Students are at the heart of everything we do here in Library and Computing Services and we are listening and continuously improving our services to help you make the most of your studies here at Herts.
- Find the right study space for you
- Get Connected
- Use a Uni computer
- Finding and using resources
- Skill up
- Supporting your digital skills development
- Staying safe online
- Improving your learning
- Find your way around campus
- Get help using library and computing services
Find the right study space for you
Our Learning Resources Centres (LRCs) are your one stop shop for study spaces, computing, printing, books and resources. We’ve listened to what you’ve told us and have acted on your feedback to make the following improvements to our services and spaces to help you succeed in your studies.
- More group study spaces - we know how important it is to have dedicated space to study in groups, so as well as refreshing some of our ever-popular bookable group study rooms, we’ve reorganised and refurbished our ground and first floor study and PC zones with some new and comfortable furniture to create some lovely new spaces for you to study in small and large groups.
- Dedicated individual and quiet study - with a wider range of groups spaces on offer we’ll be freeing up our individual and quiet study spaces on the second floor for those looking for a spot to concentrate and focus. We’ve also refreshed our quiet floor signage to better support those studying in the space and our friendly library staff will be on hand and proactively monitoring our spaces to help you find the right space for how you want to work.
- Get the help you need when you need it
- We've installed new low-level Information Points on all study floors which you can use 24/7 to look up books, find answers to common questions or pick up a phone to call our Helpdesk team for advice and assistance.
- We'll have an extra welcome desk set up at the start of term with library staff and Wi-Fi Warriors on hand to answer any questions about Wi-Fi, books, computing, StudyNet, LRCs, and more to help get your term and your studies off to the best start.
- Extra safety and security - your safety and security is really important to us and we've been working closely with the security team to introduce more CCTV throughout our LRCs to keep you safe at all times.
- Looking after your wellbeing - whether it’s curling up with a book or playing a game of Jenga with a friend we have lots on offer right here in our LRCs to help you take a well-earned break from your studies:
- Our Reading for Pleasure areas on the ground floor of our LRCs (new to our de Havilland LRC this term!) are a perfect spot to take a break and enjoy your favourite read! You can also download the free Libby library reading app to browse, borrow and read our collection of digital magazines, ebooks and audio books.
- Game on! From Jenga, boules and Batak to yoga and table tennis, from mid October until Christmas our Herts Sports Village team will have a regular spot on the ground floor of our CL LRC where you can try your hand at some 'no sweat' games and activities.
Find out more about our spaces and services and how we can support you:
- Watch our LRC tour videos for a whistlestop tour of what’s available
- See Ask Herts: https://ask.herts.ac.uk/learning-resources-centres
Get connected
On-campus you can connect to the free campus Wi-Fi (eduroam) using any of your devices. Go to getconnected.herts.ac.uk to get started and once set up you will connect automatically whenever you are on campus.
Look out for our students wearing blue Wi-Fi Warrior T-shirts at the start of term to help you get up and running.
Returning to campus for the first time since July? Update eduroam security on your device. Find out more: ask.herts.ac.uk/set-up-eduroam-wireless#eduroamsecurity
Use a Uni computer
Whether you are bringing your own device or using one of our LRC or lab PCs across campus we’ve made it easier to access the computing and software you need for your studies with:
- Built in power on all our new group study desks in the College Lane LRC so you can easily keep your devices charged
- The latest Windows 11 operating system now available on all our LRC and computing lab PCs plus we’ve upgraded and replaced over 150 PCs at our de Havilland LRC
- An extensive range of software available across both our LRC and Specialist Software PCs – see what’s available at ask.herts.ac.uk/software-availability-at-uh#Specialist_software_in_LRCs
- £5 print credit added to student accounts at the start of your academic year so you are all set to print, copy or scan your work on any of our LRC printers. And if you need more specialist printing services our Document Services team are always happy to help. Find out more at ask.herts.ac.uk/printing-on-campus
- Forgotten your device? Don’t forget you can borrow a laptop (Chromebook) for 4 or 12 hours to use anywhere on campus. ask.herts.ac.uk/computer-loans-for-herts-students
Find out more about using computers in the LRCs: ask.herts.ac.uk/using-computers-in-the-learning-resources-centres
Finding and using resources
Whether online or print we’re continuously improving the way you can access all the resources available to you:
- Find the book you need on the campus where you are taught - if it’s a print book you’re after we’ve organised our collections so that the books on your course reading list are available in the LRC on the campus where you are taught.
- Studying a Humanities subject? Over the Summer we’ve moved your print books (over 7000 of them!) to a new home in the College Lane LRC so that you can quickly and easily find the books on your course reading lists. And if you're looking for books for research or additional course reading, the Humanities Research collection remains available for you to browse and borrow from the de Havilland LRC.
- Even more online resources
- More ebooks and e-text books available for your studies including the Academic Complete collection with over 225,000 eBooks offering unlimited, multi-user access and free chapter downloads. You can find all these new titles via Library Search on the Online Library.
- Access more streamed films and videos via the Kanopy platform (kanopy.com/en) Search the Online Library for "Kanopy" and filter by “Library Catalogue”.
- Save time searching and accessing journal articles when you are off campus with the easy-to-use and free to download Lean Library browser extension. Get started with Lean Library.
- Check out our reading for pleasure collections in our LRCs or download the free Libby library reading app to browse, borrow and read our collection of digital magazines, ebooks and audio books. Get started today at libbyapp.com/library/uherts
Plan ahead – don’t forget to use our reservations service to reserve an item and pick up on any campus. Find out more at ask.herts.ac.uk/book-borrowing.
Skill UP!
Looking for extra help to complete your assessments and assignments?
- Pop along to our Study Success Hub in the LRCs and speak to a member of the Library team at our drop-in sessions running from 13:00 – 15:00 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 24 September.
- Check out our Library SkillUP Canvas site for library and study skills support materials on topics such as Searching, Reading, Evaluating, Referencing and Writing to help save you time and get better grades.
- Not sure where to start? Take a look at our Get Started unit on Library SkillUP or download our new Library Quick Start checklist to help you get started with Library resources and support.
Find out more at go.herts.ac.uk/libraryskillup
Supporting your digital skills development
See our latest resources to help you stay ahead in today’s digital world:
- New student? Use the Get started with Herts Digital Checklist to get to grips with the everyday digital tools that you need at Herts.
- Get digital skills support via our Student Technology Mentors in the LRC Study Success Hubs from 14:00 – 17:00 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.
- Take a look at our collection of self-guided resources in the Digital Skills unit of the Library SkillUP module.
Need help? Contact the Digital Capabilities team at digital@herts.ac.uk with any questions or feedback.
Find out more on this Digital Skills page on AskHerts.
Staying safe online
All students are required to use multi-factor authentication to protect their Herts user account when logging into University systems.
We recommend using the Microsoft Authenticator app on your smartphone. This is especially important if you are an International Student as the app will work regardless of location, phone signal, or Wi-Fi availability.
See our tips and advice for staying safe online: ask.herts.ac.uk/staying-safe-online-checklist
Plan ahead – make a note of our planned dates for IT maintenance works which are essential for keeping the University's systems safe and secure and don’t forget to visit our Service Status page for latest updates on our systems and services.
Improving your learning and teaching
More teaching and learning spaces available across campus including:
- New state-of-the-art 120 capacity PC lab (largest in the University!) will be ready for use in early October. This lab will be dual purpose, meaning that desks can easily be transformed from PC work into a regular teaching desk!
- New specialist learning and teaching spaces in the brand new SPECTRA building on the College Lane campus including some new student connect spaces which are a perfect spot for some group study with your course mates.
- Top floor of R-block on the de Havilland campus has been converted from office to general learning and teaching space which includes some new social and connect spaces.
- Over 200 teaching rooms now kitted out to automatically record your teaching and learning sessions. See herts.ac.uk/recording-of-teaching-and-learning-sessions-on-campus
Find your way around campus with our new and improved maps!
Directions in Maps is now available in the latest release of the Herts Mobile app. This new feature is designed to help you easily find your way around campus with:
- Improved navigation - easily find your way around campus with our intuitive maps routing feature
- Accessible routes: designed for users with accessibility needs, ensuring everyone can navigate the campus effortlessly
Take a look and download the app today at mobile.herts.ac.uk
Tell us what you think
Provide feedback within the map itself by selecting a location and tapping on the “?” icon or via the “More” button, then “Feedback”.
You can also leave feedback by emailing the team at mobile@herts.ac.uk
Get help using library and computing services
Support services are continuously being improved to help you when and how you need it:
- online support– extensive online help and support at ask.herts.ac.uk
- 24/7 telephone support- talk to our helpdesk team at any time on 01707 284678
- status page– keep updated about planned maintenance or any issues with key services such as StudyNet or Wi-Fi at status.herts.ac.uk
And don’t forget to follow us on our library account on X @uhlr and Instagram @uniofhertslibrary to keep up to date with the latest library news.
Thanks, and congratulations go to all the library and computing staff who work hard to bring you these services. We hope you like them - and make good use of them!