Course Reserves for Faculty

Course Reserves for Faculty

Instructors now have the ability to create their own course reserves list of library-owned materials, edit their existing lists, or upload their personal content. More information can be found on the Library Course Materials page and in the Library Course Pages Manual. If you prefer library staff to manage your course reserves list, the process for requesting materials be placed on course reserves is still the same. 


Placing Electronic Materials on Reserve

A person reading an ebook on a tablet

Do you have materials to put on reserve? Use the Electronic Course Reserve Processing form.

After they are placed on reserve Electronic resources available through Kathryn A. Martin Library's online subscriptions can be seen on the Library Course Page link in your Canvas site, or via the Course Reserves option in the library catalog advanced search . Please provide the full citation to have electronic resources added to your course list.

PDFs of material not licensed by the library can be placed on reserve. We can make scans for you provided the physical material is owned by the Martin Library or the instructor. We will contact you for clarification when needed. Please allow at least 1 week for processing.

Please familiarize yourself with the General Principles for Fair Use in Education. For further information about copyright, see Copyright, Licenses, and Permissions below.

If you are having trouble viewing your online reserve page or readings, you can reach Sam Wolf at 218-726-6671 or email [email protected].


Placing Physical Materials on Reserve

Closed book on a table

The library encourages faculty to use digital course materials such as ebooks, streaming films, or open educational resources in lieu of placing items on traditional physical course reserves.

To place physical materials on reserve, please submit the Physical Course Reserves Processing Request. Submit requests 1 week prior to using course reserve material. Instructors can choose either a 3-hour or a 1-day loan period.

We process requests in the order they are received. It is possible that materials become ready same-day. Watch for an email confirming that your item(s) are on available for students to check out

Personal copies require 1 to 4 days to process before they become available for student checkout. Typically processing times are longer at the beginning of a semester during a higher volume of requests. Please indicate if you need rush service.

Removing Physical Materials from Reserve

After the semester ends, we remove reserve materials and return personal copies to you. If you plan to teach the same course the following semester, your course reserves list will be carried forward and your materials will remain on reserve.

To stop your course reserves list from being carried forward, or to remove items from reserve before the end of the semester, please fill out the Remove from Course Reserves request form.

Frequently Asked Questions

See common questions and answers about Course Reserves.


Copyright, Licenses, and Permissions

Copyright Symbol

Conditions of Use: Something may be copied and made available for course reserves when the material copied is:

  • In the public domain
  • Used with permission from the copyright holder
  • Used under the provisions of a contract or license agreement (agreements may differ from, and often take precedence over, what is allowed under copyright law) or
  • Used under the provision of Fair Use (U.S. Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. Section 107) or as determined using a case-by-case, four-factor analysis.

Instructor Responsibilities: Course reserve materials may be subject to restrictions based on copyright law. In some cases, materials may be made available after an assessment by the instructor that such a use is a fair use under copyright law. All such uses are based on the University of Minnesota Libraries' general principles of fair use in education.

When copyrighted works are used for reserves under the provisions of fair use, instructors are responsible for:

  • Ensuring all materials used support course-related teaching, scholarship, or research.
  • Determining, on a case-by-case basis, whether the use of a copyrighted work requires permission or qualifies as fair use. Such a determination requires a working knowledge of the principles & applications of fair use. Library staff can provide some consultation on the relevant issues.
  • Making arrangements for permissions when they are needed.
  • Copying only the amount of material needed to accomplish the specific educational purpose. In consultation with library staff, instructors will determine any limits on the amount of material to be used.

Contact Us

email: [email protected]
218-726-6671