Interlibrary Loan
Interlibrary Loan (ILL) is the process by which a library requests material from, or supplies material to, another library. ILL allows you to obtain materials from other libraries that are not held by our Library, or that may be checked out by other patrons.
Criteria for ILL Requests
- You must be an authorized Marine Corps Research Library or Quantico Base Library patron with a current library card in good standing (no lost or severely overdue items).
- The resource requested must be unavailable at our Library (i.e., all copies of a book are checked out by other patrons, or in the case of journal articles, the Library does not own a copy or subscription).
Restrictions on ILL Requests
- We cannot request loans from international libraries, due to military mail restrictions.
- Libraries will not loan physical or digital copies of videos, audiobooks, or ebooks. (Copies of ebook content depends on the lender, and copyright restrictions.)
- U.S. Copyright Law applies to certain requests. This limits the number of pages that can be requested for copies, the number of articles from a single journal, copies of book chapters, and ebook content.
How to Place an ILL Request
- In person: Requests can be made in person during normal hours of operation. Ask for an ILL form at the Circulation or Reference desks.
- Email: Requests can be emailed to: mcu_grc_interlibraryloan at usmcu.edu. Email is the preferred method of contact and helps minimize any delays in processing.
- Online: Use the "Submit a Request" form in the menu to submit your request.
Required Information
Please provide as much information as possible about the item you need. This will assist us in locating the correct resource. Worldcat.org is a reliable source of bibliographic information.
- For books: Title, Author(s), Year of Publication, Edition, ISBN, Publisher.
- For articles: Article Title, Author(s), Journal Title, Journal Volume/Number/Issue, Publisher.
- You may also provide links that will aid in locating the resource (from a website, Worldcat entry, etc.)
Picking Up Your Request
- When the item becomes available, you will receive an email notification indicating that it is ready for pick up (for physical items). Physical items may be picked up at the MCRL or QBL Circulation Desk.
- Electronic items (articles, copies) will be sent to the email address you provided at the time of the request.
Items Not Available
- If the item is not available, you will receive an email notification to that effect.
Processing/Delivery Times
Articles
- Between 1 to 7 days
- Dependent on the lender's processing time
Books
- Between 1 to 3 weeks
- Dependent on the lender's processing time, and mail delivery time
