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Edinburgh Napier University

Tag: study

Meet your Subject Librarian: Rob O’Brien

23/05/2022 / / 0 Comments

Photo of Rob O’Brien and Tess Dalton (the woof), Rob’s fellow monster movie fan at home.

Meet your Subject Librarian Rob O’Brien

Rob is the subject Librarian supporting the School of Applied Sciences and the Department for Learning and Teaching Enhancement.

“I joined the Library at Edinburgh Napier in March, having worked in a similar role at Leeds Beckett University for the last few years, and I’m enjoying settling into my new team and life in Scotland.

The best part of working in a university library for me is getting to meet such a diversity of students and staff and learning about their learning and research interests. Not many jobs give you an opportunity to learn and have new thoughts every day. Also, I still can’t believe my luck in having constant access to a university library with all its space and collections. When I was boy, growing up in a seaside town in Ireland, my local library was about the size of a corner shop and I wasn’t allowed to borrow from the “grown-ups collection” (no matter how many varieties of fake moustache/beard combinations I wore to the service desk).

When not working, I like to read (forgive the librarian cliché), play guitar (terribly), cycle (well, pretend cycling on an e-bike), play badminton (if anyone can recommend a club in Edinburgh who might have room for a surprisingly bad player that would be most appreciated), and hang out with my four-legged friend, Tess (the most fun by far).

I’m looking forward to meeting all my new colleagues outside a computer screen very soon and introducing myself to the confectionery counter at Sighthill Café (which I have heard good things about).”

By your Subject Librarian Rob O’Brien

Check out Rob’s fantastic Libguide here for resources

Meet Another of our New Subject Librarian’s Maria here.

 

 

A Quick Guide to Finding a Book with LibrarySearch

18/04/2022 / / 3 Comments

Finding a book with LibrarySearch


Are deadlines coming up? Assignments due? And Google just won’t do. Our quick guide to finding a book with LibrarySearch that will save the day!

There are books, journals, peer-reviewed articles and much more. We have over 225 databases, 33 000 journals, 100 000 books and well over 300 000 e-books all available at your fingertips at LibrarySearch. We can’t sing the praises of LibrarySearch enough!!

That’s all great and everything but the question now is how does it work?

Simply go to librarysearch.napier.ac.uk, access it through our web pages or click the shortcut here.

Don’t forget to sign in the right-hand corner to give you full access.

librarysearch screenshot

In the search bar, type the book title. If you don’t have any books in mind, you can type the keywords for your subject area and let LibrarySearch do its magic. There are filters on the side to narrow down your search for example if you only want books and books for a certain decade and books from a certain campus.

Librarysearch screen shot

Once you’ve spotted a book that looks useful click on the link. You will be able to see if it’s available online or in one of our Campus Libraries. If it’s available online just click on the links to take you right on through to your book. If the book is on one of our shelves note down the Dewey Decimal number. It will tell you where your book is positioned. Afterwards, If you get stuck check out our guide or ask one of our lovely Librarians who will be happy to help!

All there to make life easier. Like we said LibrarySearch is there to save the day

By Maya Green

 

Discovered your book on LibrarySearch, but need help spotting it on the shelf? Try our Guide to the Dewey Decimal System here!

Still stuck finding something useful then why not check out our LibGuides

Stress Awareness Month: Exams

04/04/2022 / / 0 Comments

Stress awareness month raises awareness of the causes, dangers and learning how to cope with stress. We want to highlight that exams can also be a challenging part of your time at university, but there are ways to help ease the stress and think positively!

 

Studying

Studying

 

  • Relaxation techniques like deep breathing, meditation, listening to music or perhaps drawing are ways of demonstrating creative revision and studying. Stretching is also a great way of relieving any tension and refocusing the brain!

 

  • You can find resources via the library Shelf-Help with books chosen to cope with exam stress and overcome uncomfortable thoughts, feelings, and experiences.

 

  • If you are a visual learner and trying to tackle complex topics, post-it notes are a colourful and creative way to organise your thoughts!

 

 

Post-it-notes

Post-it-notes

 

 

  • You could study with a friend or even talk to a family member! This can boost your mood, motivation, and confidence.

 

  • Try a new environment to study in; take your books and laptop to a coffee shop or head on down to the library! Libraries offer quiet, comfortable, safe spaces to support you with your studies and revision. For example, Edinburgh Napier University Libraries have study spaces and group study rooms equipped with plasma screens and a whiteboard to accommodate your study needs. You can book these at resourcebooker.napier.ac.uk

 

  • Each campus library has a relaxation zone for you to take time out and explore your creative side. If you are studying from home there is also a virtual relaxation space on our library blog! 

 

  •  Have plenty of breaks and refreshments in between your studies!

 

Relax and study at home

Relax and study at home

 

  • Remember that your best is good enough and think about how far you have come with your goals and achievements.

 

For additional support visit

https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/your-stories/14-ways-to-beat-exam-stress/

https://www.stress.org.uk/national-stress-awareness-month/#:~:text=April%20marks%20the%20start%20of%20Stress%20Awareness%20Month!

Library Welcome Week

10/01/2022 / / 1 Comment

welcome sign outside library

Welcome to the Library!

Hello and a very warm welcome to all students joining us this trimester from all of us in the Library. We wish you all the best with your studies and look forward to meeting many of you soon.

Whether you are on campus or studying online, if you are looking for information on how to use the Library services the Introduction to Computing and Library Services module on Moodle is an excellent starting point.

Introductory Sessions

We will be holding quick and friendly online introductory sessions to both the Physical Library and the Online Library during the first few weeks of the trimester. You can sign up for these and many other library skills sessions using the Training and Events Calendar.

Information on Library opening times, how to access or borrow the resources you need for your studies, accessing reading lists, and many more library services can be found on the Library webpages. If you need any further support, please don’t hesitate to contact us on 0131 455 3500 or email us at library@napier.ac.uk . We are here to help you!

Keep up to date on all the latest news from the Library on Instagram and Twitter.

New Year Resolutions: study and social

07/01/2022 / / 0 Comments

We hope all our Edinburgh Napier University students and staff had a wonderful Christmas and New Year’s with some time to relax and catch up with friends and family.

With the festivities now over, you might be thinking that it’s time to make some resolutions and get back into that ‘serious study mode’.

It’s also a time to reflect on past events and your studies to see what you might want to freshen up and change for the new year. Just keep in mind that progress is always ongoing, and you should focus on one step at a time!

 

 

New Year Resolutions

New Year Resolutions

 

 

Here are some suggestions that you might want to consider below:

 

  1. Change your learning style or study skills

If you want to change your study habits or try a new way of learning, Box of Broadcasts (BOB) and listening to Podcasts are productive ways of gathering information and evidence for your assignments. You can find more information about it on our Libguides.

The library also has a study skills reading list and many books available like Improving Your Study Skills by Shelley O’Hara for improving the way you learn.

 

Study planning

Study planning

 

  1. Balancing education and work or your social life

This could be the year where you decide to prioritise your time wisely and manage your schedule to avoid burnout. You might want to break up the week by scheduling tasks into your calendar or stick colourful post-it notes around your room as visual reminders. Your education should be your priority and then you can consider what to do in your spare time such as music, sports or travelling!

 

  1. Try new activities

Whatever the weather, if you have a burning desire for adventures in the outdoors, like kayaking, hikes and walks in the hills, then the Hiking and Outdoor Activities society at Edinburgh Napier may be the one for you this year!

You can join more of Napier’s societies in the link below:

https://www.napierstudents.com/teamnapiersocieties/atozsocieties/

 

 

Hiking

Hiking

Studying over the Christmas Holidays?

13/12/2021 / / 0 Comments

The Christmas holidays have finally arrived, and you might be thinking it is time to get those feet up, relax, enjoy a hot drink and binge-watch all your favourite Christmas movies!

 

A cosy Christmas

A cosy Christmas

 

But wait a moment… as there is still studying to be done. Here are some tips on how to motivate yourself whilst studying over the festive season:

 

Break it up:

Spend a few hours each day or every other day to break up your study period- you can set some time during the morning or evening then you have the rest of the day to enjoy your break and catch up on those movies!

 

Read and Research:

Set time in your schedule for reading and researching in your comfiest chair, you can do this along with your cup of coffee or tea for extra comfort. You can check out some of our books to help you with your studies via our Library Search

 

Christmas Treats:

 

Treat yourself in between breaks (by this we mean opening the celebrations tubs, eating mince pies, gingerbread men, and anything festive to motivate you throughout the Christmas period).

 

Christmas Star Biscuits

Christmas Star Biscuits

 

Family and Friends: 

Ask a friend or family member to proofread your essay, project, or dissertation. You could engage in a conversation about your current topic and share your opinions which you never know…may end up being the main outcome of your work!

 

Organising and Planning:

 

Use your home space to organise your work, create study note tips, and plan your schedule throughout the week using a calendar, a table, or a ‘to-do list’.

 

Christmas Planning

Christmas Planning

 

 

Edinburgh Napier Information Services sends their best wishes to everyone studying!

Libraries Week 4-10 October 2021

04/10/2021 / / 0 Comments

Libraries Week Picture for 2021

Taking Action Changing Lives : Libraries Week 4-10 October 2021

It’s Libraries week again and this year we are celebrating the best that libraries have to offer. We are looking at how Libraries are drivers for inclusion, sustainability, social mobility and community cohesion. It’s all about how libraries are “taking action, changing lives”.

Here at Napier University Library, we try to play our part.

We are proud to have run food donation drives for our local food bank, Edinburgh North West Foodbank.

Poster for Food Bank Donations

Furthermore to help support our student’s mental health and wellbeing we have created a relaxation zone where they can escape from studying and take time out. We have produced a green space filled with games, colouring, magazines and books. Similarly, we have also created an online relaxation space here on our blog for you to use when you cannot be in the Library.

Library relaxation space

We also offer many services to help our students study such as offering a postal loans service, and in addition during the Pandemic a click and collect service on books. Not to mention buying thousands of eBooks to help our students study at home.

Staff at the Library are trained to be inclusive and considerate of all the people we come into contact with. We have even held the Customer Service Award for Excellence for over 10 years.

Above all, we try to consistently improve our services to make sure we offer ways to be more inclusive and considerate of all our users.

So Happy Libraries Week to everyone out there! We all hope you continue to love and appreciate Libraries everywhere.

Check out more information on Libraries week at: http://librariesweek.org.uk/ or follow the hashtag #LibrariesWeek on social media. Furthermore don’t forget to support your local Libraries and use them for the fantastic resource they are!

Contact Us

Email: library@napier.ac.uk

Telephone: 0131 455 3500

Twitter: @EdNapLib

Instagram: @ENU_Library​

 

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