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Researcher resources

Here you will find information to help researchers with accessing archival holdings. Doing Archival research can be unfamiliar to some, so it can help to have some background in how to approach using an archival service.

Doing research in the SFU Archives

If you have a research question but are new to doing archival research:

Read the Introduction to Archival Research to start.

If you are familiar with using archives for research:

Browse our holdings at SFU Atom to determine what fonds you are interested in and determine their access status. As a further aid to starting your research, SFU has a number of thematic research guides.

If a file you want to view is indicated as "Pending Review" or "Closed":

Make advance arrangements to determine if the file can be made available to you. Contact the Duty Reference Archivist prior to visiting and be prepared to fill in a researcher agreement.

Internet connection

In order to use an SFU wifi connection, you will need to set up Eduroam while you are still at your home institution. Please read about Eduroam and the nature of this service on the Eduroam website.

Contacting an archivist

SFU's Archivists are full-time University faculty available to assist with inquiries relating to finding and accessing archival materials, providing reference services and providing copies for research purposes. They can also be available to make educational presentations and give tours. The Contact us page has all the information relating to office hours and contact information for getting assistance from the archivists with your research questions.

Learning about the history of SFU

SFU's architechture is world-famous and was recognized at the time of its construction as being a remarkable design. Explore the online resources about the history of SFU in our Education and Outreach section.

If you are interested in the history of a specific department at SFU, you may want to identify records of interest in our holdings using our online database SFU Atom and contact the Duty Reference Archivist to make arrangements to review them.

An introduction to the archives

Video produced in 2012 by Julian Giordano, multi-media editor, The Peak Newspaper. Posted with permission.