You may access the library 24/7 using your Penn State ID card. You must have your ID card on weekends and evenings to enter the library. Make sure you take your card with you when you leave the library during those times.

The library’s doors are usually open during the week from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. On the weekends, the doors are closed, regardless of whether someone is working at the front desk.

• Monday-Friday: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Sunday: noon to 6 p.m.

Check the library’s website for information about holidays and weekends.

You can send a question to DickinsonLawLib@psu.edu. However, that email address is only monitored during regular weekday business hours.

Drinks in closed containers are okay. Small snacks are also okay, but we ask that any food trash be removed from the library and that any spills are reported. Please be mindful of others; the library is not cleaned regularly. Food can get gross in the trash cans. This is especially true in the study rooms and on weekends. 

Speak softly and keep conversations short. We don’t have certain sections reserved for quiet and others for talking, as some academic libraries do. You can book a group study room to talk to your classmates.

You can find these resources on the library’s website.

• West Academic Study Aids Collection: (Note: This is something different than Westlaw.) Gilbert’s Law Summaries is one of the most well-known resources in this collection. You can sign up for a personal account that allows you to highlight and add notes.
• Wolters Kluwer Study Aid Library: You will find the very popular Examples and Explanations series in this collection. The study aids collection is similar to the West Academic Study Aids in that you can use it without an individual account, but setting up an individual account provides access to advanced features.
• CALI: CALI stands for the Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction. Almost all law schools in the country belong to CALI, a non-profit organization that offers interactive online lessons and other learning resources. Your access to CALI includes over 1,000 tutorials written and peer-reviewed by faculty at CALI member schools. Using CALI requires an individual account. You need a registration code to set up that account.
• Lexis Digital Library: This study aids collection includes the popular Mastering series. The library’s website provides access to the Lexis Digital Library. You can also download an app to use it offline.

No, we do not offer print or electronic course reserves.

Books can only be checked out when the front desk is staffed. You must have your Penn State ID card. No exceptions! You can renew a book online or bring it to the front desk, and we will do it for you.

Check-Out Periods

• Browsing and Anti-Racist Collections: 4 weeks, with a renewal option
• Reference Works: 2 hours
• Other Circulating Books: 1 semester

Yes. You can use the library catalog to locate resources at our library and other Penn State libraries. The title entry under location in the catalog indicates if materials are checked out. Place a hold on a checked-out item by clicking “I Want It” on the entry. This will reserve the book for you. It will be delivered to our library for you to pick up. (Tip: Don’t use I Want It for items in our collection.)

Yes, or at least we will try our best to obtain a copy of the book for you using interlibrary loan (ILL). You must create an ILL account to borrow something from outside the Penn State library system. We will notify you electronically when all the requested items are available to be checked out.

We have five study rooms on the second floor of the library. Larger groups may prefer to use rooms 202 and 203, which seat 8-10 students, respectively. Room 209 holds six students. The smaller study rooms, 207 and 208 are more suitable for groups with five or fewer people.

You can reserve a study room using your 25Live account online. You can also use 25Live to see whether or not a room is available. There are QR codes outside the study rooms that you can use to book them.

The study rooms are for group study. If you need private individual space, for example, a Zoom interview, there are reservable rooms near the Career Office. That said, the doors are not locked, so an individual may use an unoccupied study room so long as they promptly and politely vacate the room if a group wants to use it.

There is a printer near the circulation desk on the first floor. There is also a free Lexis printer on the second floor. The scanner is on the first floor.