University of Arkansas

The library system of the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, is composed of the David W. Mullins Library, the main research facility on campus, and four branch libraries:

• The Robert A. and Vivian Young Law Library
• The Fine Arts Library
• The Chemistry and Biochemistry Library
• The Physics Library.

The spacious Helen Robson Walton Reading Room is the Libraries' most popular quiet study area, and group study rooms are also available. More than 200 reference databases and thousands of electronic journals are accessible from anywhere with a University ID. Reference librarians assist users in locating and using library resources. Students may send questions by e-mail, telephone, or 24/7 chat, and can schedule a one-on-one session with a librarian for more extensive research questions. Reference librarians also conduct orientation sessions on research methods throughout the semester. Students may also visit the tutors from the Quality Writing Center and the Enhanced Learning Center on site in Mullins Library Sunday through Thursday. With more than 1.7 million volumes and 15,000 journal subscriptions, students will find plenty of research material for every subject. Other resources in the collections include several thousand maps, manuscripts, and more than 27,000 audio and visual materials, including music scores, recordings, and movies, that you can hear or view in the Performing Arts and Media Department.

A full-service computer Research Commons is located on the lobby level of Mullins, and students may check out a laptop and log onto the Internet from anywhere in the library using wireless access technology. Visit the Libraries' Web page at http://libinfo.uark.edu to learn more about services and collections or access the My Library function that allows users to check library records, renew books, request holds and save catalog searches. Items not owned by the University Libraries may be obtained through interlibrary loan by completing the online registration and request forms. Requested items in electronic format will be sent directly to desktops, usually within 24 hours; physical items will be held for pickup at the main service desk on the Lobby Level.

The University Libraries have had official United States government depository status since 1907. The Federal Depository Library Program provides free public access to U.S. government information by distributing information products from Federal agencies to depository libraries throughout the nation. The Government Documents Department has also been a depository for Arkansas state publications since 1993. The University Libraries’ map collection and GIS (Geographic Information Systems) program, including a public GIS workstation equipped with ArcGIS Desktop Suite, are available.

In Special Collections, students can read rare books from around the world, consult the largest book collection related to Arkansas, handle historic letters and diaries, magazines, and old photographs related to Arkansas, as well as watch old black and white films made in or about the state. Through the Libraries' Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, students also have access to hundreds of original oral history interviews conducted with Arkansans from all walks of life.

For information concerning collections and services, please inquire at 479-575-4104. For any other library matter, please contact the Dean’s Office at 479-575-6702.

The Quality Writing Center provides one-on-one tutorials for students, faculty, and staff who want to improve their writing. Clients make appointments via the center’s Web-based scheduling system for face-to-face or online tutorials.

Graduate tutors of the Quality Writing Center, who help clients with any writing project, work in Kimpel Hall, Gregson Hall and Mullins Library. The center also has a staff of undergraduate peer tutors trained to assist students with freshman composition assignments. Peer tutors are available for walk-in tutoring, days and evenings in the same locations.

Quality Writing Center tutors take a non-directive approach, allowing students to maintain ownership of their writing and to control the important editorial decisions that improve their drafts. The tutors provide assistance to students at any stage of the writing process: brainstorming, pre-writing, outlining, rough-drafting, and revising.

The center’s Web site has 40 downloadable handouts covering a wide variety of composition and grammar issues. Online tutoring is available during holiday and term breaks.

University Information Technology Services supports research, academic and administrative computing activity on the UA campus. Computer operations are maintained to provide access to computing facilities and resources 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

A variety of host systems and servers are available for academic use. The primary mail and messaging server on campus is mail.uark.edu. E-mail is browser-based and can be checked from any computer with an Internet connection by going to uamail.uark.edu or mail.uark.edu. In addition, users can choose to use e-mail clients such as Outlook, Eudora, Pine, Thunderbird, and Mac OSX Mail, all of which are supported. The Microsoft Exchange services are available to faculty and staff (e-mail, calendaring, project managemet), which are available on Web version at exchange.uark.edu, Outlook 2007, or Entourage 2008. The primary server for academic and research computing is comp.uark.edu, a Sun Fire E2900 server, using the Unix operating system Solaris. Comp supports statistical packages (SAS, SPSS, MATLAB), programming languages (C, C++, FORTRAN), e-mail software (Pine), and other Internet applications. Personal home pages may also be developed on the comp server. All students are automatically assigned UARK accounts (e-mail username and password) on mail. uark.edu, comp.uark.edu and may use their e-mail username and password to access other student-related applications such as ISIS and logging in to the General Access Computing Labs.

A variety of other servers provide support for administrative and academic computing. These include an IBM z890 mainframe for administrative computing for human resources and business processing systems. Other servers provide support for data warehousing; Web services, allowing them to access PC and Mac-based software though these servers. Additionally, the General Access Computing Labs maintain software via networked servers, allowing access to the same products in multiple labs. Faculty may also access the administrative computing systems for advising purposes, roster generation, and grade reporting. Host peripherals include disk storage, tape systems, and laser printing.

UARKnet, the campus backbone network, is managed by University IT Services. This network enables communication among networks, computers, and servers on campus, as well as on the Internet and Internet2, of which the University is a member site. The University is also on the ground floor of ARE-ON, considered the highest speed research network in the nation. Virtually all departments, as well as all laboratories, are connected to the campus network. Network access is also available via dial-up modem connections. Dial-up access ID and passwords are the same as e-mail IDs and passwords that students use to gain access to other systems.

The General Access Computer Labs offer approximately 300 networkattached PC and Mac computers for use by UA students, faculty, and staff. These labs are located in the Arkansas Union, Administrative Services Building, Mullins Library, and in the Northwest Quad. The labs offer day, evening, and weekend hours. In addition to being Internet-connected, a variety of products are installed on these machines, including Internet browsers, word processors (MS Word and WordPerfect), databases (MS Access), and spreadsheet programs (MS Excel). Laser printing is available from all supported software. Scanning facilities are available in the Administrative Services Building and the Arkansas Union labs, and color printing is available in the Union. Laptops are available for checkout in Mullins Library, the J.B. Hunt Transport Services Center lab, and the Student Technology Center, located in the Arkansas Union. These laptops can be used standalone or with network access via the wireless network available campuswide. Personal laptops may also connect to the network through public drops located in Mullins and the Union, as well as through the campus wireless network.

University IT Services offers free, non-credit training workshops every month on a variety of computer and Internet-based topics, including operating systems, e-mail, word processing, Windows SharePoint, Web page development, presentation tools, and many others. Students can also refer to the University IT Services Web site for a more comprehensive list of training workshops. Training by request is also available.

The Student Technology Center, provided by the Student Technology Fee and University IT Services, is a walk-in computing help center offering laptops and projectors for checkout, as well as high-end multimedia direction and assistance. Laptops are configured for wireless Internet access, and carrels are available with desktop computers. Laptops and desktops are loaded with advanced, multimedia software for layout, graphics design, and Web site development, which students can learn to use with assistance from staff at the Student Technology Center.

The MultiMedia Resource Center (MMRC) provides access to and training for computers and applications that can be used to develop programs and classroom presentations. In addition, the MMRC features a training lab, including Internet-connected computers equipped for video conferences and distance education applications. The MMRC also has presentation equipment and a portable IP-based video-conferencing unit available for checkout. The Research Data Center provides researchers with assistance in data design and analysis and with support for other needs, such as training and access to numeric data and assistance in using Web-based data and analyzing survey results. Furthermore, faculty can refer students to the MMRC to learn highend computing techniques, such as podcasting, video presentation, and much more.

University IT Services is located in the Administrative Services Building (ADSB), 155 Razorback Road. University IT Service specialists offer assistance with operating systems, application programs, virus scanning, modem communications, Internet tools, research projects, general troubleshooting, and more. For more information, phone the UITS Help Desk at 479-575-2905, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Thursday, and until 5 p.m. Friday, or visit the University IT Web site at uits.uark.edu.

Testing Services is charged with the responsibility of administering standardized academic tests at the University of Arkansas. The office administers such national tests as the ACT Assessment, the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), and CLEP exams in addition to others throughout the year. National testing companies determine testing dates and deadlines. Testing Services also offers a number of institutional tests such as the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the Spoken Language Proficiency Test (SLPT), and the Math Placement Test. These tests are scheduled at various times as demand dictates. Test fees vary depending on the test.

To obtain a registration bulletin or information about exam dates and deadlines, please stop by 700 Hotz Hall or call 479-575-3948.