Welcome

Welcome to Harvard! This guide is intended to assist Institute of World Literature participants with coursework and research. It will lead you into the libraries and their collections and connect you to people who can help you find authoritative sources of information for papers, projects, and presentations.

Subject-specific Resources for Literature

Research advice

How to do research in Literature (FAQ) provides basic tips plus quick links to relevant databases and guidance.

Find a database (shortlist) - a shortlist of searchable scholarship, from the literary research guide for faculty and graduate students

Harvard Library's foreign-language collections

There is non-Anglophone material throughout Harvard's library collections, but several libraries specialize in a particular cultural tradition or geographic area. Many of the collections below rank among the world's best.

For more tips on finding literary materials in languages other than English, visit Foreign language literatures (research guide page).

Search the catalog by language

Code: MARC language - use this Advanced Search option in HOLLIS to explore across Harvard's holdings in a particular language

 

Tips for Visiting Researchers

IWL participants receive Visiting Researcher cards, which gives you access to library buildings, on-site collections, and on-site computers that can access Harvard Library databases. The details below are extracted from our guide for Visiting Researchers to Harvard Library.

Search Our Collections

Special Collections

Rare and unique items available for scanning or scheduled visits. 

Other Harvard Library Collections

  • HOLLIS (Library Catalog) searches across Harvard Library collections.
    • Anyone can access:
      • Library Catalog records (bibliographic information about Harvard Library collections)
      • 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
    • Access to full-text and other e-resources may be restricted to current Harvard students, staff, and faculty
  • Explore collections to discover more about the breadth and variety of Harvard's library collections

Databases & E-Resources

Visiting researchers can access HarvardKey-restricted resources if they are on a library computer. This includes most licensed databases and ONLINE ACCESS links in HOLLIS, regardless of your affiliation. We recommend visiting Widener for this purpose. Instructions for logging on to a Widener computer.

Free online resources

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