The Couch Library maintains a collection of over 70,000 volumes of books and journals. The collection focuses on algology, floristics (including floras), genetics, bioinformatics, molecular biology, mycology, paleobotany, plant ecology, plant physiology, plant systematics, invertebrate zoology, ornithology, development, genetics, molecular biology, and physiology. While the library primarily serves the study and research needs of the faculty and students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and especially the Department of Biology, people throughout the Research Triangle and southeastern United States also use its resources.

The collection of the Kenan Chemistry Library consists of materials in the areas of analytical chemistry, biological chemistry, organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, polymer chemistry, physical chemistry, materials chemistry, and chemical microelectronics. The Kenan Chemistry Library is noted for its extensive chemistry serials holdings. It also has an excellent collection of chemistry reference materials, abstracts and indexes to the chemical literature, and circulating monographs and holds copies of theses and dissertations from the UNC-Chapel Hill Chemistry Department.

The library holds more than 44,000 volumes of books and journals focusing on geophysics, geochemistry, petrology, structural geology, stratigraphy, sedimentology, economic geology, invertebrate paleontology, micropaleontology, and physical oceanography. The collection is particularly strong in coverage of the southeastern United States and the Appalachian Basin region, and the library also has an excellent collection in malacology.

The Geological Sciences Library is part of the University Library. It maintains close links with the Geological Sciences Department, also housed in Mitchell Hall, and supports their current areas of focus: geochemistry, paleobiology, paleoclimate, seismology, surface processes, and tectonics. While the library primarily serves the learning and research needs of the students and faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, it also draws researchers from the Triangle region and the southeastern United States. The library is open to the public.

Given the interdisciplinary nature of these areas, the Library's collection is also of interest to researchers in the fields of the social sciences, business, medicine, biostatistics, biomedical engineering, environmental sciences and engineering, and information and library science. As part of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Brauer Library has an obligation to fulfill the information needs of the entire University community, while as a public institution it also recognizes broader local, regional, and state-wide commitments.

The Brauer Library holdings total over 120,000 volumes (1/4 in storage), over 750 active print journal subscriptions, and many more journals accessible online. The collection includes copies of Ph.D. dissertations and Master's theses from the four principal departments served by this Library. Special collections include astronomy atlases and sky charts housed in the Morehead Observatory and a number of rare books stored on site. The Library maintains a non-circulating collection of reference materials, including subject area tables, handbooks, dictionaries, and encyclopedias.