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Bocconi Library & Archives Service Charter

2.1 Borrowing and consulting resources

Members of the Bocconi Community can borrow most resources located in reading rooms using the three self-service machines located on the ground floor of the Library, and identifying themselves with the Bocconi badge or with the QR code generated through the app. 

Anyone who borrows or consults print resources is responsible for the material registered under their own name, and must ensure that the documents are returned on time and in good condition.   

Alumni who subscribed to Bocconi Alumni Community can borrow up to 5 books at a time. 

Each loan is automatically renewed up to five times for four weeks each, except for textbooks, which are renewed once for one week. Renewal is not allowed if the book has been requested by other people, if the user has overdue loans or if the maximum number of possible renewals has been exceeded. 

If there are no reservations, it is always possible to return the books and borrow them again.   

All books eligible for loan can be requested through SearchLib. Once the email for pickup is received, the user can go to the Information Desk, where books remain on the hold shelf for a variable period of time based on the type of document: 

  • 1 day for consultation only documents. 
  • 3 days for textbooks. 
  • 7 days for all other documents. 

At the end of this period, the documents are put back on the shelf or assigned to the person who reserved them next. 
Each user can have up to five simultaneous requests

Reservations for documents located at the offsite storage may take a longer period of time before they are available on site. The Library staff checks active reservations and contacts users if the resource is available online or in the on-site collections. 

It is possible to delegate another person to pick up a reserved book after notifying the Library by e-mail with the delegated person's details. 

Within My Library Account, users can always see their current loans with their due dates by authenticating with personal Bocconi credentials on the Library website.

At the beginning of each month, the Bocconi Library sends a summary email to all users with current loans and notifies the user when the loan is due to expire. If a book is returned late, the user is suspended from the loan service for a proportional number of days, for a maximum period of one month based on its opening days of operation. 

Books can be returned by leaving them in the two return boxes during opening hours. One box is located at the main entrance outside the turnstiles, and the other near the Information Desk. Books can also be returned by mail to the following address: Bocconi University. Library and Archives. Via Ulisse Gobbi, 5 - 20136 Milan (Italy). 
It is possible to delegate another person to return books, assuming responsibility for the loan.  
The Library confirms the return by email. 

Before graduating or leaving the University, all community members must have returned all books.  

If a document is lost or damaged, users are invited to contact the Library staff by email to receive the necessary information to refund it. All damaged books, even if refunded, must be returned to the Library. 

Most of the print materials of the Bocconi Library can be borrowed; however, some resources can only be consulted in the Library. These include: 

  • Reference collection in the reading rooms (e.g. dictionaries, encyclopedias). 
  • Part of the Law collection in the reading rooms, such as commentaries and treatises. 
  • Materials in a precarious state of preservation. 
  • Dissertations and PhD theses. 
  • Periodicals, both in the reading rooms and in storage. 
  • Some special collections (antique and historical) stored in storage. 

Consultation-only resources located in the Library's reading rooms can be consulted independently, while consultation-only resources located in storage must be requested via SearchLib, picked up at the Library's Information Desk, and consulted within the Library.  

However, some special collections may require the intervention of Library staff and an assisted consultation mode in a reserved room (e.g. large formats, valuable documents or fragile material). These documents can be recognized thanks to a special note in SearchLib

 

2.2 Caring for the collections

The Library protects, preserves and enhances its bibliographic and documentary heritage in order to meet the educational and research needs of the entire Bocconi community. 

The Library staff engages in numerous activities to ensure the proper accessibility of the collections on the shelves: 

  • Accurately relocating volumes returned or consulted in the reading rooms. 
  • Checking the correct sequence of shelf marks, aligning them flush on the shelf. 
  • Reporting and periodically searching for missing books; after three unsuccessful searches, certifying their actual unavailability and considering repurchase. 
  • Conducting periodic inventories on collections held in reading rooms and storage. 
  • In case of collections in high demand, planning possible moves from storage to the reading rooms. 
  • Protecting holdings against theft by applying RFID tags. 
  • Monitoring the status of documents by ensuring their integrity and preservation. 

2.3 Scientific Information & Data

Members of the Bocconi Community can use the in-person reference service: Ask a Librarian!, provided at the Information Desk in the reading rooms from Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 6:00 pm. 

At the Information Desk, the Library staff is specialized in:  

  • Databases: guidance and assistance on the use of databases; specific assistance in Data Room 015; support in using bibliographic management tools. 
  • Bibliographic Information: guidance and location of the Library's print and online resources; guidance on Library services; support in locating Course Reserves materials; bibliographic support for study, research and teaching activities. 
  • Loans: assistance with loan and reference services of Library resources; document delivery through Inter-Library Loan; locating of the Library's print and online resources. 

Members of the Bocconi Community can request online support by writing to: infobiblio@unibocconi.it or via B in Touch;. Requests are answered within three working days

The Library staff offers support for: 

  • Guidance and assistance on the use of databases and on the use of bibliographic management tools.  
  • Resolution of technical problems in accessing Library resources.  
  • Guidance and location of the Library's print and online resources; support in locating Course Reserves materials.  
  • Guidance on Library services.  
  • Bibliographic support for study, research and teaching activities.  
  • Purchase requests or supply of documents through Inter-Library Loan and Document Delivery services. 

The Library staff does not provide: 

  • Bibliographic searches or database queries as a substitute for the user. 
  • Comprehensive bibliographies related to disciplinary areas or specific subjects. 

2.4 User education

The Bocconi Library supports the development of Information Literacy, the set of skills necessary for the retrieval, access, evaluation and critical and responsible use of information, through: 

  • Thematic and disciplinary guides (Libguides). 
  • Tutorials on the use of databases and electronic resources. 
  • In-person and online training courses. 

All guides and tutorials can be consulted online via the Library website; no registration is required. 

For the development of information skills and support of users in using online resources for study and research, the Library staff prepares and periodically updates four types of guides and tutorials

All guides and tutorials are in English and can be consulted online on the Libguides platform, accessible from the Library website

In order to promote the user autonomy, there are also printscreens and step-by-step instructions where appropriate. 

2.5 Bocconi Dissertations

The Bocconi Library preserves all dissertations discussed at the University since its foundation, except for those related to Bachelor degree programs.  

Dissertations are protected by copyright and intellectual property laws; it is therefore the author's responsibility to grant permission for consultation. Bocconi students and faculty members may view online or consult in the Library, depending on the format available, only authorized dissertations. Theses cannot be borrowed or reproduced (even partially). 

Dissertations discussed from 1906 to 1987 are only available in print format and may be consulted in the Library, if authorized. They are collected in the Bocconi University Historical Dissertations collection according to a grouping criterion that responds to the chronological line of development of the University and its Community. The historical dissertations are involved in ongoing projects of recovery and digitization for preservation and enhancement purposes, made possible thanks to the support of donors. 

Dissertations discussed since 1988 are available in digital format and can be consulted online, if authorized. They are collected in a digital collection: Bocconi University Dissertations (Online), which is divided into Dissertations 1988-2000 and Dissertations 2000-

Authorized dissertations may be consulted by the entire Bocconi Community: 

  • In the Library, if available in print format and after reservation through SearchLib. Once the user receives the email for pickup, they may go to the Information Desk, where the requested dissertations will remain on the hold shelf for one day. At the end of this period, the documents are either put back on the shelf or assigned to the person who reserved them next. Each user can have up to five simultaneous requests. 
  • In Data Room 016 in the Library, if available in digital format.