Introducing The Studios at the Libraries

Want to record a song, start a podcast, design a game or show off your student project? The Studios at the Libraries offers a suite of services, spaces, and expert help.

The Studios brings together all of the Libraries spaces that support making, media creation, extended reality, and showcasing student work and innovative projects. Available in the Hill and Hunt Libraries, as well as online, the spaces include:

• a Makerspace with sewing equipment, 3D printers, electronics, and hand tools; 
• multiple Media Production Studios with professional equipment and software for audio and video projects; 
• an exhibit space in the Innovation Studio highlighting the innovative work of the NC State community; 
• and the Virtual Reality and 3D Scanning Studios for creating and experiencing extended reality projects and capturing 3D scans for modeling. 

The Studios at the Libraries offer pathways for students to learn and apply technologies to better engage with their courses, perform innovative research, launch new entrepreneurial enterprises, and prepare them with practical skills for the future.

“By offering a unified service locale for hands-on, experiential learning and creation within the Libraries, The Studios aims to create a community of makers that extends past what would be possible in the silo of any one learning venue, no matter how excellent that single space may be,” says Colin Keenan, University Library Specialist. “We hope to bring together creators, instructors and researchers whose abilities and interests complement and expand one another's perspectives.”

By grouping them into The Studios, the Libraries makes the navigation of these previously independent spaces easier—but it’s a move that looks to the future as well. “It's clear that we won't always use the same set of tools and techniques for creation, learner-focused instruction and exhibiting campus work,” Keenan says. “The interdisciplinary nature of The Studios opens the door to new programs that leverage cutting-edge technology, enhance accessibility and empower our students and faculty to push the boundaries of what's currently possible on their campus.”

Follow The Studios on Instagram: @ncsulibraries_studios.