Getting Your Textbooks and Course Materials: Student FAQ

Your course materials, including ISBNs, are listed on your course syllabus. An ISBN is the unique identifying number for each edition of a book, and it is the most reliable way to make sure you get the right edition. You can also find your materials in the Self-Service course description. Some books will be required; others will be recommended. If a title, edition, or format is unclear, ask your instructor before you buy. If your syllabus already gives a clear ISBN and format, go ahead and order.

Start with what the library can and cannot provide. The Lesley Library does not carry textbooks: publisher licensing restrictions prevent libraries from licensing and lending textbook editions the way they can other books, so you will not find your required textbooks there. What the library does carry is much of the other material professors assign: novels, journal articles, and other assigned readings, many of them available free through the library's collections. Before you buy, check the library for the non-textbook readings on your syllabus.

If the library does not own an assigned title, it may be able to borrow a copy from another library through interlibrary loan (ILL). ILL requests can take several days, so ask early, and treat ILL as a supplement for assigned readings, not a source for your textbooks.

Many courses also use Open Educational Resources (OER) instead of a commercial textbook: peer-reviewed textbooks from providers like OpenStax and LibreTexts, available at no cost. Check your course page in MyLesley for OER links before buying anything.

Once you have your ISBNs, compare prices across sellers. Price-comparison tools like BookFinder and CampusBooks search a single ISBN across many sellers at once.

Students commonly buy or rent from:

• Amazon
• Chegg
• ThriftBooks
• AbeBooks
• VitalSource (digital editions)

Compare the full delivered price, including shipping, and check the delivery estimate and return terms, not just the listed price. Do not substitute a different edition just because it is cheaper: page numbers, chapters, and assignments can differ. Ask your instructor before buying a different edition.

Renting is usually cheaper than buying if you do not need to keep the book. Used copies are cheaper still, as long as the ISBN matches the edition your course requires.

Order as soon as your list is confirmed, so a shipping delay does not leave you without a book at the start of the term.

When your order arrives, check the ISBN and edition against your syllabus and test any digital access code right away. Keep the order confirmation, packaging, and return instructions until you are sure you are staying in the course, and note both the return deadline and the rental due date.

If you live on or near campus, you can have books shipped to Lesley's package receiving address. Address your package exactly like this:

Your name and mailbox number are the two details the Mail Room uses to route your package to you, so include both on every order. You will get an email at your Lesley address when your package has been received, and a second email when it is ready at its pickup location. Please wait for that second email before coming to pick it up: couriers sometimes mark a package delivered before they hand it to the Mail Room. Packages are delivered to the mailboxes and contactless lockers across all three campuses, and you open your locker with the QR code or ID number in your delivery email. Oversized packages are held at the Mail Room itself, on the first floor of University Hall, open Monday to Friday, 10 AM to 6 PM.

Studying online, or living off campus? Ship to your home address instead, and order a few days earlier to allow for delivery time.

Check both places a list can appear: the course syllabus and the Self-Service course description. If neither lists materials, the course may use readings provided in MyLesley, or the list may not be posted yet. Your instructor can tell you for certain, so ask them before the first class meeting if you can.

Contact your instructor as soon as you know. Ask whether the first readings have been posted in MyLesley or linked through the library, or whether a digital edition would cover you until your copy arrives.

Lesley does not run a buyback program, but you are not stuck with your books. Many of the same retailers listed above buy used textbooks or let you list yours for sale, and comparison tools like BookFinder show what a used copy is currently selling for. Books you own outright can be sold; rentals go back to the retailer you rented from, and digital editions cannot be resold.

If you have a pending credit balance on your student account from federal financial aid, the Student Account Office will notify you if you are eligible for a book advance. A book advance gives you access to a portion of your excess financial aid or loan funds before your full refund is issued, specifically for required books and course materials. Watch your Lesley email for eligibility details.

Contact the retailer you bought or rented from. Lesley does not have access to third-party retailer ordering systems, which means Lesley staff cannot view your order details, track shipments, process returns or refunds, update payment information, or resolve problems with digital access codes purchased from an outside vendor.