- How do I use the booklist?
- Can I rely on the booklist?
- Why is there a used price on the booklist if there aren't any used books?
- How are textbooks priced?
- What is the difference between a required and optional textbook?
- Will I be able to sell my book back at the end of the class?
- How much do I get if I sell back my book?
- How can I find out if my book is on the buyback list?
- Where do I find the Writer's Guide for the English Department?
- Where do I find the Geography/EOS rock kits and the lab notebooks?
- Where are the first year textbooks?
- What is a Lab Manual?
- What is a Coursepack?
- How are Coursepacks priced?
- Can opened coursepacks be returned or sold at buyback?
- What is a raincheck?
- Where are the Distance Education textbooks?
- What exactly is a "textbook"?
How do I use the paper booklist?
The booklists are located at the Booklist Counter, to the right of the textbook information desk. They are organized alphabetically by course. You can check online as well.
- In the column on the far right you will see either RQ (required) or OP (optional).
- Under the author column you may find author, editor or such codes as DEPT or LAB (often used for lab manuals and course notes) or CPAC which stands for coursepack.
- Keep in mind that if you are looking up books for your English classes, you will need to know the author or editor's name when you go to the shelves as the books are shelved alphabetically by author or editor.
- If you see multiple listings for the same text it probably means that the professor has approved the use of multiple editions of the same book. You can decide which edition you wish to buy.
- If you are a Continuing Studies student, the course listings start after WRIT near the end of the booklist.
Can I rely on the paper booklist?
The booklist is created each term based on information received from professors. If a book is on the booklist for a course, it is the title and edition the professor requested. The booklist is updated regularly and reflects last minute changes as they occur.
WARNING! Do not buy books for a future term based on the current term booklist. The book used in the Spring term may be different from the book used in the Fall term. Summer term books are often different from Winter term books.
Why is there a used price on the booklist if there aren't any used books?
Our computer creates a new & used price for every title whether used copies are available or not. This is an automatic default setting that cannot be changed. Some items such as special packages, coursepacks, and lab manuals are never available as used.
How are textbooks priced?
Textbooks are a very specialized form of publishing. The print runs or number of copies produced are generally small, especially when compared to books like best sellers. For every dollar you spend on a textbook, the University of Victoria has paid about 75 cents to the publisher. Out of the remaining 25 cents, all bookstore expenses (freight costs, salaries, rent, shrinkage, donations, capital expenses) are paid.
Some publishers create packages by combining the textbook and the study guide or a CDROM which sell for less than the separate components. The bookstore passes these savings on to the students whenever possible.
As another way to help students save money, the bookstore also offers a wide selection of used books which cost 25% less than new books and are GST exempt.
What is the difference between a required and optional textbook?
A required textbook is a book your professor has chosen which contains necessary readings and materials for successful completion of the course. An optional book is supplemental material chosen to assist in your studies, however is not mandatory for the course. These can include study guides and partial solutions manuals.
Will I be able to sell my book back at the end of the class?
Books are added to the buyback list when we learn that they will be needed in the next term. (If your course is offered only in the fall, your book would not go on the buyback list for the spring term, unless another course is using it.)
If your book is not being bought back, it may be because:
- The professor is choosing a new book.
- The course is being taught by a different professor, who is choosing a new book
- The course is offered in alternate years.
- The book is going into a new edition.
- The bookstore already has enough copies in stock.
- The bookstore has not yet heard that the book is being used again.
If your book was not being bought back in April, try again at the end of the summer, when all the books for fall have been ordered. The buyback list is updated daily and is much larger at the end of August than it is in April.
How much do I get if I sell back my book?
The bookstore pays half of the new retail price whether you purchased the book new or used.
How can I find out if my book is on the buyback list?
Jump online and check out price and demand for your books in advance! The list is updated constantly as we hear from professors. Just click on Buy-Back Info and “sell a book”. We buy back books from 9:00 am - 4:00 pm weekdays, and 11:00 am -4:00 pm Saturday. Check our buyback dates to make sure we will be buying back when you come.
Where do I find the Writer's Guide for the English Department?
The Writer's Guide is located at the very beginning of the English section.
Where do I find the Geography/EOS rock kits and the lab notebooks?
In the fall, the kits and the lab notebooks are available with the first year textbooks for the appropriate courses. These kits, along with other items such as lab coats, safety goggles and dissection kits, are also available year-round in the merchandise department.
Where are the first year textbooks?
In August and early September, all first year textbooks are stacked in the central aisle of the store (courses beginning with the letters A - L) or in the back corner near the booklist counter (courses beginning M - Z). At any other time of the year these books are in their appropriate sections (alphabetically by course).
What is a Lab Manual?
Lab manuals are coil-bound manuals supplied to the Bookstore from the departments that use them. If there are no manuals on the shelf it usually means that the department has not yet sent them over. As soon as they arrive at the bookstore they are put out onto the shelves in the appropriate sections.
What is a Coursepack?
A coursepack is created by your professor specifically for your course. It may include book excerpts, journal articles, or course notes. Some out-of print books are reproduced as coursepacks. The bookstore obtains copyright authorization from the copyright holder to reproduce materials for classroom use and pays all copyright fees. Coursepacks are printed at the University of Victoria by Printing & Duplicating Services.
How are Coursepacks priced?
When we sell someone else's intellectual property, we have a legal and moral obligation to pay them for their work. Authors need to be paid for their work, and this includes academic material in coursepacks. Using material without paying for it is theft.
Anywhere from one-third to two-thirds of the cost of your coursepack goes directly to the authors and publishers who own the material. The rest of the cost covers materials, printing, labour, and distribution. Coursepacks are sold on a cost-recovery basis.
Can opened coursepacks be returned or sold at buyback?
Opened coursepacks cannot be returned or sold at buyback because that would violate our contract with ACCESS COPYRIGHT. The material in your package is for one-time, personal use and may not be re-sold.
What is a raincheck?
If the bookstore sells out of a coursepack, the student may purchase a raincheck. (Raincheck forms are found on the shelf where the coursepack was.) A coursepack is printed for each raincheck sold and the student is phoned or emailed when the coursepack is ready for pick up. Coursepacks sold by raincheck usually arrive in the bookstore within 48 hours.
Where are the Distance Education textbooks?
DE texts are on the sales floor, clearly marked with yellow signs.
What exactly is a "textbook"?
The following is taken directly from the 2003 AUCC Agreement signed between the University of Victoria and Access Copyright:
"Textbook" means a book produced primarily for the educational market, and which may include one or more of the following:
- any of the following words in its title: Introduction to; Fundamentals of; Essentials of; or
- reference to an edition, such as 3rd edition; or
- Pedagogical features, such as exercises, question sets, cases, boxed items, or chapter learning objectives; or
- an acompanying learning aid such as astudy guide, lab manual, teacher guide or solutions set.
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If a Coursepack made pursuant to this agreement includes extracts from Textbooks, the following limitations apply:
- a maximum of 5% of a textbook may be reproduced, but in any case no more than one chapter;
- a Coursepack may contain up to two such extracts written by the same author and published by the same publisher, within any five year period; and
- up to 50% of the pages in a Coursepack can be reproduced from Textbooks.
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