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Library Basics: Home

Welcome to Houff Library!

Welcome to Houff Library. This guide reviews the library website and shows you how to best use the services and resources available to you at BRCC.

Information Resources and Houff Library

Houff Library provides access to many great information resources - both print and online.

Why Use Library Resources?

Why is it important to make use of library resources, instead of relying solely on the general internet? There are many advantages to using library print and digital resources over those that you find on Google or Google Scholar.

  • Library resources will always be free to you. While you can find a ton of free resources on Google, there are many that may ask you to create an account to access, or make you to pay to see the entirety of a resource. General Google results are often inundated with advertisements, which while harmless, can often be distracting or overbearing. You will not have to create an extra account to access library resources while you are a student at BRCC, and you will never have to deal with advertisements in library resources. 
  • Many professors will require peer-reviewed journal articles, and there is no easy way to limit your results in Google or Google Scholar to guarantee that you are seeing academic, peer-reviewed materials. Google can provide you with millions of results, but you will have to spend a lot of time verifying that those resources can be trusted as good, bias-free research. Library databases make the research process a lot easier for you.
  • Library databases include built-in filters that allow you to effectively adjust your results to match the needs of your assignment. Want to make sure that you are only seeing full-text, peer-reviewed academic journal articles? There are filters for that. Need an article written within the past five years on a specific subject area? There are filters for that.
  • Tired of algorithms? Library database results are based on relevancy to your search terms and active filters rather than a complex algorithm involving your personal internet search history and what is popular at the moment. This relative search neutrality allows you to see results from multiple perspectives and build your research from the ground up. Academic research usually requires you to understand the full spectrum of a concept, rather than building a thesis on a biased perspective or information set. 

Library Operations & Contact Information

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Houff Library Hours:
Monday-Thursday: 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. 
Friday: 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

Always check the Library Homepage for current hours and information on any holiday closings. 

The online library is always open! Ebooks, online articles, digital media, and course research guides are available at brcc.edu/library. If you are off-campus, you will need to sign in using your myBRCC login credentials. You can find more information about off-campus access on our website. 

Contact us at ​(540) 453-2247 or library@brcc.edu or stop by G236/2nd Floor Houff Student Center.

Need help? Ask a librarian! Options include a live chat 24/7.

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How to Schedule an Appointment with a Librarian in Navigate

youtube iconNeed to schedule a one-on-one meeting with one of our librarians to get help with research or citation assistance? Check out this video on how to schedule an appointment via EAB Navigate. 

Prefer to use your phone? Download the Navigate Student App in the App Store or on Google Play. Then log in using your MyBRCC username and password.