M.D. Anderson Library — Attraction in Houston

From observation of MD Anderson Library, the library being the traditional hub of intellectual studiousness and academic success, it appears that the "powers that be" care little about their students' academic success, experience, concerns, or needs.

The building is falling apart. Meanwhile a new building is being erected for the sports department...on two much-needed student parking lots. The elevators are a risk to take and their aesthetic is disgusting. The hodgepodge of furniture they picked up from some garage sale in the 80s are also disgusting.

TOO loud. You will find reprieve in "quiet zones," but they are becoming increasingly less quiet. I sent an email to the library to bring this to their attention. Never heard back. Also, since they've closed off the study carrels on EVERY FLOOR they are built, after Harvey (TWO months ago), studying students have few options outside of sitting amongst the socializing students. I am always hard-pressed to find anywhere appropriate to STUDY in the LIBRARY. Is this not ironic?

Computer lab. Consistently, as in daily, there is a RIDICULOUS number of computers that are down. Repeatedly, I am having to switch computers 2-3 times to find one that will sign me in. Which means I'm wasting study time. Not to mention, it's hard enough as it is to find ONE. Last week, I switched computers three times. I sat for 10-15 minutes waiting for each computer to sign me in. That's almost AN HOUR of my time, homework time, spent just on signing in to a computer at my university, University of Houston, which is supposed to aid in my success, not hinder it. I have seen my fellow students also do the switching game. I have seen the familiar look of relief turn to skepticism as he or she wonders how they got so lucky as to find an available computer. He will tentatively tap the space bar. She will look around to see if anyone is going to tell her, "It's not working ☹️" before she sits down, as I myself have had to inform other students many times.

Four microwaves provided by UH, long line of students, ONE working microwave. Even though this issue has been somewhat addressed, I will mention it anyway as it took entirely too long for it to be resolved. For the first TWO MONTHS of the semester, there were only 1-2 consistently working microwaves. Another waste of my time. Part of the advantage to bringing a lunch is not having to wait in a massive line for food. Why? So I can spend my time... studying! Finally, one of the security guards (who are all lovely folks as far as I've seen) sent word to whoever it is that handles these types of issues. Shortly after, a sign was posted with a number where students could report broken microwaves. This is excellent, however, I would assume that my university library has regularly scheduled maintenance for these machines. In which case, before it became such an issue that students are having to always inform the security guards, the issue of faulty microwaves would have been resolved.

You will see this quote posted in the university bookstore: "Student success is not only our number one priority, it is our no-excuse priority. - President Renu Khator." A well-maintained space that helps to optimize my time here as a student seems a standard expectation. I've written this honest review of MD Anderson Library knowing it is...

The library is great place to relax and study, but there's a number of issues that really bother me leading to this review. Despite how nice the library is overall, it has a number of issues. A lot of chairs at the study/table areas are missing, even from cubicles. Due to the sheer number of students at the campus, a lot of seats are already filled understandably. But in more quiet and less busy areas, there's a scarce amount of places to sit due to lack of proper seating. Second, the computers at the library have quite a number of old or outdated systems. A lot of the computers are terribly slow with old dell cpus. While the OS is updated, everything else isnt up to par and some computers have difficultly logging in or locking themselves/freezing. Lastly the plug issue is egregious. The number of times an outlet doesn't work in some areas of the library is astounding. You would try and plug in something and realize that nothing is charging. A number of outlets are loose, old, or rusty and I've had the unfortunate luck to find that out on more than one occasion. No one bothers to make sure the electrical outlets work. While the library is lovely, some of these issues really make studying a lot harder than...

This library is an old facility with 5 floors and some wings with more floors. The hours varies while the semester is in session. Sundays are great because they close at 12 am and quiet.

There are several tables you can sit at by the entrance without checking in. Some have power outlets. There are vending machines on this floor too.

If you don't have a UH student ID, you'll need to check-in using your driver's license with security. There is plenty of seating throughout the building. Tons of private study rooms. Not too busy on a Sunday afternoon and you don't need permission to use the study room. The 5th floor study rooms by the windows have a view of Houston’s skyline.

I would say it is good for work/study. The wifi speed is very good. You can stream Spotify and browse the web easily.

I'm not familiar with this campus but I found visitor parking that's a 8 minute walk. Not sure if there is closer parking for visitors. Cost is $10 for the...