News & Events

For services and systems updates, please visit AU Service Status

Fri 30th Jan am - Hugh Owen Library Level F (top floor) noise disruption due to building work

27/01/2026

Book shelves are being put up in the Tom Lloyd Room on Level F (top floor) of the Hugh Owen Library on Friday morning (30th January). The work will cause noise which may disturb students and staff in the library. We apologise for any inconvenience.

Want to boost your study skills this semester?

19/01/2026

Find out what skills sessions are happening and get yourself booked in: https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/aberskills/skills-workshops/

Never miss a thing! Subscribe to our weekly email to stay updated on workshops available to you: subscribe here.

Latest Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit sessions 28/01/2026 - 12/02/2026

26/01/2026

28/01 E-learning Essentials: Introduction to Panopto Lecture Capture and Teaching Room Equipment (In-person)

30/01 E-learning Essentials: Introduction to Turnitin (Online)

06/02 E-learning Enhanced: Using the advanced features of Panopto (Online)

09/02 E-learning Enhanced: Measuring and Increasing Engagement using Blackboard Tools (Online)

12/02 E-learning Enhanced: Peer Assessment with Turnitin (Online)

Times/ booking 

Blackboard Exemplary Course Award 2025-26

12/01/2026

Applications for this year’s Exemplary Course Award are now open, with a deadline of Friday 30 January 2026.

For further information, see our blogpost.

Blackboard January Update

09/01/2026

The Digital Education Team would like to highlight enhancements in the January Blackboard Update: 

  •  Minor Update to the Blackboard Interface
  • Improvements to Document’s layouts
  • More options for true and false questions
  • Changes to multiple choice and multiple answer workflows

For more detail, see our blogpost: What’s new in Blackboard January 2026.

The Library's Academic Engagement Team are commended for their AI Literacy Course by CILIP Wales

06/01/2026

Aberystwyth University’s Academic Engagement team of librarians has been awarded a commendation in the 2025 CILIP Cymru Wales Welsh Library Team of the Year Award for their design and delivery of a bilingual fully accessible and inclusive AI Literacy Course https://rise.articulate.com/share/uXQfvQf-7Z01ynCVGnJoL94obU328Klq  // Cy: https://rise.articulate.com/share/4oOrQodS_sRXPaXsYaWEc2MSEXtlIIel

Simon French and Shân Saunders led on this project in the University Library said "The AI Literacy Course provides a university-wide, bilingual, and practical response to one of the most pressing issues in higher education today. We hope that the course is recognised as an essential resource by both students and staff and that it showcases how librarians can lead the way in helping students navigate the opportunities and risks of AI."

Simon French explains “Our aim was for the course was to provide a coherent and accessible resource that directly meets the needs of our students. The course has been designed so that students can approach the modules in a non-linear way allowing them to dip into resources at the point of need. The content is grounded in real-world academic practice, with examples drawn from typical student tasks and assignments.”

Shân Saunders looks to the future “AI is not standing still, and neither are we. As the technology evolves, so too must our support for students. We deliberately designed the course in a modular way to make it easily adaptable and sustainable. In development are two new additions to the course: one focusing on AI and accessibility, exploring how the technology can support inclusive learning; and another on AI and employability, helping students understand how AI is reshaping the workplace and how they can use it to enhance their career prospects. These new modules will ensure the course remains relevant to student needs and engages with the wider conversations shaping higher education and the job market.”

The Award, sponsored by the Welsh Government and CILIP Cymru Wales, celebrates the achievements of teams working within Library/Information Services in Wales. More information available on the CILIP Wales website 

More information about the Library’s AI Literacy Course

Generative AI isn’t going away. Its rapid rise and growing influence could make it the Google of our generation. Students were quick to embrace it. Walk through the library and you can see how they are using the technology to learn, research, and write. But this technology also brings new challenges for academic integrity, critical thinking, and digital literacy. To prepare students for this new AI world, the Academic Engagement team based in the Aberystwyth University Library has designed and delivered a brand new, bilingual (Welsh and English) fully accessible and inclusive AI Literacy Course. It comprises a series of short, engaging, and practical modules aimed at helping students develop confidence in understanding and using AI responsibly.

The design reflects the librarians’ experience that short, focused modules are the most effective way to engage students, especially when tackling a complex, fast-moving topic such as AI. Each module introduces a key area (from AI and critical thinking to citation and referencing, to the ethics of using AI) giving students both the theory and the practical tools to apply directly to their studies.

To reinforce learning, students test their knowledge through short quizzes at the end of each module. The final module is a longer summative quiz. On successful completion of the quiz module, students receive a badge showing they have successfully completed the course. The quizzes use a variety of question types, including multiple choice, multiple answer, and scenario-based problems, which are designed to challenge misconceptions around AI and encourage deeper engagement with the subject.

The project has enabled new collaborations across the university. Members of the Academic Engagement team worked closely with the Pro-Vice Chancellor for Education and Student Experience, departmental Directors of Learning and Teaching, and staff working on academic integrity issues to ensure that the course reflected institutional values and disciplinary expectations.

From January 12th: new Aspire bookmarking workflow for staff when using the browser extension

06/01/2026

When using the browser extension to add library resources to your module reading lists in Aspire, from January 12th you will find a new and improved workflow

  • Preview your bookmark prior to adding it to your reading list
  • Choose between alternative sources of the same title
  • Should changes be required, the Edit resource form now displays menu choices as buttons in a parallel panel

Please find a step-by-step guide in this support article from Talis or watch the short video. 

You’re welcome to contact your subject librarian or the Academic Engagement team for a demonstration.

Changes to study room booking system in the Hugh Owen Library

13/11/2025

A change is underway to the study room booking system at Hugh Owen Library. Keen users will have noticed that we have removed the old booking screens / joan boards from outside the rooms.

We will provide details of the new, more convenient way for you to manage your bookings as soon as possible.

In the meantime, you can check which rooms are available and book here: https://faqs.aber.ac.uk/en/2607

Minor update to Blackboard Interface, January 2026.

01/12/2025

On 8 January 2026, there will be a minor update to the Blackboard interface. For further information, see our blogpost.