About the Library

Background
The Online Library is a web-based online library maintained by Empire State College at www.esc.edu/library.

In 1971, the college was chartered by the SUNY Regents without a physical library or a collection of traditional print resources, with the expectation that Empire State College students would use the library facilities of the SUNY system. The online Library and Learning Resource Center was established in 1997. With the growth of online electronic services and the expansion of distance learning, the college has developed a core collection of online journals, e-books and research databases for use by its students, faculty and staff.

Collections
Although Empire State College does not have a library building, the library provides access to approximately 60,000 electronic books and tens of thousands of journals in electronic form, all of which are accessible online anytime, anywhere (as long as you have a computer with an Internet connection.) In cases where these resources are insufficient, the Online Library also offers directional tools, such as location information in WorldCat and library directory listings, to help you easily identify library materials located at other local, SUNY, CUNY and regional library systems.

The online library features:

60,000+	Electronic books across a broad range of academic subject disciplines, which can be searched and accessed using the E-Book Catalog.
57,000+	Unique full-text journal titles
500+	Online searchable reference books, which can be accessed through the E-Book Catalog.
80+	Electronic searchable databases
30	Research guides to internet resources and research databases arranged by the college’s areas of study
1 million+	Searchable, digital images
	Online tutorials to help you use our resources more effectively for research

Library Staff
The College's professional librarians provide reference and other library services days, evenings and weekends via e-mail, phone, chat, and the web. Meet the Librarians.