Course Reserves Copyright Guidelines

PSU Library books and videos and your personal materials, such as textbooks, can be placed on reserve. Journal articles, book chapters, course syllabi, and sample exams are all acceptable for e-reserve.

If instructors are using examples of student-created works, written permission from the student is required:
Student-created Materials Release/Request Form

Not allowed:

• Books and videos borrowed via Summit or Interlibrary Loan
• Non-commercial (copied) DVDs, CDs, or videotapes
• Content from Harvard Business Review

Email Us if you would like to place more than one article from a journal issue or more than one book chapter (more than 10% of a book)  on e-reserve; we will pursue copyright permission on your behalf. If costs are prohibitive, we will look for another way to provide the material.

“Fair use” is a set of guidelines, not the law, and therefore the Library cannot tell instructors with 100% certainty what qualifies as fair use. It’s also important to note that when the PSU Library licenses content for access by PSU faculty, students, and staff, the subscription contract supersedes the fair use guidelines. The Library links to e-books or articles through our subscriptions whenever possible. If the requested material does not fall under fair use, we will work to pursue copyright permissions.

Instructors need to be aware of University Copyright Policy when uploading files to Canvas.

The benefit of working with the Course Reserves department at the Library is that we offer copyright screening, pursue copyright (if needed), provide high-quality scans, and ensure that e-reserves are ADA accessible.

In the case of journal articles in our electronic collections, providing a link allows librarians to keep accurate usage statistics and make informed decisions about database retention.

Course packs can save students time if you are requiring a lot of individual readings. Downloading and printing individual articles and book chapters can be time consuming. Course packs can be put together by Clean Copy or from the Portland State University Bookstore. Once you submit your references, they will pursue copyright, establish the price, and handle the sales to the students.