Requesting a physical item from the McGill Libraries for pickup: Hold requests
You can request to have any regular loan item owned by any McGill library location (including the McGill University Collections Centre) retrieved for you and made available for pickup.
To request an item for pickup, search for it in the Sofia Discovery Tool (Library catalogue), click the "Request / Hold" button, and select the library pickup location of your choice.
Staff will retrieve available items by the next business day. In most cases, items requested from the McGill University Collections Centre for pickup at the Humanities & Social Science Library should be available within one business day. Items requested for pickup at other library locations may require two business days.
Hold requests placed on McGill items that are currently checked out can take up to 30 days to fill. Items that are currently checked out can be requested via Network Loan or Interlibrary Loan.
You will be notified by email when the item you requested is available for pickup. The item will be held at your chosen pickup location for 7 days.
It is also possible to place hold requests on items that are "on order" or "in process".
Items on Course Reserve cannot be requested for pickup.
You can view details about your hold requests, and cancel requests for items you no longer need, by signing in to your library account.
Scans of articles and book chapters contained in print volumes owned by the McGill Libraries can be requested via the article/chapter scan service
Requesting a physical item from a Quebec university library: Network Loan
The Network Loan service is available to McGill students, faculty, and staff.
If the physical item you need is checked out or otherwise not available from the McGill Libraries, you can borrow it from a Quebec university library by requesting it through the Sofia Discovery Tool (Library catalogue).
The requested item will be delivered to the McGill library location of your choice for pickup.
To request an item from a Quebec university library, search for it in the Sofia Discovery Tool, and filter your search by checking the Bibliothèques universitaires du Québec box:
Once you have located and selected the record, click on the "Request/Hold" button:
Then sign in with your McGill credentials and select the pickup location of your choice.
Please note that you can only select a McGill library as your pickup location.
Requested items will normally be delivered in 4 business days (up to 2 weeks for more distant institutions).
You will be notified by email when the requested item is ready for you to pick up. The item will be held for you at the library you selected for 7 days.
You can view details about your Network Loan requests, and cancel requests for items you no longer need, by signing in to your library account.
McGill students and faculty can request articles, book chapters, or physical items that are not available from the McGill Libraries or via Network Loan, through the Interlibrary Loan Service (ILL).
