Skip to Main Content

Research skills for your EPQ

How Solent University Library can support you

Your local university libraries will usually be happy for EPQ students from colleges and schools to visit and use their facilities and Solent are included in this. Below you will find information on how to access our library and facilities as a visitor and the restrictions to this. You will also find a guide to our library catalogue which will help you locate physical resources and search for online open access content.

Visiting Solent Library

Applying for a Visitor pass

Members of the public who would like to visit the library must apply in advance for a visitor pass.  These are usually processed within 3 working days but it may take longer during busy periods.  Passes will be valid for 1 year.  When uploading a photo, please DO NOT use a photo of your passport / visa.  We are unable to process applications made using a photo of your passport. You will need to upload a clear photograph showing just your head and shoulders, in .jpg, .png, or .jpeg format.  We cannot process any other formats.

APPLY FOR A VISITORS PASS

Solent University Alumni and SCONUL members can apply for subscriber membership instead.

When can visitors use the library?

The library is open for members of the public with a visitor pass to use as a reference collection during the following hours only:

  • Monday - Friday (term-time) - 8.00-23:00
  • Saturday and Sunday (term-time) - 11:00-23:00
  • Vacation hours (these are advertised shortly before each vacation).

There may be times when we are required to restrict access for visitors such as national lockdowns.  Any changes will be advertised on the library website.

All visitors must show a valid visitor pass to enter the library.  If you lose your pass you will need to apply again using the link above.

What can visitors use in the library?

  • Use the books as a reference
  • Use the various non-bookable study spaces

What can visitors NOT use or do in the library?

  • Use computers
  • Use bookable study rooms
  • Borrow any items

Are children allowed in the library?

Children who are accompanied by an adult may visit the library. Children must be accompanied at all times and adults are responsible for ensuring that children are safe and do not cause disruption.

Where can I find more information?

For more information, please open the attached documents.

You can also contact us via email: library.loans@solent.ac.uk

Searching the Library Catalogue

The Solent University Library Catalogue is open for all to access and search across, however unless you have a Solent login you will not be able to access most of the electronic content such as eBooks and journal articles. You can use the catalogue to search our print collections which you can then access by visiting the library and use for reference purposes. You can also search across all of our content and then apply the "Open Access" filter to only display resources which are free to access. This can be an effective way to search across a range of different databases and access the open content within them. The below video gives an overview of using the library catalogue (aimed at Solent students). Below that are some screenshots demonstrating how to limit results to open access content.


To limit your results to content which is open access you should first of all carry out your search and then from the limiters on the right-hand side of the screen select "Open Access" under the "Publication Status" menu. All results displayed will then be accessible by clicking on the title and selecting the link under the "View Online" section without the need to login.