Most Commonly Asked Questions

Yes you can! All in-store pickup orders are held for 30 days after purchase; if an order is not picked up after 30 days the items will be returned to inventory and you will be refunded for your order.

As part of our continued efforts to reduce the cost of course materials, University Book Store partners with publishers and UW instructors to deliver select materials through a program called Student Choice. These course materials are delivered through the Learning Management System (Canvas).

If you look at your course materials list on MYUW and you see a 'required – choose format' option with the words ‘Student Choice’ at the end, your instructor has chosen to give you this choice. If you see that this is a choice for your class, please log into the LMS on the first day of classes, and you should see a link for an ebook or Courseware product. You are getting a free trial access period.

Once this period ends, usually on the same day as the add/drop deadline, you will have to purchase access via the University Book Store website. You can click the link to that course from your MyUW page, or your instructor will have provided you a link to the item on the UBS website. Follow the instructions and you're all set.

Students make a choice to select or buy into this program. You can still choose a physical text to buy or rent if you prefer, but this program is designed to reduce the cost of digital materials.

Whenever we are able, University Book Store provides multiple rental/purchase options of the same ebook so that you can compare and pick the best option for you.

There is no difference between books provided by RedShelf or VitalSource (third party vendors), however their rental terms or prices may vary.

eBooks are the digital version of a book publication.

Access codes are typically an eBook and an interactive software program, homework management, simulations, etc. (Examples include: MyLabs, Connect, Webassign, Launchpad, and Sapling.)

  • For CEI eBooks, you will receive your access code in a second email within 72 hours of your purchase. Follow the instructions in the email to redeem your access code at ubookstore.com/redeem-codes.
  • If you purchased your CEI code from ubookstore.com/purchase-codes, you will receive your access code instantly. Your order number for this should be a string of numbers and digits.
  • If you are having issues with your access code, please email txtsupport@ubookstore.com with your order number (begins with SO or a string of numbers and letters if your purchased from ubookstore.com/purchase-codes).
  • For Student Choice books, your order will be processed 72 hours of your purchase. Once your order is processed, you will be able to access the eBook under your professor’s Canvas page from the Modules tab. You will need to sign up for your free trial to Student Choice, which you can access in Canvas under the Digital material module, in order to access your Student Choice eBooks.
  • For RedShelf and VitalSource (VS) orders, you should receive an email from RedShelf or VS within 30 minutes of your purchase. Please check your junk mail if you do not see this within an hour.

Buyback services are only available at our U District store during finals week and the first week of the quarter. Online buyback services are always available.

For in-store buyback dates and more information, visit ubookstore.com/buyback.

Purchasing Your Textbooks

We encourage all customers to purchase their textbooks online. This quarter, physical textbooks will only be at our U District store; Bothell customers will need to order their textbooks online.

UW Students

  • Log into your MyUW and find "Register using SLN codes" under Quick Links, then click on "Display Textbooks" and click on course specific links or "Compare Prices and Shop UBS" for your full list of textbooks.

  • Or visit the registration page and select your course and click the book icon. From here, you can select any of the hyperlinked 'Course' fields, which will bring you to the requirements for that specific course on ubookstore.com.

  • Once you are on ubookstore.com all of your purchase options will appear on the page. Select purchase type (buy, rental, or digital), and select condition (new, used, etc.) Then select 'add to cart.'

Cascadia College and K-12 Students

  • Visit course selection tool and select your courses. From here, you can find all the textbooks that are needed for your classes.

Because of the global impact of COVID-19, we have suspended our textbook rental options for physical textbooks. Rental options are still available for digital editions.

Bothell & Cascadia Orders and Scholarships

All textbooks are located at our U District store.

Students who have a scholarship funding set aside specifically to use for textbooks can still use that funding remotely. Instead of placing a traditional web order, email scholarship.orders@ubookstore.com with “[YOUR NAME] scholarship order” in the subject line. Include the following information in your email:

  1. Your First and Last Name
  2. Student ID number
  3. What organization the scholarship is through (VA, Running Start, Worksource, etc)
  4. Shipping on textbooks ordered for classes at Bothell and Cascadia will be provided free of charge. Include your shipping address. University Book Store does not have access to this information from your school for privacy reasons.
  5. Requested Items: Please include your course name (abbreviated, Time Schedule format), the author, and the title if possible.

University Book Store is able to work with the Veteran's Education Benefits office at UW to get authorization information. Most students are authorized to use up to $75 on miscellaneous general school supplies.

Please email scholarship.order@ubookstore.com or call 206-634-3400 ext 335 (Monday-Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday 12pm-4pm) if you have questions about what your program covers.

Your need to use your funding within the first two weeks of the quarter. Please contact Aileen Ibershof if you have questions about your funding.

Please place your order through Katie Rousso, per her instructions.

Digital Textbooks

As part of our continued efforts to reduce the cost of textbooks, University Book Store partners with publishers and UW instructors to deliver select materials through a program called Student Choice. These course materials are delivered through the Learning Management System (Canvas).

If you look at your course materials list on MYUW and you see a 'required – choose format' option with the words ‘Student Choice’ at the end, your instructor has chosen to give you this choice. If you see that this is a choice for your class, please log into the LMS on the first day of classes, and you should see a link for an ebook or Courseware product. You are getting a free trial access period.

Once this period ends, usually on the same day as the add/drop deadline, you will have to purchase access via the University Book Store website. You can click the link to that course from your MyUW page, or your instructor will have provided you a link to the item on the UBS website. Follow the instructions and you're all set.

Students make a choice to select or buy into this program. You can still choose a physical text to buy or rent if you prefer, but this program is designed to reduce the cost of digital materials.

Whenever we are able, University Book Store provides multiple rental/purchase options of the same ebook so that you can compare and pick the best option for you.

There is no difference between books provided VitalSource (third party vendors), however their rental terms or prices may vary.

Don’t worry, we aren’t shipping you anything if you’re just buying eBooks! Our system requires a shipping address as part of every order, physical or digital, to calculate applicable taxes as part of your transaction.

If you do see a shipping cost for your digital course materials, please contact our web team at huskyweb@ubookstore.com and let us know what digital textbooks you’re attempting to purchase and we’ll fix the issue for you.

eBooks are the digital version of a book publication.

Access codes are typically an eBook and an interactive software program, homework management, simulations, etc. (Examples include: MyLabs, Connect, Webassign, Launchpad, and Sapling.)

As a whole, digital textbook purchases are not instant and can take between 30 minutes to 72 hours depending on which digital option you chose for your course materials. See below for what to expect for each of your different digital options.

  • For CEI eBooks, you will receive your access code in a second email within 72 hours of your purchase. Follow the instructions in the email to redeem your access code at ubookstore.com/redeem-codes. If you purchased your CEI code from ubookstore.com/purchase-codes, you will receive your access code instantly. Your order number for this should be a string of numbers and digits. If you are having issues with your access code, please email txtsupport@ubookstore.com with your order number (begins with SO or a string of numbers and letters if your purchased from ubookstore.com/purchase-codes).
  • For Student Choice books, your order will be processed 72 hours of your purchase. Once your order is processed, you will be able to access the eBook under your professor’s Canvas page from the Modules tab. You will need to sign up for your free trial to Student Choice, which you can access in Canvas under the Digital material module, in order to access your Student Choice eBooks.
  • For VitalSource (VS) orders, you should receive an email from VS within 30 minutes of your purchase. Please check your junk mail if you do not see this within an hour.

You can purchase an eBook in-store or online

Please note: we have a larger selection of digital course materials online

Once Purchased, you will receive and email from txtsupport@ubookstore.com. Follow the steps in the email and you will gain access to your e-Book!

  • If you don’t receive the email within 30 minutes of purchase, please check your junk or spam folder (especially if you use an .edu email account)
  • If the email in not in your junk or spam folder, please email txtsupport@ubookstore.com for assistance.

DR90D-VitalSource stands for Digital Rental 90 day access from Vitalsource. This just informs you where you're renting your digital materials from.

Digital Access Codes can be purchased both in-store and online.

  • To purchase in store: Pick up a yellow slip and follow these instructions.
  • To purchase online: Go here, search for your course, and follow the provided steps.

DRCEI stands for Digital Rental Campus eBook Store. This is the third party we use to distribute access codes to students.

The publisher determines access length, but many books have multiple options available.

In-store we offer:

  • Life time Purchase
  • 90, 120 or 180 day rental

Online we offer:

  • Lifetime purchase
  • 30, 60, 90, 120, 130, 150, 180, 240, 360, 365, 540, or 730 day rental

These prices are set by the book publishers or University Book Store.

University Book Store strives to offer as many digital titles as possible. If the eBook that you are purchasing is not available, check back! We add more titles every day.

If you can’t find the answers to your questions about your digital textbooks order in this section, or under the Returns & Exchanges section (below), please contact txtsupport@ubookstore.com for assistance. If you need help for an order you’ve already placed, please include your order number in your email (this begins with SO and is followed by a string of numbers).

Returns & Exchanges

  • Fall 2023:  October 4
  • Winter 2024:  January 10
  • Spring 2024:  April 1
  • Summer 2024:  June 24
  • Summer 2024 A:  June 20
  • Summer 2024 B:  July 22

Receipts are required for all refunds. Textbooks must be returned in the condition that you purchased them for a full refund. Refunds are allowed only for the first 7 days of the quarter (Full term courses only). Un-activated eBooks and rental fees are refundable under the same timelines as course materials.

If you drop/withdraw from a class you can return your book within 14 days after the start of classes (full term courses only). A Proof of drop/withdrawal is required at the time of return. This excludes Rented digital textbooks.

Our goal is to ensure that all students have access to textbooks in a timely manner so we're unable to make exceptions to these return periods.

Customers can return their textbooks at our U District store at the Returns & Buyback Counter on the second floor through the current quarter’s refund deadlines (listed above).

Customers can also return their textbooks by mail. Return shipping is at-cost to customer and must be post-marked by the term’s refund deadline in order to qualify for a refund.

If returning your textbooks via mail, please pack the products you wish to return, along with your completed Customer Return Form (attached to the shipping label of your online order), in a sturdy box or mailing envelope, addressed to the following:

University Book Store
Attn: Course Materials Returns
4326 University Way NE
Seattle WA 98105
USA

To return your digital textbooks, please email txtsupport@ubookstore.com with the order number in your email (this begins with SO and is followed by a string of numbers).

Return shipping is at-cost to customer and must be post-marked by the term’s refund deadline in order to qualify for a refund.

Digital textbooks can be returned for a full refund within 7 days of the start of classes.

If you drop/withdraw from a class, you can return your eBook within 14 days after the start of classes (full term courses only). A Proof of drop/withdrawal is required at the time of return.

To return your digital textbooks, please email txtsupport@ubookstore.com with the order number in your email (this begins with SO and is followed by a string of numbers).

If you need to return or exchange a textbook, please go to the Returns & Buyback counter on the second floor of our U District store with the materials you wish to return.

We currently do not offer an exchange policy for online orders. If you are unable to return your textbooks to our U District store, please follow the return by mail instructions above and place a new order for the textbooks you need. We highly encourage customers to order their new textbooks before their return has been processed to ensure your new textbooks arrive in time for the quarter.

Please note that return shipping is at-cost to customer; when shipping books, we encourage customers to use media mail for best rates.

We’re so sorry! Please email our web team at huskyweb@ubookstore.com with your order number (this should begin with SO and be followed by a series of numbers) and we’ll help you out.

If you are able to visit our U District store, please bring the incorrect items and your receipt to our the cashier on our second floor and an associate will be able to assist you.

If you believe that the shipping courier has misplaced your order, please contact our Shipping Department at 800-335-7323, ext. 324. They will contact the courier for a call tag to track down your order.

All orders that returned to sender will be refunded, minus the shipping fee. You will be notified by email if this occurs.

If you don’t see an email from VitalSource in your junk mail or spam, please contact txtsupport@ubookstore.com with your order number (this should begin with SO and be followed by a series of numbers) and we’ll help you out.