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NUS Microform Collection
Brief History of the Microform Collection The microform collection was started in the early 1950s with the microfilming of local newspapers. In 1964, the Library's microfilm unit as it was called then, started another on-going project to microfilm the academic exercises and theses submitted to the University. This project ended with the closure of the Reprographic Services Department in December 2002 and with the fact that at present, all theses submitted are now in digital format. In the early days (before the setting up of the Centre
for Development of Teaching and Learning (CDTL)), the Photographic Unit
also assisted the various university departments with photographic work in
connection with research, publications and lectures. The work involved
producing lantern slides and photographs, among other materials. In 1966, the Library initiated a project to collect archival materials relating to the history of Singapore and Malaysia and is now well known especially amongst researchers for it's pre 1965 Singapore/Malaysia collection. The British Foreign Office Series and Colonial Office Series were purchased, mainly funded by grants from the Ford Foundation and Mr Lee Kong Chian. Southeast Asian newspapers are also acquired extensively. At present the bulk of the microform collection are housed in the Closed Stacks and has over 25,500 titles in our microform collection. There is a strong collection of government documents from Great Britain here, including the complete set of the British Sessional papers. With the streamlining of Library operations, the Photographic Unit ceased to exist after nearly 50 years of operation. Started in 1953 with the purpose of microfilming the local (Singapore/Malaysia) newspapers, it later included the microfilming of academic exercises and theses submitted to the University. The unit was also very active in assisting the various university departments with slides production for publications, lectures and conference presentations. With the availability of scanners, the demand for slides production dwindled. By the late 1990’s, with the commercialization of microfilming services by private vendors and the eventual digitization of NUS academic exercises and theses, the unit was no longer relevant and was retired at the end of 2002. On 16 December 2002, loans of microforms (microfilm reels/microfiches) in the Central Library was centralized and are now issued from Loans Desk 2, Loans & Membership (L & M) Department (located at the 4th floor). Users can also request for assistance with the use of the microform readers from our staff at this One Stop Loans counter. Please give the staff the Stack# number indicated in LINC as our microforms collection are filed according to this unique number. Retrieval of the microforms is done within the hour. The Microform Reading Room has also been relocated to the last room opposite to the Photocopying Room (5th floor). Collection development and maintenance of the microform collection is now carried out by the Library's Technical Services (Purchasing) Division. For enquires regarding the microform collection or requests to order microform titles, please contact:
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A Microform is an item that has been reproduced in a greatly reduced format, and requires special equipment to view or copy. Microforms come in a number of formats. The most familiar of these are the 16mm or 35mm roll microfilm and microfiche, the latter resembling a plastic file card (a (flat 3x5 clear mylar sheets of film that usually holds up to 98 images)
All microforms are on loan on a day to day basis and the items must not
be removed out of the Library. All materials must be viewed within the
Microforms Reading Room
Microform Viewing Room
6 Microfilm readers
2 Microfiche readers
Why would I use the Microforms?
There are nearly more than 350,000 microform items in the NUS Libraries. Microforms provide information in every discipline. It contains a huge source of primary materials for research. We have microforms for theses, magazines, newspapers, monographs, conference proceedings and primary source materials like the Colonial and War Office reports & the various Parliamentary papers. Microforms are fully catalogued and all the titles in this collection are accessible through LINC, so finding them is as easy and convenient as finding a book. Some of the contents of the large microform sets are not all fully cataloged in LINC. Many have accompanying guides and indexes that are housed in the stacks under the same call number as the microform.
Microform materials are housed at the Central Library Closed Stacks and are retrieved by L & M staff upon request (on an hourly basis). The location codes are your guide to where the microforms are kept in the NUS Library System (Central, Science and Medical Library). Please fill (your Name & the Microform stack number(s) ie Stack no R00xxx for microfilm or F00xxx for microfiche) the Microforms Loans Request slip at Loan Desk Desk 2. Please note the Collection Time : 8.30 am - 7 pm (Term Time) and 9 am - 6 pm (Vacation) Monday - Friday. Due to Manpower constraints - there will be no retrieval during the weekend.
If I have questions, who can I call?
Please inquire at the RIS Information Desk (Tel 6516-2028) or Reception Help Desk ( Tel 6516-6949) if you have problems locating an item in the microform collection. Requesters are also encouraged to contact L & M staff at Loan Desk 4 (Tel 6872-0236) if they need to view the microforms during Saturday/Sunday as arrangement will be made to collect them before the start of the weekend.
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