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Here you will find all the information you need to get off to a good start in the libraries of Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB).

Central library and departmental libraries
The RUB library system is two-tiered. This means that books for your subject can be found both in the central University Library (UL) and in your departmental library. The UL also provides the e-books for RUB. You can access the e-books when your device is connected to the university network, e.g. when you are working on a computer in the University Library. You can also access RUB e-media from home via VPN.

The opening hours and borrowing options vary in the RUB libraries and can be found on the respective websites:

• Central University Library Bochum
• Departmental libraries of RUB

Finding literature
You can find literature for your studies in our search portal RUB PRIMO, in various special catalogs and in our subject databases. Have a look at our overview “Search & find”.
And if you install the LibKey Nomad browser extension, many online platforms (e.g. Google Scholar, PubMed, Wikipedia, publishers' or booksellers' online stores) will already show you whether the full text of a journal article or an e-book is licensed for RUB or open-access  and you will find “the fastest way to it” with the help of AI.

The digital library guide helps you find your way around the library building. You can also use this from RUB PRIMO to display the exact location of a book. To do this, click on the “Locate” button in the catalog entry.

To borrow books from the University Library, you need the RUB Bib App to use our self-issue machines. You can return the items at our self-return machines. You can find everything you need to know about borrowing here. The borrowing options in the departmental libraries vary.

If something is missing in the UB
If you cannot find a book at the University Library, even though it is not on loan, you can report it missing at the information/service desk or by using our form. We will then look into the matter as quickly as possible. If you are missing something from our stock, you can check the possibility of an interlibrary loan. However, we would also be pleased to receive a book suggestion.

Learning at the UL and at home
For on-site learning, the University Library offers you a variety of individual and freely accessible study spaces as well as various group and individual study rooms, which you can book during the week from 8 am to 6 pm and on Saturdays from 10 am to 4 pm.

Users with disabilities can contact our UL Accessibility Team for support and book our special computer with font enlargement and read-aloud functions, among other things.
For larger writing projects, you can use our long-term lockers.

In the interests of sustainability, among other things, there are no photocopiers in the University Library. Instead, scanners and a scan tent for smartphones are available. It is therefore best to bring a USB stick with you to the library.

Courses and consultations
We regularly offer library introductions, courses on literature research, literature management software and many other topics - take a look at our course calendar!
Many faculties also organize introductory sessions at the University Library as part of their tutorials - so perhaps you will also get to know the University Library in this context!

In addition, we are happy to provide you with advice and assistance at our information/service desk during our service hours - come and talk to us!
If you have any subject-specific questions regarding literature search, you can also contact our respective subject librarian!

We wish you a good start to your studies and look forward to your visit!
Your UL team