Congratulations, the next four years of your life have begun! You’ll have plenty of fun along the way, but you can also expect to work hard during your McDaniel years, especially when it comes to your coursework. However, you need not feel overwhelmed! McDaniel’s Hoover Library offers a variety of resources to make your life a little easier.
Need to study or write a paper? Get out of your dorm room and try the completely wireless library, where you can find plenty of study spaces. The two lowest levels of Hoover Library are silent floors, meaning that you can expect talking to be kept at a whisper and at a minimum. Each of these floors also has two study rooms, perfect for small group projects and study sessions. All floors of the library have plenty of tables and chairs, and it’s not hard to find an outlet to plug in your laptop. You might also want to try Caseys’ Corner, adjacent to the entrance of the library. A coffee shop by day and evening, the space also serves as a 24-hour commons area, and the doors are never locked, making it a great place to pull an all-nighter (though I would advise not staying up all night if you can avoid it). With a little exploration, you’ll be sure to find your favorite study spot!
In addition to studying, at some point during your academic career, you’ll probably need to utilize some of the technology Hoover Library offers. Take advantage of the $20 worth of printing you’ll get each semester. Though printers are located throughout campus, you can find a number of printers located on the first floor of the library and in the 24-hour computer lab located across from Caseys’ Corner. You’ll need to have Campus Safety program your ID card in order to access this lab after library hours, but by doing so, you’ll always have access to a computer at all hours of the day (you never know when your laptop might crash.) Copy machines are located on the first and second floors. On the third floor, you can find two group technology rooms, equipped with a MacMini computer and a big-screen TV. You can reserve one of these rooms at the circulation desk.
You’ll do your fair share of research and papers during your college career, and the library offers effective tools and resources for you to do this well. When it comes to writing a research paper, never underestimate the usefulness of books and other print materials. Hoover Library has over 200,000 volumes, searchable on the library homepage, hoover.mcdaniel.edu. Thousands more can be accessed through the library’s partnership with Carroll Community College and Carroll County Public Library. If you need an item that these libraries don’t have, you can request it with InterLibrary Loan.
Never underestimate the power of articles, journals, and databases, which can be a huge asset when it comes to writing papers. Using the Research Tools tab on the Hoover website, you can find an A-Z list of databases and find subject guides that list online resources tailored to specific subjects. If you like Google, but want more academic search results, you’ll love Google Scholar (scholar.google.com), which is available to anyone.
Of course, it is the people of Hoover Library that will make your library experience truly great. Visiting reference librarians, like Rhonda Stricklett or Sally Jones, at the reference desk on the first floor can help you find answers to all sorts of questions, such as how to use the library website or where to start on your research paper. You can also email them at rstricklett@mcdaniel.edu or sajones@mcdaniel.edu to ask a question or schedule an appointment with a reference librarian for more in-depth research help. The Ask a Librarian feature on the Hoover Library website allows users to type or text in questions.
The library’s regular fall hours are 8 a.m. to 12 a.m. on Mondays through Thursdays, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Fridays, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays, and noon. to midnight on Sundays. You can find more information at hoover.mcdaniel.edu. If you take advantage of all that Hoover Library has to offer, you can help yourself find academic success, eliminate some stress from your life, and maybe even find time to check out a DVD from the circulation desk.
