Distance Library Services

The IUP Libraries strives to provide excellent support for distance education and off-campus access to library resources. For your convenience, we’ve collected links to a few of the most common resources, as well as instructions for searching and accessing these resources.

Finding Books

• Use the Discovery Search to find print and electronic books in the IUP Libraries’ collections.
• For distance learners, using e-books is often the most convenient way to access books in our collection. Watch a video on searching for e-books on a particular topic, or visit the E-Book Resources page to browse our e-book collections.
• The IUP Libraries’ print book collection is also accessible to distance learners in several ways. Distance learners may use any library location that is convenient and can also request delivery of books from other locations. Watch this video to learn how to search for print books by library location.
• To learn more about requesting books from other locations and delivery options, visit our Interlibrary Loan page.

Finding Articles

• Begin your search for articles by using the Discovery Search. Watch a video demonstrating how to search for articles using the Discovery Search.
• Then try expanding your search to a subject-specific database using the Library Databases list.
• When an article’s full text is not available online, use Interlibrary Loan to request the article, or contact a librarian for help.

Connecting From Off-Campus

• Many online resources will require a login from off campus. Simply enter your IUP username and password when you see the IUP Hawk logo.
• You may also connect to the university’s Virtual Private Network to gain secure access to the IUP network including library resources. Follow the VPN Setup Instructions to configure the virtual private network.
• If you have questions concerning your IUP network account, contact the IT Support Center.

More Information and Getting Help

For more information on finding and using library materials, consult our Guide to Distance Learning Library Services. If you are a student at a regional campus, more information about the regional campus libraries is available for both IUP Punxsutawney and IUP at Northpointe.

For assistance with your research needs, call the reference desk at 1-866-836-8815, contact IUP’s Distance Learning librarian, Carrie Bishop, at cbishop@iup.edu, or ask a librarian.

For questions specific to a certain course or program, consult the Library Research Guides, or e-mail your question to the subject-specialist librarian for your department, program, or discipline.