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Finding a shelfmark
To find an item's location, search the library catalogue using Explore and open the Locations tab under the title information for the library and shelfmark details.
For example:
What it means
| Science | Located at the UCL Science Library in this instance. |
| PSYCHOLOGY | Psychology collection, 1st floor of the Science Library. This may be abbreviated on the book's spine label. |
| B 55 | Indicates a topic area within the subject. In this example, B 55 is for books by and about Freud. See below for an outline of your subject's classification. |
| WOL | The first three letters of an author's surname. |
Medical Libraries
Please note, some of our medical-related libraries use different classification schemes, mostly that from the National Library of Medicine in the US, or developments of it.
Useful links
- Biosciences Subject Guide.
- Subject Locations.
- UCL Libraries - site maps available.
Classification - Biology
| Letter | Sub heading |
| BIOLOGY A | Biological studies generally |
| BIOLOGY B | Ecology and biogeography (including biological control) |
| BIOLOGY C | Microbiology |
| BIOLOGY D | Physiology and biophysics * |
| BIOLOGY E | Biophysics * |
| BIOLOGY F | Histology * |
| BIOLOGY G | Cytology and cells * |
| BIOLOGY H | Genetics, heredity, eugenics (genetic engineering) |
| BIOLOGY J | Evolution |
| BIOLOGY QUARTOS | In this case, quartos refers to taller books that require more shelf space. BIOLOGY QUARTOS are shelved on bays after the main BIOLOGY sequence. |
* = Basic texts only, Medical Sciences used for all other texts
Classification - Botany
Botany classification scheme has additional numbers in the classmark but follows the same principle as those above. To illustrate, only the first and last entries of the scheme are shown.
| Letter | Sub heading |
| BOTANY 80 a | (First entry in scheme) General material including dictionaries and Bio-bibliographies |
| BOTANY 84 k | (Final entry in scheme) Pollen; palynology |
| BOTANY QUARTOS | Quartos indicates taller books that require more shelf space. BOTANY QUARTOS are shelved immediately after BOTANY 84 k |
Classification - Medical Sciences
To illustrate, only the first and last entries of the scheme are shown.
| Letter | Sub heading |
| MEDICAL SCIENCES A | (First entry in scheme) Medical Sciences Generally |
| MEDICAL SCIENCES W | (Final entry in scheme) History of medicine |
MEDICAL SCIENCE QUARTOS MEDICAL SCIENCE FOLIOS | Quartos and folios indicate items that require more shelf space. MEDICAL SCIENCE QUARTOS and MEDICAL SCIENCE FOLIOS are shelved together on a shelving bay close to the main sequence. |
Classification - Zoology
As with Botany, the Zoology scheme has additional numbers in the classmark but follows the same principle as those above. To illustrate, only the first and last entries of the scheme are shown.
| Letter | Sub heading |
| ZOOLOGY 20 a | (First entry in scheme) Zoology generally, including dictionaries and reference works |
| ZOOLOGY 26 f | (Final entry in scheme) Freshwater biology, limnology |
| ZOOLOGY QUARTOS | Quartos indicate items that require more shelf space. ZOOLOGY QUARTOS are shelved immediately after ZOOLOGY 26 f |