Back to Basics!

I’d like to say welcome back, but since most of you started before me, I’ll just say that I hope you had a wonderful rest during the festive season and that 2009 will bring less stress!

With the classes almost upon us, I’d like to give you some information on the training sessions I provide as well as a refresher on the Library services on offer:

Image: danzo08

Training
I provide training to all postgraduate students, both on individually and in groups.
· Individual training is done by appointment only – please give my details to all your postgraduate students
· Training is usually for an hour and a half and please send your new student assistants for training – it will improve their service to you tremendously

A few pointers to keep in mind when scheduling a group/class library session:
· I am more than happy to give a presentation/demo or hands-on training during class time. The library has a training venue with 14 computers that can accommodate about 28 students. If your class is bigger, I am happy to do training in the Labs as well.

If the class is an evening class the follow will come into play:
o I do only one evening training session per week
o Please let me know a week in advance so that I can book our training room and prepare the manuals
o The library training/session must be in the first hour (i.e. starting at 17:30 or 18:00 at the latest) and will be for an hour

Keep in mind that I am responsible for the training of 8 departments’ postgraduate students as well as 1st year training during January - March – so please let me know well in advance if you want me to train your class.

Library Services
In a nutshell I offer:
Training – for yourself, your student assistants and your postgraduate students
Alerting – be the first to know if a specific journal or article on your research topic has been published, or keep up to date with the publications of a specific author
Access to other universities – gain free access to all resources of other South African universities
Publishing – I can assist you in finding an accredited publication for your article, or a co-author or conference you can present at
Money - Want to know how much money you have left to buy books or databases with? Need help in weeding out old material? Just ask
Referencing – The university subscribes to RefWorks, a software package that automates the referencing and citation functions, please ask if you’d like me to show you how it works
Current Awareness – remember to check this blog regularly for updates on library services as well as relevant information for your subject area

My office is located on the 1st floor of the Library (by the Reference section) and you are more than welcome to come by for help or assistance.