Interlibrary Loan & Article Delivery FAQ

If the owning library will lend the material, we will happily request it for you.

To protect our patrons’ privacy, our system does not retain patron information after a request has been completed. If you would like to keep a record of items borrowed through interlibrary loan, the easiest way is to save the email notifications you receive when an item is ready. 

Interlibrary Loan & Article Delivery staff do our best to fulfill requests that you place. However, there is no guarantee that we will be able to obtain all materials requested.

Some items borrowed from other libraries are eligible for renewal. You can request renewals by signing in to your My Accounts page. If the item you’ve borrowed is says “No Renewals” on the paper band, it is from a library that does not allow renewals. 

If the lending library will allow the dissertation to circulate, we will happily request it for you.

Materials borrowed through PSU Interlibrary Loan & Article Delivery should be returned to PSU Library. Please include all paper work that originally came with your item.

You also have the option of returning items through USPS or commercial shipping services:
PSU Library Interlibrary Loan
1875 SW Park Ave.
Portland, OR 97201

Interlibrary Loan does not assess overdue fines.

Patrons may incur charges if items are lost or returned damaged or vandalized:

  • Lost/damaged item service charge: $15 (nonrefundable)
  • Lost/damaged item replacement cost: $75 or higher (at least $75 or the actual cost of the lost/damaged item)

More information: Fines & Charges

Physical items like books, DVDs, and CDs are held at the 1st floor Library Circulation Desk and can be picked up using your PSU ID or photo ID. Journal articles and book chapter requests will be sent to your PSU email address and will be available under the Electronic Documents tab on your My Accounts page. 

Journal articles and book chapters should be sent to your email address in 2-3 business days. Print books and other physical materials will likely arrive at the 1st floor Circulation Desk in 7-12 business days.

You can request journal articles, book chapters, print books, movies, and music from other libraries. Journal articles and book chapters will be sent in PDF format to your email address. Print books and other physical materials will be available for pickup at the 1st floor Library Circulation Desk.

Interlibrary Loan is a service that allows current PSU students and employees to borrow materials from other libraries. The PSU Library has borrowing agreements with many Pacific Northwest academic libraries (Summit) and with other libraries around the world (Rapido and RapidILL). 

You don’t need to choose a lending library when you make a request from another library; our system will automatically prioritize fastest delivery.

Current PSU faculty, staff and students are eligible to borrow items through interlibrary loan.