Finding things
The Library Catalogue will help you locate where items are in the building. There are dedicated terminals on each of the floors or it can be accessed at www.roehampton.ac.uk/librarycatalogue.
New! Library skills training and information on finding resources and managing your library account.
Why use the Library Catalogue?
Our books are shelved in a number based system. You can browse the shelves under a section as particular number ranges tend to represent particular subject areas. This, however, only shows you what is on the shelf - you won't see any books that are on loan. If you search the catalogue instead, you'll see details of all our books - whether they're on the shelves, or on loan.
Journals are shelved in alphabetical order of title.
The library catalogue also provides a lot of extra services.
How do I find books?
To find a book, first search the Library Catalogue (OPAC). This will give you details of how many copies of the item there are, how many are available and the shelfmark – which is the code that tells you where the item is in the library.
Items are shelved in shelfmark order. The floor guide will help you find which floor it’s on and signage will help you narrow down the area it is shelved in.
What do the shelfmarks mean?
Shelfmarks are key to finding the resources you need and are made up of a series of numbers followed usually by a three letter suffix.
The shelfmark you will see on the Library catalogue is the same as the number on the label on the spine of the book.
There are book location posters around the building, colour coded floors and signage throughout to help you find the items you want.
Locate the book on the shelf by finding the corresponding number.
If in doubt, a member of staff will be happy to help you find the things you want.
How do I search particular collections?
If you know the section that you want to look in for your for materials, the Library catalogue will allow you to choose which collection you want to search in. For example if you want to look for items in the School Experience collection then you can narrow your search to show you items that only appear in that section. You could do the same for Key Texts, eBooks, Audio Visual, Journals or archive collections, and others, in the same way.