Librarians are here to help you. Our core function at the University is to assist students, faculty, and staff with research and information literacy. Information Literacy is a fancy way of saying we help you navigate the information overload that is our world. You have multiple options to contact a librarian:

Library Chat

We now have an online chat service! You can talk with a Cal State Librarian online (anonymously or not) during the following times:

Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Friday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Librarian Consultation (Email, Zoom, in-person)

Bridgid Fennell is the Introduction to Higher Education Librarian and loves to help students in BUS 1010. See her profile on the left side column of this page to make an appointment. Bridgid can assist students in person, via Zoom, or email.  A librarian consultation is just like office hours with faculty. Like faculty, we cannot proofread your paper, but we can help you find what you need for your assignments.

For some of you, this might be the first time you've had a school library and a librarian to visit. Welcome! Here are some things to keep in mind...

1. You are never bothering a librarian by asking for help.  We want to answer your questions! If you manage to stump one of us, we will turn to our fellow librarians for help (it really bugs us when we can't answer something!)
2. Librarians (usually) do not grade you, therefore we do not know your class assignment requirements. Feel free to send us the assignment in advance along with your question.
3. The more information the better. One sentence questions are not the best way for us to help you, we need a little more than that!

Here's an example of a way to frame a question for a librarian:

I'm a student in Business 1010 with Professor XX. We are assigned to write a business report on any company we like and we will also present a Powerpoint presentation at the end of the semester. The assignment requirements are that the business report is 5 pages, double spaced and that we use 8 outside sources, 1 of which has to be peer-reviewed.  I would like to write a report on Zoom, the video conferencing service. I have looked online and found some information on them from their website but I need more resources to meet my requirements.  Can you help?

This is a great way of phrasing a research question to a librarian. There is the context for the question (what class you're in, what professor), information on the assignment requirements (5 pages, 8 outside sources, 1 peer-reviewed source), and information on what places the student has searched so far.  This will really help the librarian tackle the question!