Alumni who have completed a degree program at Syracuse University or SUNY-ESF are eligible to obtain a free Guest Borrower card to check out materials from the Libraries for 28 days. Note that there are some restrictions; alumni can have 20 items checked out at a time, and can renew these items up to 5 times. We regret that we are not able to offer interlibrary loan service to alumni. To obtain your Guest Borrower card, please present your Alumni ID card or photo ID at the Check Out desk.

For more information on our alumni loan policies, please check Borrowing Privileges and Computer Access.

Due to licensing restrictions, alumni access to subscription databases, e-journals, and articles is only available on campus. Register at the Bird Library Check Out Desk to obtain a computer key to use.

Summon, the Libraries main search tool, can help you locate eBooks, journal articles, and other information resources that are published under an open access license. To find open access resources through Summon, click on the "Open Access" filter listed in the "Refine Your Search" section of your search results.

Whether you're going back to school or just doing personal research, there are a number of citation managers that can help you to keep your references organized and to generate your own bibliographies. Here are just some of the freely available ones that you can use:

• Zotero - A free and open source citation manager that you can use to collect and organize your references. For more information, check out our Zotero research guide.

• Mendeley - A free reference manager that works on your computer and/or online. For more information, check out our Mendeley research guide.

Public computer access

Once your SU NetID is deactivated after graduation, you will need to register as an alumni in order to use our public computers while on campus. Please visit the Alumni Office to secure the necessary credentials.

Wireless at SU

Alumni can get wireless access at SU by using the AirOrangeGuest (not AirOrangeX) network. For more information on accessing this network, please see the AirOrangeHelp website.

Printing

Find information about Guest/Visitor Printing.

We host a number of in-person exhibitions and events featuring materials from our collections, presentations, and guest speakers. We would love to include you on our invitation list. We also regularly host virtual exhibitions and events that you can attend from the comfort of your own home or office. Sign up to be added to our mailing list.

Learn what's happening at the Libraries by receiving a complimentary subscription to Connection Magazine. Sign up to be added to our mailing list.

Many public libraries offer access to databases, electronic articles, interlibrary loan services, and other materials similar to those at SU. Some may even let you use your library card to log on to their electronic resources offsite. Similar to SU, many college libraries allow members of the community to access their resources on-site. Check out these free online resources:

• WorldCat – The world’s largest library catalog, it can help you locate books, journals, music, movies, and more at libraries globally.
• Subject Guide: Other Library Catalogs and Websites – View our own subject guide to find other libraries and resources throughout Syracuse, New York State, and beyond.
• HathiTrust Digital Library – Digitized print volumes with full-text downloads for items in public domain or not otherwise under copyright.

Below are some of the websites offering free online books to read and download.
• Directory of Open Access Books – Indexes academic, peer-reviewed, open access books covering a wide variety of subjects.
• Project Gutenberg – Contains thousands of free eBooks now in the public domain.
• The Online Books Page – Features over a million free online books, hosted by the University of Pennsylvania Libraries.
• Google Books – Provides many complete books, and limited previews of others.

Though remote access to subscription databases is only available to current students or those on campus, there are still plenty of publicly available resources that you can use, including:
• Directory of Open Access Journals – A “one stop shop” for thousands of scientific and scholarly journals, providing free and open access to peer-reviewed articles across a variety of subject areas and languages.
• Google Scholar - Access or partial browsing of many scholarly articles.
• SURFACE - open access to select scholarly, professional, scientific, and creative output produced at Syracuse University.

Alumni are welcome to access the Special Collections Research Center’s reference and collections services and select digital collections, programs, and exhibitions.