Skip to Main Content

Explore Hekman! Seminary Student Guide

Librarian-crafted guide to services and resources in Hekman library for Calvin Seminary students

Borrowing at Hekman

Hekman Library has nearly one million books split almost evenly between physical print volumes and ebooks. 

Distance seminary students have access to all of Hekman Library's digital resources. It is best to always start your research through the library's website to ensure that you have proper access by using your seminary library credentials.

Residential seminary students can borrow anything from Hekman's physical collection using their Seminary student ID card (except for items from a few special collections, such as Reference and Rare Books). Borrow up to 75 books at a time, for a check out period of 6 weeks, but remember to return those items on time! You will receive an email from the library when your items are due soon, as a reminder, but remember that you can also log in to your library account any time to check your due dates and renew items. Most books can be renewed multiple times, unless they have been requested by another patron.

For more info and policies, see the library's Borrowing page.

How to Find Books and Journals

*Video may be slightly out of date due to renovation construction and website redesign in 2023 - newer content coming soon*

 

Tips for Searching in Hekman Library:

  • Use the Library Catalog to search for print books and journals - try either entering your search terms as keywords for a broad search or perhaps try an author, title, or subject search with other information
  • The Limits options under the search box can be used to search for specific kinds of materials: for E-books, change Type to "Books" and Forms to "Online" or for Print Journals, change Type to "Journals" and Forms to "Print"
  • The results page in the catalog displays snapshots of information for all kinds of materials. The important details to locate these materials are shown in the grey boxes: Collection, Shelving Location, Call Number, and Status. Status will tell you if a book is available or checked out, and the rest will tell you which floor it is on and what call number to look for on the shelf.
  • If a book you'd like is checked out, you can click the "Request" option in the "Get It" section to request to be the next person to check it out, so as soon as it is returned, you will receive an email from the library to let you know it is your turn
  • If you're not sure when a book you've checked out is due, you can go to your account to see the full list of everything you have checked out and when it is due. You can also renew these items online by checking them and clicking "Renew"
  • Remember, in order to place holds or renew items, as well as access e-books and other electronic resources from off-campus, you must log into My Account on the library website.

Ebooks play a larger role in library collections. 

It is best to start your search for ebooks through the Hekman Library catalog. There you can use the limit options to change type and form to "book" and "online." This filters your results to show only ebooks. Though most of our ebooks are in our catalog we are always gaining access to resources, so we've listed several key collections, such as the Atla Ebook Lending Program, listed below that you will want to consult as well, 

Not Finding What You're Looking For?

Even if Hekman Library doesn't own a particular book or article that you need, you can borrow or get a copy from another library through our MeL and ILL sharing services. Just use the links below to search outside of Hekman's holdings and make requests - if you have any questions or problems, the librarians are always available to help!