COVID Library Updates

Library access for visitors

Sept. 19, 2022 We are pleased to announce that Yale Library borrowing privileges are again available for all visitors. Library access and borrowing options for alumni have also resumed, with some new and expanded options.

To take advantage of any of these free and paid service options, visitors must sign up for a Yale Library account. Call (203) 432-1775, or visit the Sterling Library service desk during business hours (8:30 am - 6 pm, Monday to Thursday, 8:30 am - 5 pm on Friday) to set up an account. Because of recent IT changes, you must sign up for a new account even if you have had one before Covid. 

Visitors are welcome to the public spaces and current exhibits at Sterling Memorial Library (including the nave, the Hanke Gallery, the Wall Street Exhibition Corridor, and Gilmore Music Library); the Beinecke Library exhibition gallery; and the Lewis Walpole Library during designated visitor hours. All visitors must be vaccinated and boosted when eligible. See “Vaccination Requirements,” below, for details and required documentation. See current exhibitions and related news.

Libraries located within non-library buildings (Marx Library, Haas Family Arts Library, Cushing/Whitney Medical Library, Divinity Library, and Classics Library) will remain closed to the public until the University resumes public access to those buildings. However, visitors may view exhibitions and attend public events at the Medical Library by appointment. Contact historical.library@yale.edu for more information. 

Library hours and access may shift without notice in response to weather, changing pandemic circumstances and University guidance. Always check library hours on the library website before coming to campus. (Yale Library hours listed in Google are not always accurate, especially in cases of inclement weather, holidays, or other unusual circumstances.)

Vaccination requirements

Using special collections

All Yale Library special collections reading rooms are now open to non-Yale researchers who are fully vaccinated and boosted. Researchers must register in the Yale Library special collections system, complete the University vaccine attestation process in advance of their visit, and show a copy of their approval email for admission to the library on the day of their visit. These processes, including vaccine attestations, are expected to remain in place until the University changes its alert level to one that enables broader access to university spaces without vaccination. Plan your visit. 

The Yale Center for British Art’s Reference Library and Study Room is also open to non-Yale researchers using the Yale Library registration system and following the same procedures. 

Connecting with library staff 

About 75 percent of library staff are now working either four or five days per week onsite, depending on operational roles and needs. A smaller number of staff are scheduled three days per week onsite and two days off, and fewer than 5 percent of staff are fully remote. To meet patron needs, we are offering a mix of onsite and online research consultations, workshops, and library instruction. Current faculty, staff, and students may access electronic resources on and off campus.  Please contact individual staff directly to schedule in-person or online consultations and appointments.

Books by mail

Current students, faculty, and staff may request to have library materials, including BorrowDirect and interlibrary loan materials, scanned or mailed to U.S. addresses. To request this service, use the “Send to home address” links in Orbis and Quicksearch. 

See our COVID-19 FAQ for more about online and remote services.