Study Spaces and Carrels
Study Spaces
Do not despair if you are not able to reserve one of the 41 carrels this semester. Eleven carrels located along the west side of the terrace on Floor 1 of the library cannot be reserved and are open to all library users. You also may use a reserved carrel when the occupant is away – please just leave it tidy and as you found it, and vacate it if the student who has it reserved arrives.
Reserving Study and Media Rooms
There are two ground floor media and five group study rooms in McCain Library. To reserve one of the media or study rooms, visit the LibCal reservation page. Rooms may be reserved throughout the day and up to two weeks in advance with a minimum use of 30 minutes and maximum use of two hours per day, per student. Media rooms are designated for one or more users; group study rooms require two or more users.
The student making the reservation should come to the first floor Circulation Desk to retrieve and check out a key to the room they reserved. At the end of the reservation, or before, the key should be returned to the Circulation Desk for check-in to avoid overdue fees of $1.00 per hour.
To ensure equal availability for all students, media and study rooms have a two-hour reservation maximum. Users utilizing the spaces in groups can individually reserve a room, allowing the group to extend their reservation for more than two hours by coordinating back-to-back times.
Email accessservices@dos5.net to extend room reservations, making sure to include your name, the room number, the amount of additional time needed, and whether a different room would be acceptable if your current space is unavailable. If your room is available for an extension, we will add the requested time and then let you know via email. If the room is not available, we will respond with an alternative space based on your request details.
Study Carrel Reservations
McCain Library has a limited number of study carrels (41) that can be reserved by eligible students for use during an entire semester. The intended purpose is to allow students doing library-intensive work a place to work undisturbed and keep their research materials together. Study carrels (11) located on the Main (first) floor of the library next to the terrace's west side cannot be reserved and are open to all patrons at all times.
Carrels that are numbered on the Ground floor, Stack 2, and Floor/Stack 3 may be reserved.
Study Carrel Request Form by lottery.
- Reserved study carrels are prioritized for undergraduate students enrolled in senior seminars and in upper-level, research-intensive courses (ex. 490s), but other students may submit a form.
- Reservations will happen by random lottery starting on the first day of classes, so a carrel is not guaranteed.
- McCain Library staff will not be able to guarantee a specific carrel. Please note on the form the area or floor you would most like your carrel to be located and staff will try to accommodate your wish. Each carrel has a number if you wish to walk around and refer to those on the form.
- Reserved carrels may be used by anyone as long as they are vacant; please do not disturb books or belongings that are on a reserved carrel while you are using it.
- Once assigned and notified (by email), the student must come to McCain Library to complete the loan of the study carrel by noon the day after classes begin.
- After this point, any unclaimed carrels will go back into the queue for another lottery drawing.
- After their assignment and notification, the student must come to McCain Library to complete the loan of the study carrel by noon the next day. After this second-round drawing, any remaining unclaimed carrels will go back into the queue.
- No walk-ups to reserve carrels will be accepted to ensure fairness.
Students with reserved carrels are reminded to always check out any library materials you place on your carrel so that they will show up as checked out and unavailable in WorldCat.