Course Works Faculty and Instructor FAQs

Course Works includes required course materials. Optional course materials are not included.

As a general rule of thumb, materials with ISBNs are included in Course Works (some exceptions apply).

Required course materials (whether digital or printed) include:

• Books
• Open Educational Resources (OER)
• Course packets from Printing Services and Libraries
• Library materials like eBooks, journal articles, and streaming media
• Courseware (publisher homework systems)

The followings items are not included and will need to be purchased separately:

• Course supplies: lab coats, art supplies, calculators, goggles, etc.
• Art and science kits: architecture, design, electronics, horticulture, etc.
• Items with access or availability issues
• Many software applications
• Stand-alone assessments, tests, and certifications 
• Optional materials

To access digital course materials, simply log in to Canvas and click the Course Works tab located on the left hand navigation bar. This will launch you into your Course Works Shelf. Most digital materials can be accessed from your Shelf, others may be accessed on your instructor's Canvas course page.

If you experience any issues viewing or launching your textbooks, please reach out to [email protected] for assistance or contact RedShelf at https://solve.redshelf.com.

No. Traditional print textbooks will be supplied when a digital option is not available, a specific request is made by a faculty member or instructor, or a student requires print due to a disability accommodation. In some cases the campus store may have a print upgrade available at a discount for students who stay opted in to the digital program; but there is an additional cost and is subject to availability on a title by title basis. Eligible lab manuals and other course materials that are traditionally printed may remain in print as part of the program. If you have questions about accessibility and using digital content or need accommodation, please contact your campus Disability Resource Center for assistance (see navigation for links to campus-specific resources).

Please email [email protected] for assistance.

Lab manuals and coursepacks will be distributed to participating students through the campus store during the start of the semester. Students will receive an email when their materials are ready to be picked up or this information can be found on their Course Works tab in Canvas.

Students who have opted out of the Course Works program and need to obtain a lab manual or coursepack may place an order at their campus store.

No. Only required materials are included as part of the Course Works program.

Optional materials suggested by your faculty or instructor may be ordered from the campus store.

Students who need assistance acquiring optional course materials may contact [email protected].

Physical Books:
Students who are enrolled in Course Works Complete and were assigned a physical book for the first class in a series of continuation classes should continue to use their original book throughout the series. In other words, if the same book is being used repeatedly in multiple continuation classes, Course Works Complete students are only eligible for the first, original copy.

Digital Books:
Access to digital books varies by publisher and title for continuation classes. This will not be an issue for students in Course Works Complete, as their material access is covered by the flat program fee. If students are in Course Works Select and have specific questions about their continuation class materials, they can email us at [email protected]. 

The Course Works Complete program is inclusive of all undergraduate courses. Students taking courses in addition to your course may find their other courses do require paid content. We encourage students to consider if Course Works Complete or Course Works Select is a better fit.

All digital course materials will be provided through Canvas, however you do not need to use Canvas for instructional purposes.

Students initially access ebooks directly through Canvas.

Publisher courseware (such as McGraw-Hill Connect or Pearson MyLab) is accessed through an integration in Canvas or with a provided URL. Most publisher courseware is integrated with Canvas to connect to the publisher’s content platform and students will use the Canvas link to create their initial courseware login. After an initial login has been created, students may go direct or bookmark the login page of the publisher’s content platform.

For non-digital course materials, copies will be distributed to students through the campus store at the start of the course.

It depends. A few publishers do not offer more than 6-month access. However, for the majority of ebooks, 5-year or perpetual access is usually available, which would allow student access beyond the course's end. Post-course access is not likely to be restricted unless courses adopt courseware (e.g. MyLab, Connect, Achieve, etc.). Publisher courseware is extremely expensive to create and maintain and is the unfortunate reason why access is restricted to a 1-or-2 term limit.

Yes. Students may opt out of Course Works Complete by the established drop/add deadline in any given semester (see Important Dates page). When advising students on the opt out process, it is important to consider a student’s full-term course enrollment, and not just a single course. If a student chooses to opt out of the Course Works Complete program, they can participate in Course Works Select and choose which materials to purchase on a course-by-course and material-by-material basis from the campus store. Please view the Student and Family FAQs for complete details on the opt-out process.

Yes. The ereader is fully device agnostic, scalable, and allows simultaneous usage across multiple devices. Further, content downloaded to the ereader app can be accessed in offline situations as long as it was downloaded prior to loss of internet connection. As for saving as a file, copyright laws can restrict licensed content from taking form as redistributable files. Allowing content to only be downloaded within the ereader puts the onus on the provider to protect copyright and relieves the University of associated risks.

Yes. The campus store will offer all digital course materials directly through Canvas regardless of whether the student is opted in to Course Works Complete or not. For students who are in the program, required print texts will be provided by the campus store automatically. Students who make individual choices through Course Works Select will have those orders fulfilled by the campus store.

If a student opts out of both the Course Works Complete and Course Works Select programs, they must purchase their material from a retailer other than the campus store.

There are two tiers to Course Works: Complete and Select

Degree-seeking undergraduate students are eligible to participate in Course Works Complete, and are auto-enrolled each semester (Fall, Spring) with their student accounts billed a flat-rate fee for access to their required course materials in the Course Works program.

With some exceptions, all other students (non-degree undergraduate, graduate, and professional) are eligible for the Course Works Select program. Participation, access and billing vary by student and course. In Select, students make participation choices at the individual material level; it is not a flat-rate fee like Complete.

During the opting period:

• Complete students can opt out and move into Select
• Both Complete and Select students can opt out of Course Works entirely and pursue course materials on their own

No. Each semester, eligible students are automatically enrolled in Course Works Complete (degree-seeking undergraduates) or Course Works Select (non-degree undergraduates) and provided with access to all of their required course materials—based on the courses a student has signed up for—by the first day of classes.

Students with questions about accessibility, using digital content, or accommodations should contact their campus Disability Resource Center for assistance (see navigation for links to campus-specific resources).

Custom-created, physical course packets from the U's Printing Services will be distributed to participating students through the campus store during the start of courses. Students will receive an email at their umn.edu address when they are ready to be picked up. If the student is opted in to Course Works Complete, the order for print materials will be automatically placed without the student having to do anything.

Students who have opted out of the Course Works Complete and need to obtain a course packet may place an order through the Course Works Select program in Canvas. Similarly, when ready for pickup, the campus store will notify the student via email that it's ready.

Materials included depend on the student’s enrollment type. A degree-seeking undergraduate student enrolled in a graduate course would have their materials included. A graduate or professional student needs to purchase materials separately through Course Works Select.

Course Works Select is offered in the summer (beginning summer 2025). Course Works Complete is only available in the fall and spring semesters at this time. 

TAs will be treated exactly like instructors. TAs will get access to digital materials on their Course Works Shelf in Canvas on the early access date along with everyone else. They will also not be charged for materials like instructors.

If TAs need to be added to courses, they should be added on the Canvas roster. 

No. Faculty and instructors are not required to use Canvas for instruction in order for their materials to be included in the Course Works program. Canvas is a single access point for students to access their course materials, and they are available in a separate main navigation tab. regardless of whether faculty and instructors use Canvas in an instructional capacity.

Faculty and instructors wishing to use courseware materials do need to have a Canvas page set up for integration. Please contact [email protected] for more information.