Textbooks and Other Required Purchases

Textbook adoptions are due the semester before the course is taught so students can see costs when they register. Please check UAA’s online bookstore for information on this process. Log in to the Faculty Resources and Training section from that site. The UAA Employee Intranet has additional information and due dates on the UAA Bookstore Faculty and Staff Resources page (login required).

We encourage Anchorage campus faculty to submit their textbooks adoptions every semester, even if there are no required books for the course, so that students have accurate information. We recommend selecting course content that is fully accessible, including books that have an accessible electronic version.

Sales reps may contact you regarding academic technologies or say that their platform integrates with Blackboard. UAA has a review process (bottom of that page) to ensure publisher tools are accessible and work with our Blackboard version, so please review this policy before selecting a solution. In some cases, UAA already has a tool available that has no additional costs for your students. Adopting tools through the bookstore can also clarify any hidden costs.

Finding and Evaluating Possible Materials

Our Trail Guide: Fill Your Pack interactive module walks you through finding a wide variety of course materials, estimating the student workload, and developing your own content.

The UAA/APU Consortium Library is a great place to look for shorter materials to incorporate into your courses. Your subject librarian can help you find materials, as well as providing instruction for classes and research help for students, staff, and faculty. While the library does not purchase copies of course textbooks due to cost, some electronic texts (e.g., newspaper and journal articles, as well as many full books) can be used across courses. The library’s guide to Incorporating Library Content in Courseware & Websites explains how to put library content into your UAA Blackboard course.

The UAA Textbook Affordability initiative can help you find Open Educational Resources (OER) and other no-cost course materials. Check out the Textbook Transformation Fellows' projects for inspiration and no-cost resources already in use at UAA! The OER/ZTC Certificate can help faculty learn more about OER and Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) materials, and faculty who complete the program may be eligible for an award!