Penn State Library Books
To place a book or audio visual material on reserve, please complete the Book/Media Reserve Request Form.
Books "on-shelf" at the Pattee Library and Paterno Libraries may be brought to the Common Services Desk in Pattee Library for quicker processing. Books that are checked-out to users will be recalled by Course Reserves staff. Please note that materials recalled for course reserve require an additional 10 days processing time to allow for return.
Books available at other Penn State University Libraries locations will be requested by Course Reserves staff and placed on reserve in Pattee Library. Allow one additional week for processing.
Reference books and bound journals may be placed on reserve only at the discretion of subject library staff. Unbound journals cannot be placed on reserve.
Requests received at the beginning of the semester may take two or more weeks to process.
Books Not Owned by the Libraries
Personal copies of materials not owned by the University Libraries may be placed on reserve. Please note that Course Reserves Services cannot be held responsible for personal copies that are lost, damaged, or stolen while checked out to patrons.
Course Reserves staff will purchase copies of books not owned by the Libraries to place on reserve at the request of the instructor. Books purchased for course reserve will be placed in the general collection when no longer needed. Please note that the University Libraries do not generally order editions of current textbooks, or additional copies of materials already owned by the libraries.
When completing the Book/Media Reserve Request Form, please select the Purchase Request option and include the ISBN numbers (if available) for any books requested for purchase. We cannot guarantee availability for book purchases.
Materials acquired through Interlibrary Loan from other universities cannot be placed on reserve.
Coursepacks
Course Reserves staff will purchase a copy of a coursepack to place on reserve at the instructor's request. For copyright reasons, a special copy printed on red paper must be ordered for reserve. Processing times vary widely depending on the coursepack provider, and can take several weeks.
Audiovisual Materials
Audio or video materials, such as CDs, DVDs, VHS tapes, etc., may be placed on reserve in the Music and Media Center of the Arts and Humanities Library, W211 Pattee Library. The Music and Media Center also offers a variety of media-viewing stations. Contact musiccenter@psu.edu for more information.