The University plans to introduce UR Essentials — a program that will provide textbooks and other class materials to undergraduate students as part of their tuition starting Fall 2025.
Through the program, students will rent their course materials, from any publisher, from Barnes & Noble.
Once students have registered for classes, Barnes & Noble will receive course lists and begin preparing materials. One month before classes start, students will receive an email asking if they would prefer to pick up their materials in the store or have them shipped directly. Digital materials will be made available through Blackboard.
Undergraduate students will be automatically enrolled in the program, though they can choose to opt out. Opting out will not reduce fees, as the cost of the program is wrapped into tuition.
If students decide to drop a class, and have already picked up their materials, they should return those materials within 48 hours. Barnes & Noble will swap out the old materials for new ones for any switched classes.
While the program will provide all textbooks, e-textbooks, manuals, and access codes, it will not provide single use materials such as lab goggles, dissection kits, molecular model kits, engineering kits, and nursing kits.
Students will be required to return textbooks before the last day of final exams in a given semester, regardless of the length of the course.
If students want to keep their textbooks at the end of the semester, they can purchase them at a reduced price point.
