The library - both social and learning for students

Tekst: Per Straume

- Oppdatert

A place to relax, have a coffee, learn with and from others, get help from good librarians or enjoy the silence while you read - join the library and see everything they have to offer the students in Volda!

The library at Volda University College is so much more than rows of bookshelves where thousands of books are placed. It is a meeting place for students - where smiles and laughter (not loudly everywhere) go hand in hand with studies, colloquium groups and exam preparations.

– We like to call the library the third place: not outside, not at home. Here you can just be, alone or with others, says Mariann Schjeide, director of the library at Volda University.

Something happens all the time

Yes, and that is exactly what they have achieved at the library. It's cozy. With comfortable furniture, green plants in every corner and staff who wish you a warm welcome.

And it's almost always light in there, early in the morning and late at night, and in fact right up until midnight. Because as a student at the university, you have access to the library between 07.00 and 24.00. A good part of the time it is staffed and you can get help at the counter, the rest of the time you have to have your student card with you to get in.

It is not uncommon to hear students brag about how nice it is to be in the library and that it is where they go when they both want to have fun and get things done with school work.

Visit the library`s homepage here.

Courses and help with school tasks

The library offers several courses that whole classes can take part in. There can be courses such as "how to be a student?", courses in study techniques and courses in academic writing.

Every Tuesday and Thursday from 11.30 to 14.00, students can get help with literature searches and source use (TFO 7) individually at the guidance desk in the library. There you can also get simple assignment help. No question is too small and none too big there. The library also offers assignment help, where you can get help from a librarian to understand the assignment and get structure for it or other good advice such as academic language and style.

During Exam Boost, which is an extra offer for students on campus every spring and autumn before the exam, the library is happy to offer a few more courses and activities.

For master's students, research fellows and assistant professors at the university, it is possible to borrow a librarian, and then get "own time" with a librarian who will help with whatever you need in literature searches.

In addition, the library offers learning videos, sample collections, online courses and much more help when writing assignments. Check it out here.

In 2022, around 1,700 students will make use of the library's course and teaching offerings, including the digital learning videos and the YouTube channel where many of these are available. Almost 450 students and staff made use of the library's guidance services last year.

Follow the library on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

iPad for loan

Utlån av iPad på biblioteket

The library at Volda University College has 60 iPads that you can borrow at the desk. 45 of them are reserved for primary school teachers when they go into practice, and the remaining 15 can be borrowed by students and staff at the University for their own use.

Group rooms and reading room

The library has 7 group rooms that only students can book. In total, there are well over 20 group rooms throughout the university that students can book.

Here, students meet to work with school in teams, whether it's going through the syllabus together, writing assignments, discussing academically or whatever they want.

There are also many workplaces elsewhere in the library, in zones where it must be quiet and in zones where you can talk in unison.

If you want to hear the pin drop on the floor and as close to total silence as you can get is the goal, the reading room at the library is the place. It should be possible to concentrate there and get the reading and work done for everyone.

And almost the best of all, the library has got new furniture everywhere; in the reading room, the master's reading room and the elles room.

Læringsverkstaden

Læringsverkstaden is the place to go if you have any questions about digital teaching or the use of various resources in digital or physical teaching and in assignment work. They are located in the library and therefore have their own workshop there. The learning workshop offers digital and physical courses and training linked to subject-specific resources and the joint system at HVO.

Here you can learn about trying out 3D printing, programming, VR glasses. In the studio on the second floor of the library, you can try out gaming, green screen and podcast. Do not hesitate to get in touch, they are ready to help you.

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