. Users are also responsible for return postage, but Dupré Library supplies a return mailing label.

Books are loaned to undergraduate students for a period of twenty-eight days and to graduate students for one semester. The loan period begins from the date the materials are mailed from the library.

Renewals of library materials are allowed as long as there has been no request for that material by any other user. Materials that are not overdue can be renewed in-person, by phone, or by contacting circulation@louisiana.edu with the request. Include your ULID in all correspondence. Overdue materials will need to be renewed in-person.

Materials that usually can be mailed:

• Books
• Government documents
• Proceedings
• Technical reports
• Circulating copies of theses and dissertations

Materials that usually cannot be mailed:

• Non-circulating items
• Special collections materials
• Bound or single issue periodicals
• Materials on reserve
• Interlibrary loan materials

To request books or other materials, use: