Important dates from the Colgate Bookstore for fall 2026

Back to Provost and Dean of the Faculty Announcements

Dear Colgate Faculty Members,

For the fall 2026 semester, please order all course materials before May 15.

If you have any materials on your syllabus, please order them through the Colgate Bookstore, even if you need to order them late. Some of our students depend on the bookstore to provide them with no-cost materials, and not all of our students have access to a credit card to make purchases online.

Textbook Requisition

  • March 25: The textbook requisition site opens for fall 2026. Each faculty member will receive a personalized link from coursematerial@verbasoftware.com. If you do not receive a link please contact us.
  • Foreign titles take 8–14 weeks to arrive.
  • Desk copies: No publisher will allow a bookstore to request desk copies for a faculty member; your Academic Department Coordinator can help you find the publisher link for each needed book. If the publisher will not give you one, your department may allow you to use a department budget code to purchase a paper copy from the bookstore.
  • Digital books: Please note that we only provide the option of a digital version with your prior approval.
  • We always provide used books when available.
  • The bookstore can provide your required non-book items such as notepads, calculators, batteries, safety gear, data storage and art supplies. Please email us in advance so we may have these items ready for your students.
  • We provide only the exact editions you adopt. If a student purchases the material from us, they will have the correct edition/version.
  • Please let us know if you plan to exceed the maximum enrollment.

Textbook Returns

  • April 1: All unsold textbooks from the spring 2026 semester will be returned to the publishers. Please let us know if you will be reusing a textbook for the fall 2026 semester before we ship unsold books back to the publishers. We cannot hold on to unsold textbooks; they are typically returned to the publisher approximately two months after the start of classes.

Buyback

  • May 4: The bookstore begins textbook buyback. Because used books are the most affordable option for our students, please let us know if you will be reusing a textbook from a previous semester, so we may buy it back from students. We can only buy books back from your students if you have already adopted them for the upcoming semester.

Students Begin Purchasing Books

  • August 1: Students will begin buying their textbooks via the Colgate Portal. If you need to cancel a title for your class after this date, please note that students may already have purchased your adopted title.
  • Students may now charge textbooks to their Colgate student account so that they can have the materials before classes begin and pay for them over a longer period of time.

Textbook Refunds

  • August 26–September 7: Full refunds are given for returned textbooks only if the class has been dropped by the student, or the faculty has informed the bookstore that the title has been cancelled.

As posted on the Colgate website under estimated cost of attendance, the published median cost of books per semester is $785, which breaks down to $196.25 per class. (This is equal to the financial aid allotment for textbooks). If you would like to know the textbook cost of your classes, contact us at textbooks@colgate.edu or 315-228-7830.

The Colgate Bookstore is owned and operated by Colgate University. All sales support Colgate's mission and benefit our students and surrounding communities.

Sincerely,
Colgate Bookstore Textbook Team
textbooks@colgate.edu
315-228-7472
Bookstore Hours:
Monday–Friday: 10 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
Sunday: Closed