SSS Summer 2025 priority service dates posted.

What we do

Physical Course Reserves: We will place print items in the course reserves collection of your preferred library for the duration of the course.

Using our collections: Our library staff will work with you to identify materials from our extensive digital collections that will support your course reading lists.

Acquiring e-content: We do our best to acquire any digital content needed, such as e-books, streaming audio, and video through purchase and other vendor agreements.

We regret that not every request will be able to be fulfilled. For example, publishers do not make some types of e-books, including most textbooks, available for purchase by libraries.

Copyright clearance: We will review your course materials for coverage by the University of Toronto's Fair Dealing Guidelines or an existing license, and negotiate copyright clearance for any items that exceed these.

Scanning book excerpts: We will retrieve print books from Robarts Library and other available UTL collections, and scan excerpts to support your required readings. Book excerpts are provided in compliance with Fair Dealing Guidelines or with permission from the rightsholder.

Audio-visual materials for your class: We can add physical AV material to course reserves, provide links to streaming media, purchase new physical and streaming media, and help arrange materials for film screenings.

Easy access for students: Your readings will be made available in the Library Reading List app in Quercus as a single list of your assigned course materials

Library Reading List application

The library uses an application called Library Reading List to prepare course readings
The application streamlines access to a wide variety of course and library materials for students and instructors by being closely integrated with Quercus and our library resources

NEW! Library Reading List User Interface Update

Changes include a refreshed, more streamlined appearance, better handling of large lists and moving materials within the list, and enhanced usability on mobile devices.

The steps for submitting your Reading List and adding the app to your Quercus course page have not changed. You can review those instructions here.

If you create or modify your own Reading Lists, please consult our updated guide on how to work in the new user-interface. If you’d like further assistance, please contact the Syllabus Service.

To submit your syllabus

Email your syllabus with full citations – including page numbers, when applicable – to syllabus.service@library.utoronto.ca as a Microsoft Word document, a PDF, or a rich text file. Please include:

Course name and course code
Campus (U of T St. George, UTM, UTSC, or cross-appointment)
Your name and contact information
Course start and end dates
Number of students in your course

Please also let us know:

If you have access to any print items on your reading list
If you will be assigning something for an exam
If your course will be taught online, in person, or hybrid

Returning instructors

In your email, clearly indicate to our staff whether your course has used our syllabus service before
Our system saves information from past course instances; therefore, the information can be copied and updated to save time and ensure that readings are copyright compliant.
Also let us know if the course code has changed – include a revised syllabus if available.

Copyright

We will negotiate copyright clearance for items that exceed our current licenses and fair dealing guidelines at no cost to you.
If a resource cannot be made accessible, it will be marked as "Declined" on your Library Reading List. Please be aware that it may take a few weeks to determine if something is available.

Priority Dates

Priority service dates for Summer 2025
- April 7th, 2025 (F & Y courses)
- June 2nd, 2025 (S courses)
- Lists received after these dates will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis
Required readings only
- Due to increased service demand, we will provide required readings only.
- Recommended or supplemental readings will only be provided if specifically requested
Processing times
- In order to provide the same level of service to all instructors, readings for first half of each course will be prioritized
- Readings for later weeks of the course may be added after the course start date

When your syllabus is ready

Your readings will be available in the Library Reading List app as a single list of the assigned course readings.

Accessing your assigned readings:

While the Library Reading List application is already installed in Quercus, it must be made visible to students by the following these steps:

In your Quercus course menu, click SETTINGS – look for it at the bottom of menu.
Click on the NAVIGATION tab.
Click on and drag LIBRARY READING LIST up from the list of hidden navigation items, to the list of visible navigation items in the top half of the list. Place it where you would like it to appear in the course menu.
Save your choice.

Students will now have access to the Library Reading List app in their course side navigation bar.

For more information on Library Reading List and instructions on how to add the app to your Quercus page, visit /copyright/quercus-library-course-reserves.

NOTE: If the readings fail to appear, be sure that you have selected LIBRARY READING LIST not LIBRARY COURSE RESERVES or LIBRARY RESOURCES.

Getting help

If you or your students are experiencing access issues, please let us know.

Course reserves & syllabus service at other U of T libraries

If you are not sure where to send your reading list, email syllabus.service@library.utoronto.ca and we can redirect your list to the appropriate library.

Libraries on the St George campus that offer a syllabus service with different submission points are:

The libraries at the Mississauga and Scarborough campuses offer their own course reserves services.

Libraries at colleges and professional faculties are also able to assist when course requirements are better supported by specialized library collections or local course reserve services.

Please visit the individual websites of these colleges or faculties for contact details.

Services at the U of T Bookstore

Staff and faculty members who would like to make course materials available for students to purchase are encouraged to work with the U of T Bookstore.

The Bookstore has a close partnership with the University and can source a variety of licensed materials to meet your needs, including print, digital, new, and used options. The materials are made available for purchase in-store (locations can be found on all three campuses) as well as online at uoftbookstore.com .

For those looking to assign readings from multiple sources, the U of T Bookstore works with a licensed Access Copyright copy shop and can help you create and distribute a custom course pack with your desired materials.

For more information, please contact their course material buyers .

Syllabus Service data collection

Data from course outlines sent to the Syllabus Service will be used for the purposes of providing and improving University of Toronto Libraries’ services to its user groups.

Access to this information is limited to University of Toronto Libraries staff who require the information to perform their job duties. This information will not be shared with third parties.

–Last updated October 20, 2023

Course readings and reserves support