Resources For Students
Access
Not sure how to access your materials? All digital materials will be available in Canvas by the first day of classes and all print materials will be picked up at the campus store. Detailed instructions and links to additional resources are below. Students that need assistance with their Canvas or My Shelf account may contact RedShelf Solve (opens in new window).
Participation
If you have questions about participating in the program, contact the campus store at [email protected] or via live chat.
Quick Start Guide for Students
Course Works Complete is a system-wide program that provides undergraduate degree-seeking students access to their required course materials for a flat-rate cost of $279 per semester (fall and spring). Course materials that are digital format (ebooks, library materials, OER, and publisher courseware) are available in Canvas and required or requested print materials can be picked up at the campus store.
Accessing digital course materials in Canvas
Step 1: Log into Canvas (opens in new window).
Step 2: Within Canvas, click the "Course Works" link located on the left navigation bar to be taken to your My Shelf page.
Step 3: For:
- Ebooks and Library Materials—Navigate to the ebook you'd like to read, and simply click "Read Now".
- Courseware—Navigate to the courseware product you'd like to access and click "Acquire Access Code". After clicking the “Acquire Access Code” button, an alpha-numeric access code will appear. Follow the instructions listed to either paste the access code into a link set up by your instructor within Canvas, or to paste it within the publisher's website.
- Codeless Publisher Courseware—If you do not have an "Acquire Access Code" button, this means that your instructor is using a direct link right into the publisher's courseware content. No code is required. Simply click "Access Courseware" and you will be routed directly to the appropriate publisher's website to access the content.
- Printed materials—for course materials that are being provided in print format, please see the steps below.
- Library reading lists — the “Library Course Materials” menu item will still be available in the Canvas course menu, and links to library reading lists will also be made available within “My Shelf” in Course Works.
For additional assistance, visit RedShelf Solve (opens in new window).
Retrieving printed course materials
Some course materials, including lab manuals and other textbooks may be part of your Course Works program. To find out if you have print textbooks assigned to you, follow these steps:
Step 1: Check your umn.edu inbox for an email from the campus store. If you received an email that you have textbooks to pick up, see step 2. If you did not receive an email you don’t currently have any print materials.
Step 2: Present your U Card at the campus store to retrieve any assigned print textbooks.
Opt in/Opt out - Checking your program enrollment status
All undergraduate degree-seeking students are automatically enrolled in the Course Works program. Opting out is done through Canvas. Detailed instructions for opting in/out and checking your current plan participation status can be found here.
If you have any trouble changing your status, please send an email to [email protected] with your Student ID in the body of the email and the words “Course Works opt out” or “Course Works opt in” in the subject line.
Additional information on opting out can be found here:
RedShelf Solve (opens in new window)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Accessibility Requests
Users with digital material accessibility requests or questions may visit RedShelf Solve Accessibility Resources (opens in new window). Each campus has a Disability Resource office (see menu above) that can provide additional support.
Resources for Faculty and Instructors
Course Materials
For questions about the Course Works program or course materials, contact the campus store, [email protected].
Quick Start Guide for Faculty and Instructors
The Course Works program delivers required digital course materials directly to undergraduate degree-seeking students by the first day of class. If a digital edition is not available or you have indicated physical materials are required to support your instruction, students will be provided with a physical copy. Your preference for physical books may be indicated when submitting a textbook adoption.
Courses are not required to use Canvas for instruction to participate in the Course Works program. Canvas is a single access point for students to access their course materials. Faculty and instructors do not need to use Canvas in an instructional capacity.
Participating students will be billed $279 per semester to their student account. Students have the option to fully opt out of the Course Works Complete program for the semester or choose which specific materials they wish to purchase via Course Works Select. Library and Open Educational Resources are always available, regardless of participation.
Content Types
- For ebook, library materials, Open Educational Resources, coursepacks, and non-courseware content: All content access will be delivered to students using the Course Works link tool in Canvas. For example, the student opens the Course Works link tool in Canvas, and the ebook is displayed. The student clicks on the ebook and is launched into the RedShelf My Shelf e-reader.
- For courseware: Courseware content, including integrated ebooks, are accessed through publisher specific integrations or URLs. For example, for a course using Pearson MyLab, the student would open the MyLab and Mastering tool in Canvas and is then launched to Pearson’s MyLab platform.
Teaching Assistants (TA)
Teaching Assistants will have complimentary access to digital course materials for applicable course(s). TAs should be marked in Canvas with the role “TA” to enable complimentary access to the digital course materials. Some courseware may require additional information for TA access. If you use courseware, please reach out to your publisher representative to identify if any additional information is needed regarding TA access to course materials. Physical course materials are not provided to TAs through the Course Works program, which is the same policy for instructors. In the case of physical materials, the department coordinator or instructor should work with the publisher to secure desk/review copies for the instructors and TAs.
Note regarding undergraduate TAs: Undergraduate TAs who are opted-in to Course Works Complete will receive complimentary access to your course’s materials, but will still be responsible for the full program fee to cover the other participating courses in which they are not a TA.
Accessibility Requests
Users with digital material accessibility requests or questions may visit RedShelf Solve Accessibility Resources (opens in new window). Each campus has a Disability Resource office (see menu above for campus-specific links) that can provide additional support.
Syllabus Information
Most materials required on syllabi should also be adopted with the campus store and/or the libraries. If the Course Works team receives a syllabus from a student that shows materials that have not been adopted, we will confirm that they are required and try to get them added to the program.