Library Services for Distance Learning
The St. Kate's Library provides many library services and resources online to students in distance programs who live outside the Twin Cities metro area.
Doing Research
- Finding books, videos, and sound recordings -- use CLICnet
- Finding journal or newspaper articles -- use databases
- Research Tips -- helpful hints
Getting Help
- Reference -- Ask a Librarian
- Contact the Library
Other Library Services
- Interlibrary Loan -- get books and articles from other libraries
- Course Reserves -- find articles your instructors put on reserve
Finding books, videos, and sound recordings
Use CLICnet, the St. Kate's Library catalog, to find books, videos, sound recordings, and other items the Library owns:
- Guide to using CLICnet (PDF)
- Information about using My Account on CLICnet
Getting CLICnet items:
- You can request items from CLICnet using our Interlibrary Loan service via ILLiad, and we will send them out to your home
- CLICnet includes many electronic books which you can access directly from your computer. For more information, see our E-Books page
Finding other books:
- WorldCat.org: a catalog of over 10,000 libraries worldwide. Enter your zip code to find items in a library near you, or create a profile to make a list of favorite libraries
- You can check your local libraries for resources as well
- If you are near a college or university, ask about special borrower cards--many institutions provide them (for a fee) to local residents
- These materials may be requested using Interlibrary Loan
Finding journal and newspaper articles
Library databases contain citations to journal articles and other resources on your topic. Under the Go to... heading on the Library's homepage, follow the Articles and Databases link. In some cases, the full text is available online (meaning you can read and print the entire article from your home computer).
- For off-campus access to most of our databases you will need to use your KateWay login
- Some databases require a password
- For more information, see Connecting to Library Databases from Off Campus
A few tips:
- Articles from scholarly journals will usually give the best information. See the PDF guide to: What is a scholarly journal?
- Once you have a citation, consult our guide to Finding Journal Articles (PDF) to get the actual article
- Check Journals A-Z to see which journals are available online from St. Kate's
- Use Interlibrary Loan to request articles from journals not not available online
Other places to find information on your topic:
- Check the Research Guides on your subject for resources selected by the librarians at St. Kate's
- See our guide to Finding Newspaper Articles (PDF)
Research tips
- Check out our Research Tools and Tutorials
- Consult with the Reference Librarian liaison for your department
- Print out copies of Library handouts to consult as you search. Also print out ALL the articles you use from databases and the web to make citing your sources easier
- If St. Kate's doesn't have the journal you need, and you don't want to wait for Interlibrary Loan, maybe you can find it at a local library. Check WorldCat.org Advanced Search and in the box next to Title enter the name of the journal you need
- Check a style guide for help citing sources you use
- Use RefWorks to manage your sources and create your reference list
Reference: Asking Questions and Getting Help
Librarians are available to answer reference questions by phone or email.
- By Phone: If you call when a librarian is not
available, leave a message and your call will be returned as soon
as possible, or at the start of the next business day
- On the St. Paul campus the phone number for the Reference Desk is 651.690.6652. Please check the reference hours to make sure a librarian is available to take your call
- On the Minneapolis campus, call 651.690.7898 or 651.690.7784 for Reference assistance. Someone is available to help you Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm, and occasionally on evenings and weekends
- By Chat: use the following screen names to contact a St. Kates librarian. For more information see our IM reference page
- AIM, iChat or Yahoo!: stkatesrefdesk
- MSN: stkatesrefdesk@hotmail.com
- Google Talk: stkatesrefdesk@gmail.com
- If a St. Kate's librarian isn't available, use AskMN to reach a librarian 24/7
- By Email:
- You may Ask a Reference Question at any time
- Contact the Reference Librarian responsible for your department
More information is available from the Reference Services page.
You can also try our Frequently Asked Questions page for help.
Contacting the St. Kate's Library
Contact the Library -- by phone, chat, email, or mail
Interlibrary Loan (ILL): Getting Items from Other Libraries
Members of the St. Kate's community in distance learning programs may request delivery of books, journal articles, and other items.
Requesting items via ILL:
- Forms for placing ILL requests are available online through ILLiad
- You will need to know your library barcode to use these forms. This number is found on the back of your St. Kate's ID Card
Some points to keep in mind:
- Due to copyright laws, you may not request an entire issue of a journal--only individual articles
- Plan ahead! Allow 1-2 weeks for your ILL requests to be processed
Our web page for Interlibrary Loan, will give you more information about our policies and procedures.
Course Reserves (E-reserves)
Instructors often place articles or papers on reserve in the Library.
- You can retrieve many of these through CLICnet Classic and print out copies. Use the links in the bottom left corner of the CLICnet opening screen
- In order to view items on e-reserves you will need to know your library barcode, found on the back of your St. Kate's ID
- See the Reserves page for more information about e-reserves