OMG. You can Eat in the library. YES!!!! I know everyone saying it, but it is awesome. Being from LA, the LAPLs do not let you eat, among other things. The view of the campus is really nice as you get up to the 4th floor. I would say the higher you go, the qieter it gets. 2nd floor is all noisy! Well, not noisy, just noisy for a library, with people texting, on their phones (if you can get service), dancing, etc. The 3rd floor is quiet with a bit of noise. And of course the 4th floor is the Quiet Zone. I went up there and stayed until about 11:30 to study and it was great. I did great on my 1st Bio midterm, so 4th floor is the place to be when you need to study. Also, the library has 300 laptops available for checkout, which is great because sometimes I don't feel like going back to my dorm room, and I don't have a laptop. And the Lantern Cafe downstairs sells really yummy food like Mediterranean Pasta Salad. Also, they are the only place on campus that sells my favorite: Pomagranate Cherry Sobe LIfe Water! Too bad it closes at 5:30pm, even though the library closes at Midnight. ANDDD whatever you buy from there, you can eat in the library! :) The only downside to the library is that it closes at 6pm on Fridays. BOOO HISS!!! Other than that one thing, the library rocks! read more

For a library that's only 5 years old, UC Merced's is does a really good job at getting the resources that you need. Their ILL (Inter-Library Loan) system is phenomenal. You can pretty much have your hands on any book from any UC library in a matter of days and can keep it for a year or so. Their laptop loaning program is used extensively. Their collection of printed Journals and books on hand isn't huge, but you can't hold that against them in lieu of massive budget cuts and how new the school is. They've got at least 1 cool aquarium set up on each floor (awesome!) and some neat museum-ish displays every now and then. My only complaint is the lack of La-Z-Boys. Must have the La-Z-Boys in a school library, or at least couches! read more

Beautiful and eco-friendly, but most importantly, student friendly. --- The Building: -The Kolligian Library building contains administrative offices, the office of student life, the bookstore, conference rooms, and the actual library section. Due to its location at the top of a hill, it is the tallest building in Merced with 4 stories! Books / DVDs: -Printed books are located on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th floors; the bulk of the journals and materials, are accessed online. Interlibrary Loans (ILL) allow students and faculty of UC campuses to borrow resources from other campuses. There is a good selection of DVD's on the 3rd floor- lots of classics and it's free to check them out. Eating: -There is the Lantern Cafe located on the 1st floor, but it is closed on the weekends. -You can eat in the library, which is awesome for the mature people. There are, however, some lazies who don't clean up after themselves. Rooms / Quiet Areas: -Faculty, staff, and students can reserve rooms online through the library's website, or use the first-come-first-serve rooms. -The entire 4th floor is a Quiet Zone; the reading room on the 4th floor is particularly BEAUTIFUL. The library supervisors are all nice; it's awesome working there :). read more

Although there are very few actual books in our library, I expect their collection to grow and it's an awesome place to study. I spend most of my time outside of class here. There are four floors in this "green" building, with the third floor being more of a lounge area and the fourth floor a "quiet zone." The librarians are amazing, although I wish their offices were more out in the open like most other libraries. They are available by appointment for help with research skills and how to access and use the huge amount of information online for UC use only: databases and archives. I use ILL like crazy :) This is a research library, and they only have a limited selection of books such as fiction and others here. Cool things about our library: Soft, comfortable seating! Rad fish tanks. It's a great place to escape the heat, or the crazy winter weather! You can bring your food and drinks inside, and the place is always respected and kept clean by everyone. Wireless Internet access. Napping is allowed ha ha. Natural lighting. Bring your own laptop; as of 2011 they are no longer loaning out laptops :( The only negatives are that it does get crowded sometimes, some spots can be too cold (but I'm always cold), and the staff sometimes hogs up the Green Room to do meetings and conferences during the middle of midterms and finals which can be extremely annoying! Also, bring your own ethernet cord to plug in for a more reliable internet connection. The bottom floor also houses the Lantern Cafe for quick snacks, and is also connected to the bookstore and other campus offices. Our library along with the Merced College Library, are the best ones in Merced County. read more

I remember when I used to have my classes IN the library on the 2nd floor...lol. GOOD TIMES!! As a pioneer, so many good memories stem from this library! My classes, my days of finals 24hr library, free food at the library, being rowdy in the library. This is by far the best library! The librarians are super helpful and nice, they always want to help and offer extended hours for finals week! Also, you can rent out free laptops (my 1st year..you can rent it out the whole day..now its probably every 3 hrs or so) I remember this library was still under construction when I first came here (est 2005!!) The good ole' days of taking the back entrance into the library. Everybody knew everybody, haha and we could just leave our belongings at the library for hours and no one would steal (not the same anymore). I love this library, it deserves 5 stars! Although, we all joke that it looked like a jailhouse (the architecture)....but so many good memories. not to mention the awesome wi-fi and there would always be free food down in the lantern..so you wouldn't have to walk too far. The library is 4 floors, super quiet, LOTS and LOTs of tables, we used to steal study rooms for the whole day and no one cared. Lots of clubs have their meetings here and lots of students on weeknights. barely any on weekends. All the students who were super studious would sit on the 4th floor and when finals rolled around; you'd hear ppl "SHHH" really loud from 4th floor down to the other floors. It was funny sometimes. Also, its super quiet, there was a rule which when you entered 4th floor, you can't make noise! Also, there's always office hours from TA's at the library(super convenient!) I feel all nostalgic thinking bout the good ole' days at UCM. The library is probably one of my favorite spots on campus! Go bobcats! read more

The UC Merced library is a great place to meet up with your friends and colleagues. It is definitely a place that embodies the spirit of the campus! If you are at the lantern you are bound to run into someone you know. This place is a go to spot for everyone at UC Merced, whether it is to get coffee, a quick snack, to do homework, or a meeting. Faculty, students, and staff all use it and this is a very techy and environmentally friendly building that will make you feel the connection with the newest UC! read more

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Nice espresso drinks. Efficient staff. Free wifi and plentiful outlets. Nice place to study or hold group meetings at UC Merced.

Oh and when I grow up I want to be a "University Librarian". This one tall dude with a beard is the head honcho here. Anyways, I hardly see him doing any real work but he's a mo'fudgin boss! Probably gets paid hella. And he drives this bright Red Corvette. Is that the life or what. read more

Very nice seating, great widows, and attractive exterior. It's still a small library compared to other universities. Then again, UCM is a small university, so that would make sense. The Internet is fantastic on campus. The staff is pretty helpful. read more

At the interior entrance to this library, the Kolligian Library, is emblazoned the statement: "not what other research libraries are, what they will be." In practice and in policy, UC Merced is making this statement reality. Without a doubt, this library, through its great staff (Donald, Eric, Mary, etc.), has set the standard for distributed collection, access and utilization of information resources. They have shifted the accepted norm of what a library is intended to do, establishing that it is more practical and effective to have the information brought to the user than it is to bring the user to a limited collection of information. read more

Updating my review. When I first came here, the library was frustrating. Over the past five years, they have added new Librarians such as Elizabeth Salmon, who are dedicated to working with Graduate students. I have also seen a lot of synergy between the library and local artists, which is very positive. My only real complaint is that I wish there was more quiet space, but my understanding is that the new thinking in library science is that we don't need to treat libraries like the Ghost in the original Ghostbusters movie! read more

This library is the best. They have a huge selection of books and the atmosphere was very peaceful and quiet. If you wanna study, this is the place. Also a nice place to go for a walk by the lake afterwards. read more

This library is so dead sometimes... it's nice! Sometimes, it can get pretty rowdy though because everyone talks and stuff... This is practically where you hear all the gossip. If you want to study, this place is a hit or miss sometimes. They have really comfy chairs/sofas! The desks and stuff are still pretty new, the study rooms are pretty spacious, the atmosphere is pretty chill. There's WI-FI, too! You can eat here, which is an absolute BONUS! read more

In a word: salvation. This library is luxurious in its offerings: expansive areas in which to study, a fast and reliable wireless connection, and environmentally-conscious amenities (recycle bins everywhere, eco-friendly bathrooms, natural lighting). Unlike other UC libraries, this one is hardly crowded. You can find a spot to read, to research, to goof off on your laptop or chat with friends. The staff members are nice and non-intrusive, and the library atmosphere is largely calm. The best library in the county, by far. read more

Sure our library is huge and you can eat in it but there is one important thing that needs to be said. we dont have books!... okay we have a few but in all seriousness we have veerrrrryy few books, less than any library you have been into if you go into libraries haha. We do the online thing. There is a place i call the Comfy Room, it is filled with fluffy couches and chairs and desks. You can put you feet on anything and everything ALWAYS remains clean somehow. And yeah its great to be able to eat in there, studying doesnt have to stop when you get hungry. read more