Course Reserves at Princeton  

The Princeton University Library supports instruction with electronic reserves and similar electronic services. The primary function of these services is to assure that students and instructors will have timely access to course-related library resources. Only material intended for instructional use in a registered course or for the completion of departmental requirements may be placed on reserve by the instructor or by an authorized delegate. 

Physical reserve items are housed at Firestone Library, which serves most courses in the humanities and social sciences, and at the branch libraries which serve specific academic departments. Loan periods and other policies vary between library branches.

Video reserves are circulated for in-house use at the Humanities Resource Center in East Pyne, while sound recordings are handled by the Mendel Music Library. 

To request a physical reserve item, students must present a call number for the item, which can be found using the Library's online catalog. These items can also be found listed by course at the following address:

http://bit.ly/ReserveBooksPUL

Electronic reserve materials are available only to students enrolled in specific courses. Blackboard course sites, which include links to copyrighted material, are password-protected and accessible only to enrolled students. 

The Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code) states that under certain conditions, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish photocopies or other forms of reproduction, which are not to be used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research. Information supplied by the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) explains in detail the rights of copyright holders, which are balanced by limitations on those rights under federal law.

The Library provides limited access to books and other materials to support instruction, and with the advice of the OGC will determine whether an intended educational use of copyrighted material exceeds fair use tenets. The Library reserves the right to refuse to fulfill an electronic reserve request if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of the Copyright Law.