McAllen

Accessing Library Resources - in general, as McAllen students, you have the same borrowing privileges as other A&M students. Details on loan periods, number of items that can be checked out, and renewals are available through the Libraries' website. Use the Get It For Me service to have material sent to you. 

Get It For Me is a FREE service offered to students to make materials  available and accessible to you. 

Although the Texas A&M University Libraries have over 5.3 million volumes and over 1,000 databases available for you to use no library has everything. Many books magazines and journals are available online and immediately accessible through the library's homepage. But what if you need something that is not online. Accessing physical materials when you are located away from College Station can be difficult. Fortunately, the Get It For Me service is available to help at no cost to you. Get It For Me is a library service that does exactly what it says, it gets stuff for you.

There are two ways Get It For Me can help.

First, it helps you get access to the University Libraries print collections. Get It For Me will send materials such as books from the library collection to your house, free of charge. Get It For Me can also scan print journal articles from the library collection for you.

But what if you need something the library does not own?

The second way that "Get It For Me" can help is by borrowing materials from other libraries for you. The University Libraries partners with thousands of other libraries around the world, so if there's a book you need, that we don't own, you can still get a copy free of charge.

Get It For Me is easy and relatively fast but the process does take some time depending on what you have requested and its availability. Let's take a look at the different types of materials, you can request and how long each might take to get to you. Scanned copies of materials owned by the library, including articles and book chapters, take about two business days to arrive in your Get It For Me account. If Get It For Me has to request scanned materials from another library you'll have access to that item in about two to four business days. Books from the library's collection can arrive at your house and as little as three business days, as long as they are not already checked out, or on course reserves. If Get It For Me has to request a book from another library, either because our copy is checked out or our library does not own it, the process could take five to ten business days to get it to you. Physical materials will be shipped to you at no cost and will include a return label so you can return it for free as well.

The library has a phenomenal collection and incredible free services such as Get It For Me so take advantage of them!

To have library materials sent to you:

1. Create a Get It For Me account. This account will allow you to request and borrow both TAMU library materials as well as materials from other libraries (Interlibrary Loan). https://getitforme.library.tamu.edu/illiadlocal/ 
2. Click on the left maroon box: "TAMU / PSEL / BLCC Qatar Libraries"
3. Under “Status,” select “Distance Education Student - McAllen.”
4. Be sure to enter the correct delivery address as your home address. This is where your materials will be sent.  It must be a street address, as FedEx will not deliver to a P.O. Box.
   1. Request needed materials using the library website (library.tamu.edu) or library databases and click the Get It button for the item you are interested in receiving.

What can and cannot be sent to you:

• Materials will be shipped to your home address through FedEx with a pre-paid return label that you can use for returning your item. Please be sure to keep your address up-to-date.
• The Get It For Me account address does not update automatically when you change your address in Howdy. Please go to the Get It For Me account and change that address manually. If you need to change your address, click the "Change User Information" link under the "Tools" section in your Get It For Me account.
• Due dates, Due dates, due dates…it is so important that you are aware of the time (5-7 days return) that is needed to get the book back to the library so it can be processed and sent back to the lending library.
• Renew your books (for books with no maroon strap) at your My Library account and at your Get It For Me account (for books with a maroon strap). There are two different accounts to renew your books.
• You are responsible for paying a replacement fee for any lost or missing books including books sent to a previous address where you used to live.

Q: How many books am I allowed to receive?

A: The FEDEX package can fit about 5 books per box. We do not limit the amount of books shipped.

Q: Do I have the same checkout limits as other students?

A: Yes, the Get It For Me service for McAllen students has the same limits as the service for the patrons on the College Station campus.

Q: How long can I keep the books?

A: The Get It For Me service sends two types of books, TAMU books and Interlibrary Loan books that are borrowed from other libraries.

• The TAMU books check out for the same time period as on-campus students, depending on their status. See the circulation page for more details.
• The Interlibrary Loan book checkout period varies from one month to four months depending on the lending library's policies.

Q: Some of the materials I requested show as "request finished" and others as "checked out to customers." What is the difference?

A: The difference is the who owns the book and the checkout period.

• "Request Finished" is in reference to TAMU owned books.
• "Checked out to customer" is for Interlibrary Loan books.