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Find and Borrow Books

Finding books with OneSearch, identifying book locations, how to read a call number, and how to borrow books.

What is OneSearch?

OneSearch is a great place to start your research, as it searches almost everything the Library owns, including books and eBooks. 

Within OneSearch, you can find books, both within John Jay and all of CUNY, and books on Reserve.

Find Books with OneSearch

OneSearch can search many, but not all, of our resources at the same time.

Here are the steps for using OneSearch:

  1. Start at the Library homepage.

  2. Type the title or topic you're looking for into the search box. If necessary, select "Limit to: Books."
         Screenshot of the OneSearch bar on the library home page highlighting the books search filter

  3. Look at the results and get the section and call number of the book.
         Available at John Jay College Stacks HV8705 .D74 2016
    Make sure the author(s) match the book you require.

  4. What you do next depends on the section:

    • Stacks: Find the book on the shelf using the guide to the right, or ask a librarian for help.

    • Reserves: Bring the call number to the Reserve Desk to check out the book for 3 hours at a time.

    • Reference: These resources are found on the Upper Level of the Library and can only be used in the Library.

You also can search by ISBN in OneSearch's Advanced Search by selecting ISBN from the "Any Field" dropdown menu. 

If you can't find the book in OneSearch, select the "John Jay + CUNY Libraries" option at the top of the page to see if it is owned by another CUNY Library. If so, you can try requesting the book via CLICS, the CUNY-wide book delivery service. If the book is not held by any CUNY Library, please check one of the many other libraries in New York.