Home

Alumni benefits and resources from Harvard Library and from the Harvard Alumni Association continue to support your learning after you graduate.

HARVARD LIBRARY

Library services for alums can include building access, book borrowing privileges, and online access to a selection of databases. Keep scrolling for details.

  • Keep your ID card - for building access
    • If you have a Harvard student ID that was issued in 2009 or later, it will be activated for building access after you request library privileges
    • If you need a new ID card: first activate your library privileges (using our online form or in person at Widener Library's Access & Borrowing Office), then visit the ID card office in the Smith Campus Center to be issued a new card
  • Keep your HarvardKey - you can keep your login name even after you lose access to your Harvard email address
  • Update your contact email - this will ensure that HOLLIS sends notifications to the correct address
  • Follow Harvard Library news

HARVARD ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

The alumni association offers you a worldwide community of over 400,000 Harvard graduates, with opportunities for networking, professional development, volunteering, and more.

Access and Borrowing for Alums

Alums enjoy visiting researcher access to Harvard Library buildings (details below). Additionally, alums may register as special borrowers, free of charge.

Free Borrowing Privileges

  • Apply for free-of-charge access and borrowing privileges - use the "apply now" button on the Visitor Access page
  • Privileges are active for 12 months. To renew, simply re-apply
  • Your Harvard ID card will be automatically updated for tap or swipe access to Harvard Library buildings
  • Borrowing is for Harvard Library materials only (no ILL)
  • Loan period is typically 28 days, with automatic renewals up to 12 months
  • Materials must be borrowed in person, but may be returned by mail 

Day Passes & Guests

  • Alums may obtain a one-day pass from the Access & Borrowing Office
  • Alums may also bring a limited number of guests into the library

Using Our Library Buildings as a Visiting Researcher

General collections (browse the shelves and find space to work)

Visit a library

  • Use Find a Space to explore a map of library locations, preview library spaces, and search for specific amenities.
  • Use Locations & Hours to learn more about the scope and specialties of Harvard's many different libraries.
  • Present your visiting researcher pass to staff at the library entrance - your pass may be a yellow card, digital pass, or Harvard ID.
Exceptions

Browse the shelves

Most of Harvard Library's general collections are open stack. This means that you can browse the shelves where the books are kept.

Offsite materials must be delivered to campus, where they can be consulted in the reading room. Please contact the relevant owning library for instructions on how visiting researchers can request offsite materials. For offsite materials in Widener's collections, visiting researchers can go to Room 150 (Widener Reading Room) to submit requests. Once requested, materials typically arrive the next business day.

Visiting researchers whose library access cards do not include access to the Widener stacks may submit requests for onsite materials in Room 150.

Log on to a Widener computer

Widener is the best place to use a library computer to access online resources. Log-on procedures at other libraries may vary.

  • Select a Guest Computer (identified by the laminated sign affixed to the top right corner of the monitor)
  • Select "OK" to get past the warning that data will not be saved
  • Ignore the first set of log-on boxes: instead, select "How do I sign in to another domain?” (small, pale link below the log-on boxes)
  • Log in on the next screen:
    • A sign affixed to the base of the computer monitor will tell you which username and password to use
    • Alternatively, check for on-screen instructions below the log-on boxes: use hcl-patron as your local user name
    • Double-check the direction of the slashes - the log-on may include a backslash or \
  • Log in to OpenAthens before you do anything else

Printing & Scanning

HOLLIS

Alums cannot access

  • ONLINE ACCESS links that require login

Use the links in the list of Electronic Resources under Using Harvard Library as an Alum to access content licensed specifically for alums.

Alums can access

  • HOLLIS search results (the list of citations relevant to your search)
  • "Request pick up" options for Harvard Library collections
    • Apply for borrowing privileges to activate this option
  • ONLINE ACCESS links to public domain and Open Access (OA) material
  • READ ONLINE (1-hour loan) links - requires free account with the Internet Archive's Open Library
  • My Favorites: saved ("pinned") items, searches, and alerts. Note: some article items may disappear from your HOLLIS Favorites when you graduate. This is due to licensing restrictions placed by the content providers for those article citations.

PRO TIP: make WorldCat your new go-to, especially for books. WorldCat is a global catalog of library holdings across the U.S. and beyond, also known as a union catalog. It’s the easiest way to find out which libraries near you hold a copy of a specific book.

Online access via Harvard

Harvard offers special database access for alumni. How to Use Harvard Library as an Alum has all of the details. Look for:

Harvard's Digital Collections are open to all.

Other ways to get access

Public Libraries

Public libraries offer a much broader and richer array of resources than most people realize. They are also "use it or lose it" public goods, so make sure to engage with your library as much as you can - visit the branch or the website, borrow materials, and send feedback.

Note: the examples above are from American libraries. While services may differ, you can find public libraries and other public institutions in any country.

State Universities and Colleges

Especially helpful for academic research materials. Services for state residents may include:

National Libraries & Special Collections

These institutions steward unique materials and cultural heritage for everyone's benefit. Most are open to all researchers. Services include:

On-site access

Registration and appointments often required. Most libraries accept any government-issued ID for registration.

Examples:

Digitization services

Many repositories have a system for requesting scans from collection materials. Most charge a fee for the service.

Examples:

Find an Open Access Version

If you find a paywall on one site, remember that the same material may be available for free somewhere else.

Many scholars publish their academic research in "open access" formats that make them accessible to all. Some publishers allow scholars to make individual articles and chapters open access, and some publish entire journals and books this way. Scholars also often self-archive their work on their personal websites and/or in a repository via their institution (e.g. Harvard's DASH) or via a subject-based repository (such as arXiv).

In HOLLIS

  • Select the "Open Access" option in the filter menu
  • Check for "VIEW PDF (OA)" or "VIEW PREPRINT" links

On the web

Two popular tools for locating an OA version:

Have a question not answered here?

Use our Ask a Librarian service. It's helpful to specify that you are an alum and also whether you are able to come to campus.

Acknowledgments

This guide extensively incorporates information and advice from Steve Beardsley (Associate Director of Access Services), and is adapted from the work of Cheryl LaGuardia (retired Harvard research librarian).