Find your textbooks and unit readings

You can find most textbooks and unit readings in Library Search (the big search box on the homepage) - just search for your unit code. We try to have online copies of textbooks so they can be used by as many students as possible, but sometimes you may need to buy your own copy.

Not every unit has a prescribed textbook or a reading list. Ask your lecturer or check your unit site in CloudDeakin if you're not sure.

• Find my textbook
• Find my reading list

The Library is more than just books

The Library is your hub for success and connection, far beyond borrowing books. It's a place where you can choose from a range of study spaces (including quiet zones, group rooms and neuro-inclusive reset rooms), get help when you need it and find peace to focus on your work.

• Expert support: A team of librarians is here to help you find resources, sharpen your research skills and support your study.
• Skills and workshops: Build digital literacy and academic confidence with guides, videos and skill-boosting modules.
• Events and exhibitions: Dive into exhibitions, programs and events that explore ideas, showcase history and bring the Library to life.
• More ways to learn: From e-books and research databases to personalised help with referencing and digital tools, the Library supports every stage of your study and research journey.

Extra support for those who need it

We have lots of extra support available for our diverse users.

• Support for people with a disability
• Students transitioning to Deakin University via Deakin College
• Students enrolled in the Deakin University English Language Institute (DUELI)

Our campus libraries also have Reset Rooms available. These provide a private space that is specifically designed to promote self-regulation.

Follow Deakin Library on social media

Want to hear the latest news from Deakin Library? How else will you know when the therapy dogs will be visiting! Follow us on our socials:

• Instagram
• YouTube
• Article (blog)

We're here to help

There's no such thing as a silly question! Our staff are here to help. You can get in touch with basic queries by:

• chatting online (look for the chat icon in the bottom right of our website)
• visiting us at the Service Desk near the main entrance to each library space
• submitting an online enquiry.

We also have specialist librarians who support each faculty. They can help you with more complex questions relating to your area of study.

Don't want to speak to someone? The Skills for study section of our website contains lots of help, including how to find relevant resources for your assignments and how to evaluate information for reliability and accuracy.

Our campus library spaces

We have a library space at each campus that is now open 24/7. You'll need your Deakin Card to access the Library after hours.

Each library has bookable study rooms, private Reset Rooms for self-regulation, oodles of study areas, computers and printers, vending machines, and helpful librarians.

• Find your campus library
• Book a study room in the Library
• Get help with printing, photocopying and scanning

What can your librarian help you with?

Our librarians can help you with everything from lost property to finding that obscure journal article from Romania published in 1911.

Get in touch with us for any questions or queries on borrowing items, finding and accessing your unit readings, and using databases to find resources.

We can also answer your queries on our services and spaces, troubleshoot issues with your Library account, and point you to other areas of the University if your query is outside our area of expertise.

Get support from your peers

Library Student Advisors offer peer-to-peer support to help you navigate university life. They are available during the trimester to:

• provide friendly support in library spaces
• facilitate Study, Snacks and Chats sessions
• guide you through Deakin's technology, learning platforms, library resources and more.

Our Student TechAssist team are also available during the first few weeks of trimester to help you with:

• connecting to wi-fi
• setting up multi-factor authentication (MFA)
• printing
• accessing your CloudDeakin.

Library card

Your Deakin Card or student ID card is also your Library card. You can use your Deakin Card to borrow from the Library, print on campus and access our 24/7 spaces after hours.

• Order your Deakin Card
• Learn more about borrowing from the Library

What are resource guides?

Our librarians curate resource and study guides that help you build your study skills and find the most relevant e-books, databases and other resources for your study area.

We have two kinds of guides:

• discipline-specific guides for every study area from accounting to zoology
• general study guides that are relevant for everyone.

Attend one of our tours, workshops or events

The Library hosts a range of tours, events and workshops across the trimester. Join a tour of our campus libraries at the start of trimester to get the most out of our spaces. If you can't make it to a scheduled tour, don't fret! Ask one of our staff at the Service Desk and they can give you a tour when it suits you.

Want to make friends while you study? Connect with fellow students at our Study, Snacks and Chats sessions.

As the trimester progresses, we host online and in-person workshops to help build your study skills and information literacy. Check our upcoming events calendar or explore our past and upcoming exhibitions for more details.

Watch the 'Explore your Library' recording

We run 'Explore your Library' sessions at the start of trimester to help new students understand the resources, services and facilities available to you. If you missed one of the live sessions, catch up and watch the recording.

How to search for resources

Library Search (the big search box on the Library homepage) is where you can find millions of resources, including:

• your textbooks and unit readings
• journals and journal articles
• e-books, audio recordings, videos
• and more.

You can search by keyword, title, author and many other fields. You can also filter or limit your results to narrow the number of results; for example you may only want journal articles that are peer reviewed, or newspaper articles published in the last 12 months.

You can also search for electronic resources such as articles and e-books through the A-Z Databases. Each database may look different, but most have a common search functionality.

NOTE: Many Library databases can be searched via Library Search, but not all of them. If you are looking for more information on a topic, try searching a few databases to explore different results.

You can use Google Scholar, however you might not find the best resources possible or you might be prompted to pay to access an article.

• Search tips and planning your search
• Browse our A-Z databases and A-Z newspapers and journals
• Learn how to find relevant articles and books for your assignments

Borrowing

Undergraduates can borrow up to 50 items at once, and e-books don't count towards that limit.

You can borrow books from any of our libraries. If it's not located at your home campus, place a request by clicking the 'Request It' button in Library search. We'll transfer the book to your home campus, where you can pick it up from the Click and Collect shelf, or we'll post it to your home for free.

Most of our books can be borrowed for 30 days at a time, but some in-demand books (like textbooks) can only be borrowed for 2 hours. You don't need to renew your loans - they automatically renew unless someone else has requested the book or you've had the item for a year.

• Learn more about borrowing, placing requests and returning your items
• Request an item that Deakin Library doesn't have
• Postal deliveries

Access your Library account

Your Library account is where you can access and manage your loans and holds, and check your borrowing history.

• Learn more about my Library account
• Access my Library account

Understanding a citation or reference to find the full text

There are a few ways you can search to find specific articles and books. This is often called ‘known item' searching because you know what you are looking for, instead of browsing resources without a particular title in mind.

First try to search for the journal article or book title using Library Search. If that doesn't find the item you're looking for, you may need to break down the citation further. Watch our YouTube video or explore our help page to find the resource.

Technology available in the Library

Every campus library has computers and printers. Our computers are equipped with a range of software to support your study. You get $100 of printing credit each month - that's around 1,000 A4 pages in black and white!

We also have a range of assistive technology in a private study room that must be booked in advance. This includes computers with JAWS and Dragon Naturally Speaking, on-screen keyboard software and OCR capability. The Burwood Library also has a text magnifier machine.

Bringing your own machine? As a student, you have access to heaps of software from the Deakin Software Library.

Develop your study skills

Our Skills for study site has lots of info to help you develop the right techniques and skills to find, access and evaluate information relevant to your study.

Our study guides also include a range of guides aimed at building foundational skills critical to success at uni, including:

• Library study skills guide
• Take better digital notes
• Improve your active reading
• Reflect critically on the information you find

Check out the Current Students study support website too for heaps of support and resources to support your study.

Evaluating information

You've found resources, but how do you know whether they're reliable and accurate? Assess the credibility of your resources with our dependability checklist, and learn how to undertake a literature review.

Referencing

It is important that you correctly reference the sources you have quoted, paraphrased or summarised in your work.

There are several referencing styles used at Deakin and different units can use different styles, so you should check which style is required in your unit. This information is typically found in your unit guide on your unit site.

Visit the Deakin guide to referencing for instructions on how to cite your sources using the correct referencing style.

Want to level up your referencing game and use reference management tools? Learn about the tools that are available at Deakin, plus work instructions and training sessions.

Copyright

Copyright may seem confusing, but it doesn't need to be. We provide support and guidance on using, sharing and citing works in a copyright-compliant way. Check out our copyright basics to learn more.

Using AI as a student at Deakin

AI is evolving rapidly, often faster than we can keep up, and finding clear, reliable and practice information can be a challenge. That's why we've created the Deakin AI Hub - a trusted space to help you build the skills and confidence to engage with AI in informed, creative and responsible ways.

Indigenous programs in the Library

We're committed to ensuring that Indigenous knowledges are embedded into your studies and recognised and woven into the fabric of Australian life.

• Read Blak Focus, our monthly newsletter from the Library's Indigenous Programs team
• Explore the First Nations Hub

Preparing for exams and end-of-unit assessments

We've prepared a comprehensive blog post on how to best prepare for your exams and end-of-unit assessments.

Support services across Deakin

We know this can be a stressful time. There is lots of help available across the University:

• Study assistance, including mentors and Study Support consultations
• Health and wellbeing support, including counselling and medical appointments
• Emergency and crisis information