Services for Alumni & Guests

Alumni have borrowing privileges at all the Boston College Libraries except the Law Library. The loan period for alumni is 28 days with two renewals per item permitted. At the Educational Resource Center (ERC) alumni have borrowing privileges (excluding all educational and psychological tests) for 14 days with one renewal (28 days total).

Guests have borrowing privileges at all the Boston College Libraries except the Educational Resource Center and the Law Library. The loan period for guests is 28 days with two renewals per item. 

To obtain a borrowing card see the Guest and Alumni Borrowing page. 

**Alumni/Guests are not able to check out Daily technology (iPads, Laptops, Flip Cameras), Hourly technology (Laptop chargers, Headphones, VGA Adaptors, Graphing Calculators), Print or Media course reserves, or Popular e-books. 
1: DVDs, VHS, CDs, POP DVD, laserdisks, Vinyl, Cassettes, & CD ROMS
2: Renewal Period: Most loans can be renewed an unlimited number of times during the renewal period unless recalled.  Items must be returned to the library when the renewal period expires.

Scanning services are available to alumni and guests at no cost. Outgoing fax service is also available at O'Neill Library. 

We provide in-person reference service in all libraries and offer a variety of help by subject to assist in finding more focused resources in your research area. Check our Hours for service desks staffing or Contact Us for more information.

While on campus, many databases and online resources found in our Catalog are available to walk-in users including alumni and guests. Some resources are restricted to current faculty, students, and staff. Call the O'Neill Reference Desk at 617-552-4472 before visiting to make sure the resource you are interested in is available. Off-campus access is limited to current students and faculty.

We have arranged for special access to the following databases for BC alumni:

• Adam Matthew Primary Source Collections - digitized primary source material on a variety of topics, geographic areas, and historic periods.
• ATLA Religion Databases - essays, book reviews, and journal articles in all disciplines related to theological and religious studies.
• GoinGlobal - information on worldwide resources for internship and job searches. Contents include Country Career Guides, USA/Canada City Career Guides, Job Postings and Internship Listings, H1B Visa Info, and an Employer Directory.
• JSTOR - a collection of thousands of academic journals, books, and primary sources.
• OECD iLibrary - the online library of the OECD including books, papers, and statistics.
• Project MUSE - scholarly journals in the humanities and social sciences from university presses and scholarly societies.
• RefWorks - a citation management tool.
• The Vault - career information on a wide variety of industries and specific companies.

Remote access to these databases is available on the Research Resources page of the BC Alumni Community. Use these instructions to register for access to the Alumni Community portal.

If you live in Massachusetts you are eligible for a borrowing card at your local public library which will give you remote access to databases available through the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners site. If you do not live in Massachusetts consult your local public library for information about accessing databases.