The University Library (UL) is set to extend its borrowing policy to cover all students at the University.

Beginning 1st October, all undergraduates will be able to borrow up to five books from the UL for a period of two weeks. Under the current policy, only third years and affiliated undergraduates are allowed to borrow books.

The prospect of having even more students in competition for the UL’s limited resources has alarmed some.

According to one postgraduate student, "It is already difficult to track down certain books. Now that potentially thousands of more students will have access, it will become even more difficult, not to mention more crowded."

These concerns may be minimised by the fact that the UL offers a recall service that allows users to request borrowed items, which are then made available to them within a week’s time.

Other students have welcomed the change. According to a third-year historian, "Borrowing books in first and second year will enable students to develop a habit of going to the UL, which will prepare them well for third year, when they really need the UL for dissertations."

Anne Jarvis, the University Librarian, echoed this sentiment. "The University Library is pleased to extend borrowing to all Cambridge undergraduate students. We hope that they will benefit from gaining familiarity in the use of a great research library from early in their student life," she said.