Researcher facilities
The National Library provides designated facilities for researchers and university students who are undertaking long-term and intensive work.
Service description
Researchers and university students can apply for designated facilities in the National Library for long-term and intensive work via an application.
The facilities can be applied twice a year, in October-November and May-June. Customers are informed about the application period on the web site and in the Library.
Throughout the year, it is also possible to enquire about available researcher facilities by sending an e-mail to [email protected].
The unique collections of the National Library are available to all. The researcher services are developed to meet the needs of the whole research community.
Researcher facilities
The National Library provides designated facilities for researchers and university students who are undertaking long-term and intensive work. The Library’s researcher facilities are allocated for personal use and are designed as a space to store the researcher’s study material. Applications are open once or twice each year in May and October-November.
The researcher facilities are free of charge.
Researcher facilities are open to everyone. The criteria for selection include:
- the researcher’s requirement for National Library resources (especially material restricted to reading room loans)
- the researcher’s current working conditions
- the amount of time per week the researcher will use the facilities
Researcher carrels are granted for one year (only for the October-November applications) or for half a calendar year. The storage units – shelves, cabinets, and lockers – are granted for one year. The right of use is always fixed term.
The researcher facilities at the National Library are divided into five groups according to their location and purpose.
Researcher carrels in the South Hall
The researcher carrels in the South Hall are particularly useful for researchers who need access to National Library resources that are only available as reading room loans. Material from Fennica (National Collection) and Special Collections cannot be delivered to the South Hall.
Every recipient of a researcher carrel has access to approximately two meters of shelf space and a movable cabinet for storing personal items. In addition to the reservable researcher carrels, the South Hall has 12 reader desks.
Researcher carrels in the Slavonic Library
The researcher carrels in the Slavonic Library are intended primarily for researchers using the Slavonic Library’s reading room loans and its open collection. The researcher carrels are equipped with lockable drawers, and researchers can store their reading room loans on their designated desk and shelves.
Researcher shelves in the North Hall
A shelf in the North Hall can fit approximately 80 cm of reading room loans and personal reading material, which can be stored on the shelf for the duration of the reserved term. The researcher must ensure that all reading room loans are renewed on time. The researcher is also responsible for the personal reading material stored on the shelf. Material from Fennica (National Collection) and Special Collections cannot be delivered to the North Hall.
Researcher cabinets in the Rotunda, 6th floor
The lockable cabinets (106x50x42 cm) are suitable for storing researchers’ own material and personal items. Resources from the National Library’s collections that are stored in the cabinets must be loaned using the cabinet holder’s library card (this includes reading room loans and material from the open collection).
Researcher lockers in the Rotunda, 1st floor
The secure lockers (36x37x45 cm) are suitable for storing researchers’ own material and personal items. Resources from the National Library’s collections that are stored in the lockers must be loaned using the cabinet holder’s library card (this includes reading room loans and material from the open collection).