Circulation Policy

The USZ Klebelsberg Library’s general rules of usage are declared in The Library Rules and Policies.

1. Who can borrow?
2. What can be borrowed?
3. Restricted loan documents
4. What cannot be borrowed?
5. How many books can be on loan?
6. Loan period
7. Overnight loan (books with the inscription ”Rövid” on red label)
8. Process of borrowing
9. Renewal
10. Holds
11. Check-in
12. Recall
13. Overdue fee
14. Grace period
15. Notices
16. Damaged and lost books
17. Suspension of borrowing privileges
18. Employee loan

1. Who can borrow?

• a) From the University of Szeged:
  • all full-time, evening and correspondent students who are enrolled at least for one term,
  • all full-time, active faculty, researchers, staff members and part-time faculty members (identified by the proper unit) who stay at least for one term,
  • retired faculty and staff.
• b) Students of the Ságvári Endre Practice Secondary School and the Vántus István Secondary Vocational School of Music
• c) USZ Alma Mater members and staff members of designated partner institutions of the USZ who pursue scientific research (Bay Zoltán Alkalmazott Kutatási Alapítvány Biotechnológiai Intézete, Biopolisz Szegedi Innovációs Szolgáltató Kft., Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Dél-Alföldi Bioinnovációs Centrum Kht, Gabonatermesztési Kutató Kht, Móra Ferenc Múzeum, MTA Szegedi Biológiai Központ, Gál Ferenc University, Unicotec Kht.).
• d) All inhabitants of the County of Csongrád-Csanád who are above the age of 18, possess Hungarian citizenship and are permanent residents, can borrow books from the Library. In the lack of permanent address we accept temporary address in Szeged if the prospective reader is able to prove a permanent employment in Szeged.

2. What can be borrowed?

Every document in the Klebelsberg Library the use of which is not restricted can be borrowed by registered users.

3. Restricted loan documents

• publications purchased to support university courses and PhD training
  These documents can be borrowed by faculty members, researchers, staff members pursuing scientific research and PhD students.
• books published between 1851 and 1949
  These documents can be borrowed by faculty members, researchers, PhD students and employees of certain partner institutions of the University (see paragraph 1/c).
• items being shelved in the reading rooms and having a red label with the inscription “Rövid”
  These documents can be borrowed by citizens of the University for a short period (see paragraph 7).
• items having outstanding importance from the point of view of educational and scientific activities of the University
  These documents can be borrowed by citizens of the University.

The restrictions described above are displayed in the status information of items in the online catalog.

4. What cannot be borrowed?

(in the online catalog: “Locally usable”) 

• periodicals, dailies, weeklies, year books,
• documents for local use (items shelved in the reading rooms and having a red label),
• books published before 1851,
• the majority of the material in the special collections (old books, incunabula, manuscripts, microfilms, etc.),
• non-traditional documents (CD-ROMs, audio cassettes, etc.), with the exception of certain dictionaries and supplements of borrowable books,
• more than one copy of the same document.

5. How many books can be on loan?

In case of multi-volume books each volume is recorded as one separate item by the computer system.

6. Loan period

The general rule is that

• users should return documents by the given due date,
• if any of the documents on loan is overdue the computer system will not permit any activity in connection with circulation,
• text and course books, and similar materials can be checked out only for 4 weeks and cannot be renewed, but they can be re-borrowed at the Loan Section pesonally, if the book is also present,
• items with the inscription “Rövid” on a red label can be checked out only for one night (or maybe for a short CLOSED-period of the Library) and only by university citizens (see paragraph 7).

Detailed information is included in the enclosed table.

7. Books with the inscription ”Rövid” on a red label: short-term (overnight) loan

• university citizens of the USz
• from among the documents being shelved in the reading rooms and bearing the inscription ”Rövid” on a red label
• can borrow maximum 3 items (which will be counted into the amount that can be on loan with the reader at one time)
• on weekdays two hours before closing.
• Documents borrowed in this way should be returned by the next opening of the Loan Section sharp.
  ! Such items cannot be borrowed for the period of the summer closing!
• The overdue fee for each item borrowed under these conditions is 250 HUF per hour. There is no grace period.
  In case of a delay that exceeds one day, the Library, temporarily or definitely, can suspend the patron’s borrowing privileges. (see paragraph 17)

8. Process of borrowing

The borrowing is processed on computer with the help of a card equipped with a barcode, during the opening hours of the Loan Section on the ground floor, within the area of the Library closed by the security gates. The card is not transferable, each reader must use only his/her own card.

Users can take, in person, to the Loan Section from the open access shelves of the reading rooms

• the items equipped with one (yellow, green, brown, blue or purple) colored label (during the full opening hours of the Loan Section),
• the items with the inscription “Rövid” on red label two hours before closing (university citizens only) (see paragraph 7).

Documents held in the stack rooms can be requested by the Storage request program through the OPAC terminals throughout the Library.

Serving from the stack rooms

• takes roughly 30-45 minutes within the building (depending on traffic),
  requests should be submitted no later than 7 p.m. or 1 hour before the closing of the Loan Section (only special opening hours),
• from external stack rooms service is organized twice a week; books will be available according to the following pattern:

Processing items that are not suitable for automated circulation may increase serving time.

Items prepared from the stack rooms will be kept in the Loan Section on the day of the fulfillment of the request and on the day following the day of delivery. Documents can be borrowed only at the loan desk within the area closed by the security gates.

Please note: service time can significantly increase when the item has to be prepared for inclusion in the circulation database!

Patrons cannot borrow any documents if

• their reader’s card is not validated, or the picture is missing from it
• they have already borrowed the maximum number of items,
• they have an overdue item on loan,
• their fines have reached the limit of 500 HUF,
• or a system block has been created on their record for any other reasons.

9. Renewal

Before reaching the due date, borrowed documents can be renewed in person in the Loan Section or through the catalog.

Requests for renewals via phone can only be considered when the traffic of the Loan Section makes it possible.

Renewal is not possible

• in cases listed in paragraph 6,
• in cases when the book is reserved by another user,

when the

• validity of the card of the reader expired,
• any of his/her earlier loan is overdue,
• his/her fines have reached the limit of 500 HUF,
• or a system block has been created on his/her record for any other reasons.

10. Holds

Documents (max. 5 items) on loan can be reserved in person in the Loan Section, or online.
The Library will notify readers in an electronic letter when reserved documents are returned. Such items can be borrowed (at the loan desk within the area closed by the security gates) until the date indicated (8 calendar day) in the notification letter.
The fee of reservation is 300 HUF per document and is added to the reader’s record when the reserved item is returned by the previous user. Patrons who made the reservation should pay this sum even if they do not need the reserved document. Payments should be made in the Loan Section when borrowing the document or during the user’s first visit after receiving the notification.
Reservations can be cancelled without paying the reservation fee if it is done before the return of the reserved document.
Patrons who have a system block on their records for any reason cannot make a reservation.

11. Check-in

• Documents can be returned by the reader itself, or anyone else charged by him or her, at the loan desk inside or outside the library area closed by the security gates during the opening hours of the Loan Section (it is advised to check changes on the home page)
• or can be sent back via post (as registered mail). In this case the date of delivery will be the day of return.
  Mailing address:
  SZTE Klebelsberg Könyvtár
  Kölcsönző
  6722 Szeged
  Ady tér 10.

12. Recall

In special cases the Library may recall documents before their due dates.

13. Overdue fee

Fines:

*Valid from the 1st of September, 2024

A system block is created on a patron’s record when unpaid fees total 500 HUF, and no other activities related to circulation will be permitted.

14. Grace period

When overdue documents (with the exception of documents checked out through the overnight loan) are returned within 7 calendar (!) days, that is, during the grace period, overdue fines are not to be paid. The grace period may include days when the Loan Section is closed therefore returning should be adjusted to the actual opening hours.
However, if overdue documents are returned after the grace period readers will be expected to pay the total sum of the fine counted from the due date.

The grace period is not equal to an extended loan period: documents should be returned by the due date. There is no possibility to renew an overdue document.

15. Notices

Readers should return books to the Library by the due date without any special notice. In case of overdue the Library reminds readers of the deadline in electronic or traditional mail. Irrespectively from the notice, the fine is counted from the day of the original deadline.
The fee of snail mail (postage) is 500 HUF which should be paid in the Loan Section.

16. Damaged and lost books

Readers are responsible for the documents they used. In case of damage or loss readers are obliged – according to the decision of the Library – to replace the document or compensate the damage.
a) If it substitutes the original in every detail the Library may accept

• an other copy of the original

b) The Library may request a compensation for damaged or lost documents the sum of which corresponds to

• the acquisition price of purchasable documents,
• in case of already not available documents to the fee of the second-hand bookshop value of the document or to the estimated, intrinsic value of the document
• and includes the incidental expenses.

After paying received by the Library for a damaged or lost document refund is not possible even if the original item is found.

Loss and damage of materials should be reported in the Loan Section.

Making notes on pages, underlining, highlighting in books (including textbooks and course books) that belong to the Library are considered to be damaging!

17. Suspension of borrowing privileges

Breaking the rules and regulations of the Library may result in the suspension of borrowing privileges for a minimum period of 1 month, in serious cases definitely (see Library Rules and Regulations, paragraph 9).

18. Employee loan

All documents acquired by the University of Szeged Klebelsberg Library (on the basis of its responsibilities as set out in the Organisational and Operational Rules) are considered as employee loan if the acquisition is ordered by a university unit and the document is needed for the work of a university employee of a University of Szeged (USZ) unit. The documents will be made available for the personal use of the designated employee after they have been loaned to them.
Employee loan documents may only be issued to employees with a current USZ employment contract/legal status.
The items acquired in this way are inventoried and become part of the USZ Klebelsberg Library’s holdings, and thus the responsibility of the USZ Klebelsberg Library.
For the relevant procedures, see Procurement for university units.

Receiving – employee loans:

• The employee loans are available at the Circulation Desk on the ground floor, the opening hours of which are adapted to the current opening hours of the Library [link: http://www.ek.szte.hu/homepage/navigation/opening-hours/]
• Only personal administration is possible, you cannot borrow on behalf of someone else, even with a signed power of attorney.
• The administration of employee loans is done through the loan module of the integrated library system (Corvina JavaCIRC). The printed proof of receipt will be a form called Receipt of employee loan books, signed in 2 original copies, one of which will be given to the person responsible for the employee loan and the other one filed by the Library.
• The maximum number of items that can be borrowed as a employee loan is 60, which does not reduce the number of items that can be borrowed by the responsible person on normal loan (30 items).
• The period of employee loan lending is 60 months (5 years) from the date of lending, which can be renewed individually. Renewal is possible only on the condition that the copies are presented personally at the Circulation Desk.
• Further loans will be blocked if there is an overdue book, either a employee loan or a book taken out on normal loan.
• If a employee loan is not renewed, the items will be placed in a storage or in a reading room under the direction of a subject librarian, in order to ensure that they are accessible to the wider university public.
• Anyone can find out the number of items, their exact titles, and expiry dates for both regular and employee loans by logging on to the library catalogue at https://qulto.bibl.u-szeged.hu/patrondata. Lists of borrowed documents can be found under the My Libraries tab.
• An expiry reminder will be sent to the person responsible for the employee loans at the e-mail address provided when registering. The items can be returned to the Circulation Desk (as can documents borrowed under normal lending) before the end of the loan period.
• Documents received as employee loans are borrowed by the person responsible for the employee loan for personal use. The responsible person acknowledges that such items must be returned to the USZ Klebelsberg Library at the expiry of the employee loan period or at the earlier termination of his/her legal relationship with the USZ. The person responsible is financially liable for the safekeeping of the documents received.

Claims, requests and issues not included in the above rules are subject to decisions made by the leadership of the Library.