Finding Textbooks

"I'm looking for a book for my class."

"Do you have this textbook?"

"My teacher said the library had this book for our class. Can you help me?"

These are the questions that we hear at the start of each semester here at the Hunter College Libraries. And the answer is yes, we can help you find out if your textbooks are available at the library. You can also help yourself by learning how!

First, you should be aware that the library does not own copies of every textbook for every class, but it is a good idea to look because we do have a lot. it's up to the Professor for a course if materials are made available on reserve, so it can't hurt to ask your professor about this as well.

Reserves - what does it all mean??

Professors can place materials “on reserve” at the library. What that means is that there is at least one copy of a textbook or other material at the Reserve Desk (on the 3nd floor of the Cooperman Library, or at the Circulation Desks of the Social Work and Health Professions Libraries) that is available to be used for two hours at a time in the library. Reserve materials cannot leave the library, but you can make photocopies. Start here:

You can search the Reserves collection by the name of your Professor, your course, or by the title or author of the work.

Sometimes you will have no choice but to get your textbooks from an outside source, which usually means laying out some cash. Thankfully, CUNY has a handy guide to help you save money on textbooks: http://www.cuny.edu/about/resources/student/textbook-savings.html

Hopefully, this post will help you help yourself locate the textbooks you need to succeed this semester. And as always, if you have questions you can Ask A Librarian!