"Reserves" refers to any print and media materials that instructors request to be set aside for student use throughout the duration of a course.
Print and media reserve items are searchable using IUCAT Class Reserves. Search using Instructor Name, Course Number, or Course Name. Please review our Class Reserves Circulation Policies.
Instructors: Request a Print or Media Item Be Placed on Reserve
Reserve Locations
- Business/SPEA Library: Located behind the Circulation Desk
- Education Library: Located behind the Circulation Desk
- Herman B Wells Library - Print Reserve Services: Located at the Learning Commons Service Desk (1st floor, Wells Library, West Tower, South entrance)
- Herman B Wells Library - Media Reserves: Located on the Ground Floor in the Media Services department (Media Services circulation policies)
- Music Library: All Music Library reserves are located behind the Circulation Desk (More about Music Library reserves)
- Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center Library: Located behind the Circulation Desk
- Sciences Library: Located behind the Circulation Desk
Alternatives to Placing Items On Reserve
Open Educational Resources
By selecting library-provided articles and no-cost open educational resources (OERs) like open textbooks and/or eTexts, many instructors find it easier than imagined to teach a course while incurring little to no additional material costs for students. The Libraries are often able to help find open resources that provide students with the relevant content they need. Open textbooks can also be delivered through the IU eTexts initiative via Unizin Engage. When searching for OERs in the IU eTexts catalog, select the Open Textbook Library from the Publisher drop-down menu.
IU Librarians maintain extensive guides demonstrating how to find and integrate free and open access materials, including textbooks, into your courses:
For assistance with using open educational resources, contact campus OER librarians.
Alternatives to Print Textbooks
Some course materials may already be digitized and available through IU Libraries' digitized collections in HathiTrust or available as an e-book through IUCAT. Licensing restrictions may limit simultaneous access to these materials.
Consider alternatives to traditional textbooks, such as clinical and practitioner e-books intended for professional readers that are generally more available in electronic format.
If the Libraries do not already own an e-book version of your course material, request a purchase. We may not be able to purchase the materials due to availability, licensing restrictions, costs, etc. but we will do our best.
Link Directly to Online Articles
Link to resources in our many online databases and research guides. You can easily link these resources to your course in Canvas.
Audio/Visual Materials
You can submit an Online Streaming Request for a class you are teaching.
Limited Digitization
Instructors can use Request Article Delivery to make a Print Reserves Request. A digital copy of a print article, or one to two chapters of book, dependent upon the book’s length, can be digitized for teaching. Digitization of entire volumes may be possible, but will be limited to public domain works or out-of-print books that are not available commercially and cannot be acquired by IU Libraries in digital form.
- Due to increased demand, it may take up to two weeks to fulfill requests; requests for instructional needs will receive priority.
If you'd like to discuss other possible options, please request a consultation with a librarian subject specialist.
Location: