Libraries

University Libraries

The University of Michigan Library is a system of 20 libraries that includes a graduate, an undergraduate, science, health science, and many other specialized libraries. With more than 11 million volumes, the University Library is the eighth largest academic library in North America and is considered one of the top research libraries in the United States. The University Library collections are represented in the library catalog, U-M Library Catalog. Graduate students are eligible to borrow materials from all U-M libraries; they can also utilize the Inter-Library Loan (ILL) service to obtain materials held by other lending institutions, and the 7-Fast document delivery service to have materials delivered (for free!) to their department mailbox or electronically as PDF files. Visit the library website for more information about library services available for graduate students.

Specific Libraries within the U-M Library System

Art, Architecture, and Engineering Library

The Art, Architecture, and Engineering Library offers access to collections and services supporting art, architecture, design, engineering, and urban planning. The engineering collection is one of the largest in the U.S. including well over a million technical reports, all U.S. and some foreign patents; the Visual Resources Collection supports slide and digital images primarily in architecture and contemporary art. The Library is housed in the Duderstadt Center, an innovative mixed-use facility with hundreds of work-stations in open areas, and offers programs supporting instructional technology.

Askwith Media Library

The Askwith Media Library maintains a collection of over 25,000 titles, including feature films, documentaries, animated films, and instructional programs. Formats include DVDs, ½” and ¾” videotapes, 16 mm films, CD-ROMS, audio cassettes, audio CDs, and laserdiscs.

Clark Library

The Clark Library combines maps, government information, and spatial and numeric data services. This library is a congressionally designated depository for U.S. Government documents; public access is guaranteed by law.

Fine Arts Library

The Fine Arts Library maintains a collection of print and electronic resources in the history, theory, and criticism of the visual arts, consisting of over 100,000 volumes on painting, drawing, sculpture, graphic arts, decorative arts, architectural history, and photography. It also houses non-circulating collections of East Asian language materials and special collections on the visual arts.

Hatcher Graduate Library

The Graduate Library houses the general collection and is the primary research collection for the humanities and social sciences. The collection contains approximately 3.5 million titles written in several hundred languages and covering a broad range of subjects. In addition, there are over one million items in microformat and a large collection of electronic resources. Several divisional libraries are housed in the Hatcher Graduate Library building. The Graduate Library provides study carrels, copying machines, and microfilm readers to all of its patrons, and the stacks are open for browsing. There are library orientation programs and tours available at the beginning of each term.

International Studies Library

The International Studies Library comprises the Near East Division; the Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Division; the South Asia Division; and the Southeast Asia Division. The U-M Library collects materials in over 400 languages. It acquires books, journals, magazines, newspapers, and other publications in over 50 of these languages.

Museums Library

The Museums Library serves curators and researchers in the Museums of Anthropology, Exhibits, Paleontology, Zoology, and the University Herbarium. The Library collections of 130,000+ cataloged volumes focus on taxonomic botany and zoology, behavioral biology, paleontology, and archaeological anthropology. Collections devoted to Anthropology, Birds, Fish, Herpetology, Insects, Mammals, Mollusks, and Paleontology, as well as the Herbarium Library collection, are housed at the Research Museums Center on Varsity Drive.

Music Library

The Music Library supports the performance, teaching, and research activities of the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance.

Papyrology Collection

The Papyrology Collection is one of the most prestigious collections of ancient manuscripts in the world. With over 7,000 inventory and approximately 17,000 individual fragments dating from 1000 BC to 1000 AD, this collection is the largest in North America and ranks among the largest worldwide.

Shapiro Science Library

The Science Library provides services and resources to support research, teaching, and scientific inquiry in the fields of Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Geological Sciences, Mathematics, Natural Resources and Environment, Physics, and Statistics.

Shapiro Undergraduate Library

The Shapiro Undergraduate Library is designed to enhance the undergraduate experience by providing its students with an array of innovative programs and resources. The library offers more than 200,000 books and periodicals, access to a multitude of electronic information resources through its homepage, and a small collection of leisure reading materials. Undergraduate library staff are specialists in teaching and assisting students as they navigate the new global knowledge environment.

Special Collections Library

The Special Collections Library holds internationally renowned collections of books, serials, manuscripts, posters, playbills, photographs, and original artwork. It is home to some of the most historically significant treasures at U-M. Collections do not circulate; material is retrieved upon request for use in a reading room.

Taubman Health Sciences Library

The Taubman Health Sciences Library serves the academic health sciences schools, basic and clinical research, bioinformatics and clinical translational science, and the University of Michigan Health System (UMHS). The library partners with the Medical School, the School of Nursing, the School of Dentistry, the College of Pharmacy, the School of Public Health, and UMHS in meeting the information and research needs of students, faculty, researchers, and clinical staff.

Independent Libraries on Campus

Bentley Historical Library

The Bentley is a research library relating to Michigan’s history, people, and institutions from the era of exploration to the present. Materials include personal papers, organizational records, photos, films, maps, books, and newspapers. It also serves as the University Archives, with documents dating from the founding of U-M in 1817 to the present. Open to all students, faculty, Michigan citizens, and others interested in historical research. Exhibits are displayed throughout the year.

William L. Clements Library

The Clements Library specializes in primary source material relating to early American history and culture from 1492-1900. It contains rare books, maps, manuscripts, graphic art, and music. It is possible for you to use the library for research, but you must check with the admission desk for applications and an interview. Exhibits are also on display in the Main Hall.

Gerald R. Ford Library

The papers of President Gerald Ford and his White House and campaign staffs are the core of extensive research collections on federal policies and politics in the 1960s and 1970s. The library is run by the National Archives and is open to students and to the public.

Kresge Business Administration Library

The Kresge Library meets the business research needs of students, faculty, and staff at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business, the University of Michigan, and the surrounding community.

Law Library

The Law Library provides collections and services to support the teaching and research needs of Law School faculty and students. Collections cover Anglo-American, foreign, comparative, and international law as well as legislation and court reports from all U.S. jurisdictions. Materials do not circulate out of the library.