Information for undergraduates

This page focuses on subject information specific to undergraduates, but also points to other useful pages.

Contacts and feedback

• Your subject contact is Julian Hill, the Subject Librarian for Chemistry (staff profile). The Contacts section of the Library website details other contacts and enquiry points.
• Feedback about library resources for chemistry is welcomed by the Subject Librarian for Chemistry, or the Staff-Student Liaison Committee.

Subject resources

• Book purchase recommendations can be made to the Subject Librarian for Chemistry.
• The collections page details useful chemistry collections in the University's libraries, and advice on using other university libraries and the British Library.
• Chemistry quick reference tools, databases, reviews and bibliographies, and Internet links pages are available.

See our Library collections and eResources pages for details of our more general resources & collections, including electronic journals, electronic books and databases.

Inter-library loan vouchers

• If you need an item which is not held anywhere in the library system here in print or online, you can use the Inter-Library Loans Service to obtain it from another library, though you should check with Chemistry Library staff first. There is a charge for this service, though you may be able to obtain an Inter-library loan voucher to pay for this from the Chemistry Library if it is for your final year project (you may be asked to get a signature from your supervisor).

Information literacy

• Chemistry 1 honours students have a tour of the Chemistry Library in Introductory Week, and all Chemistry 1X students have an assessed 'Library worksheet' (in the form of an online quiz), to gain the knowledge and skills to be able to use the library effectively in the first year. The instructions for accessing and submitting the Library worksheet (Chemistry 1X) are handed out in the mass Safety lecture in Introductory Week, or can be requested at the Chemistry or can be accessed here:
  • Chemistry 1X Library Worksheet instructions (Word, .doc, 36 KB).
• Chemistry Year 2 students (apart from F104) have a timetabled 'Introduction to the Library' talk from the Chemistry Librarian to help gain these information literacy skills.  These skills are necessary for the Formal Laboratory Reports write-ups in the Techniques for Chemists course, project work later in the course, and for life after university.  Copies of the first 4 of the 5 handouts mentioned below will be handed out at the talk.
• Handouts on using the Chemistry Library and searching the chemical literature include:
  • Information sources in chemistry (Word, .docx, 48 KB)
  • Understanding and quoting literature references (Word, .docx, 45 KB)
  • Researching a topic (Word, .docx, 50 KB) - see below for simplified online version
  • Databases useful for chemists (Word, .docx, 50 KB)
  • Reaxys database, including Beilstein & Gmelin (Word, .docx, 304 KB)

          (these 5 handouts are also available in print at the Information display in the Chemistry Library)

• Researching a topic in chemistry - a six step process for effective finding and using of chemistry information.
• Finding and using information - general advice, including a version of the six step process for effective finding and using of information with added advice
• Information literacy: video tutorials - videos and quizzes on using the Library Catalogue

Back to top