As university students, we constantly find ourselves studying for hours and hours on end, during which we seem to be confined to a mix of lecture notes, videos, slides and textbooks.
We pour through additional course resources and eventually become professionals at what we do. Course after course we know the drill, how to study and the methods that work for us. There are many different places on the university campus with study environments of all sorts for students, but one space on campus has seemed to distinguish itself from other locations.
According to the University of Manitoba website, the Elizabeth Dafoe Library is the largest of nine libraries on campus. “The library also serves the research, study and teaching requirements of the faculty of arts, education, environment, earth, and resources, human ecology, nursing, kinesiology, recreation management and social work.”
Apart from the large amount of resources that the Elizabeth Dafoe Library offers, it also has some very unique aspects to it. The library’s first floor is a common meeting area for students, complete with couches and many tables that create a very social atmosphere. As a result of the social atmosphere, the area can be very noisy and distracting; if that study environment doesn’t capture your interest, perhaps that fact that the library contains a Starbucks will.
If you are not down with the whole group study idea, don’t worry. You can still find a home at the Dafoe Library. The University of Manitoba library guide states, “There are approximately 650 study spaces in Dafoe, distributed throughout the three floors of the library.” Spread out amongst the thousands and thousands of books in the library, you can find study carrels in every possible area.
For those of you who need complete and utter silence, there is the Iceland Reading Room on the third floor. It is considered one of the university’s best kept secrets and will offer you a completely silent study atmosphere.
Emma Popowich, acting head of reference at the Elizabeth Dafoe Library, explained, “The Elizabeth Dafoe Library is a unique meeting place and learning commons for students. We have students and faculty from all different disciplines coming to have coffee or book group study rooms or use the resources; it becomes a meeting place for all different activities.”
Popowich went on to highlight the reference service staff at the Library. “They can help students with their papers [ . . . ] and are a key resource. They can do a lot of work to help facilitate the learning process.”
She went on to say, “They can recommend strategies for finding resources for papers, order or purchase items that have been recommended or are needed. They can [ . . . ] meet with you one on one.”
There is no doubt that the Elizabeth Dafoe Library is one of the leading libraries on campus in regards to collection, study space and socializing.
From the appealing first floor Starbucks and causal study areas to the Iceland Reading Room and most certainly the reference service staff, the Elizabeth Dafoe Library does not disappoint. If you ever have a question regarding literary works of any sort, or just need a place to study or hang out for a bit, don’t be afraid to head towards the Elizabeth Dafoe Library. They are always looking forward to see you.
