If the library does not own a book or article, ILL is the service the library provides which borrows books or obtains scanned copies of articles for our students, faculty, and staff.

• Books usually take 7-10 business days (via USPS) and must be picked up on campus. NOTE: If you cannot come to campus (i.e., you are a distance/online student), use the ILL service provided by your local public library.
• Articles usually take 36-72 hours (also weekdays) and will be emailed directly to you. You can generate a request through the library catalog, look for “Borrow this item from another library” or by using the form on the library website.

Submit ILL request

Learn More about ILL

The library routinely moves books between the library branches. When you find a book in the library catalog you can place a hold on it and have it sent to the branch of your choice for pickup.

To place a hold or transfer request on a book you can contact library staff directly or use the options for placing a hold in the library catalog (you use your student ID# to login and place hold in the catalog).

Search Catalog

When you find a book(s) in the library catalog that are located at either the “Seminary Library” or the “College Library,” you can request that it be mailed to you. The library will pay the postage going out and expects you to pay the postage coming back. To have books mailed to you, email library staff.

Southern California Seminary participates in the American Theological Library Association’s new Reciprocal Borrowing Program. This allows our students check-out privileges at 140 participating libraries. If one of the participating libraries is in your area, contact the Seminary Library Director about getting access.

View Map of participating libraries.

Patrons, including faculty, students, and staff, have reciprocal access to the physical collections of 75 libraries at participating Christian institutions through the Association of Christian Librarians (ACL) Reciprocal Borrowing Program. Borrower obtains a signed Authorization Form from the home library to receive borrowing privileges from a participating library.

View Map of participating libraries.

SCS participates in the SCATLA’s direct borrowing project which allows graduate theology students to visit and borrow materials from participating libraries. This is not a full-scale provision of mutual borrowing privileges. Instead, this is a referral service that permits, on a case by case basis, screened clients at one library to use the collections at another library during the course of a defined research project. Contact the Seminary Library Director for a referral. Direct Borrowing Project

View Map of participating libraries.