Borrowing and Renewing

What are the borrowing rules?

The following rules for borrowing apply during term time:

Borrower	Number of items	Loan Period (Standard)	Renewal Period (Standard)	Loan period (Short Loan/Overnight)	Renewal Period (Short Loan/Overnight)
Student (UG & PG)	10	7 days	28 days	1 day	4 days
Student (special circumstances)	10	14 days	56 days	1 day	4 days
Fellow/Staff	10	28 days	168 days	1 day	4 days
Visiting Fellow	10*	28 days	168 days	1 day	4 days

*Fellow may request additional loans beyond the limit on a case by case basis by contacting the Deputy librarian.

Vacation loans

All loans are recalled at the end of term and are due back on the last Wednesday of Full-Term. The following day Vacation Loans commence and all items borrowed from that point forward (except short loans) are due back at the start of the next term.

Renewing your loans

Items must be either returned or renewed at the end of the loan period (due date). An item can be renewed as many times as you like for the renewal period, but after the renewal period is up they must be returned.

If you want to retain a 7-day loan beyond the initial due date, then you must renew it. You can do this as many times as you like until a total period of 28 days, when it will then have to be returned. Beyond 21 days renewing a 7 day loan will have no effect as it will be due back after 28 days.

Fines

Fines are listed below, please note that recalled books have a larger fine.

Loan type	Fine (per item per day)
Standard Book	25p
Recalled Books	50p
Overnight Loan	25p
Recalled overnight Loan	50p
DVD/Flashcards (AV)	50p
Recalled DVD/Flashcards (AV)	£1

Example:

Day Item returned:	Book	Recalled Book	Overnight Loan	Recalled Overnight Loan	DVD/Flashcards (AV)	Recalled DVD/Flashcards (AV)
Due Date (or before)	No Fine	No Fine	No Fine	No Fine	No Fine	No Fine
Due Date + 1	25p	50p	25p	50p	50p	£1
Due Date +2	50p (25p & 25p from previous day)	£1 (50p & 50p from previous day)	50p (25p & 25p from previous day)	£1 (50p & 50p from previous day)	£1  (50p & 50p from previous day)	£2 (£1 & £1 from previous day)
Ongoing	25p per day	50p per day	25p per day	50p per day	50p per day	£1 per day

To check a full list of your fines you will need to log-in to your account in iDiscover and select the Fines/Fees tab.

Your fines from all the libraries you borrow from will be listed here. Methods for paying fines vary between libraries, your Magdalene College fine will be added to your College Bill at the end of each term and will be made inactive/cleared from that point.

Fines across all Cambridge Libraries

The maximum amount a user can owe across all the Libraries in Cambridge is £100.00. If you accrue £100 you will be blocked from borrowing in all libraries, including Magdalene.

Number of Overdue books across all Cambridge Libraries

The maximum number of books overdue on your account across all the Libraries in Cambridge is now set to 50. If you have over 50 overdue books you will be blocked from borrowing in all libraries, including Magdalene.

How do I borrow?

Books are borrowed via the Self-Service Machine, located on the Library office front desk in right cloister.

 

All you need to borrow books from the Library is your University card barcode.

All books must be borrowed via the self-service machine, or if that is not working via a paper borrowing form. Do not take books from the library without borrowing, this inconveniences your fellow students and you will receive a large fine.

How do I return a book?

When you've finished with a book you return it via the three dropbox slots located as soon as you enter right Cloister. You can also ‘return’ the book on the library Self-Service machine which will enable you to borrow another book immediately in its place.

Books not ‘returned’ on the system will be checked in by the library staff the following day backdated to the previous day, or to the previous Friday after a weekend.

How do I check my account?

The best place to check your account is by logging in to iDiscover. However you can also check your account, reservations and renew books via the Self-Issue Machine.

A book I need is on loan, can I recall it?

If a book is ‘On Loan’ then you can log into your account and Recall it if you require it. Depending on who has the book they will have to return it in 3 or 7 days. You will be notified when it is available.

Recalls are done via iDiscover, please see the iDiscover guidance.

I can’t get my books back by the due date, what should I do?

If you have reached the end of the renewal period and have a genuine issue that prevents you from physically returning the books to the library by your due date, please contact the library staff in advance to let us know. We will consider your case and make arrangements where possible, such as extending the loan. library@magd.cam.ac.uk