Faculty Textbook Adoption FAQ

While Discover automatically knows which professors are teaching which courses based on information from Carleton’s Banner system, departmental administrators must manually request access to manage a department in Discover, as this information is not listed in Banner.

Please contact our Textbook Manager if you wish to set up an administrator account, or need to change/update your departmental access.

Discover has thousands of textbooks prepopulated in its database that you can choose to adopt, with more being added all the time. But, new textbooks (or editions) are constantly being published, so occasionally you may try to adopt a textbook not currently in our system. But fear not! You can always submit a request for us to add a new textbook to our database, so that anyone can adopt it if they so wish.

Here’s how to submit a request:

1. Search for the textbook you want in Discover
2. If it’s not in our system, you should see an error message titled “Material not found”
3. Click on “request materials” below the title
4. You should now see a form that requests information about the textbook you want, please complete as much of it as possible
5. Finally, click “add” and your request will be sent to our textbook manager to be added to our system!

If that doesn’t work, you can always contact our Textbook Manager directly to request that the book is added.

If you’re a prof looking to submit an adoption in Discover for a course you’re teaching, but you’re unable to see that course in Discover, there are two possible reasons why this may be happening:

1. Discover gets its course information from Carleton’s Banner system – therefore, only courses currently listed in Banner can appear in Discover. So it may be that the course you’re looking for is not yet set up in Banner. This occasionally happens when course information for an upcoming semester is initially published.
2. The more common reason we see is that you have not yet been assigned as the professor to the course in Banner. Similar to point #1, Discover knows who is teaching which course based on information from Banner. Your department may have created the course in Banner, but has not yet assigned you as the professor of the course, so you will not yet see that course in Discover.

In either scenario, we recommend you talk with your departmental administrator to see if they can resolve the issue!

And of course, you can always submit your textbook adoption request through our web form, found here.

Stop by the Bookstore to place your order. We’re located on the first floor of the University Centre, room 173, at the front of the building. Simply visit the text desk at the back of the store, behind the bookshelves, and we can take your order on the spot!

Please note that a mask is currently required at all times in the store.

You can call us at 613-520-2600, ext 8115 to submit your adoption.

You can submit your adoption request by emailing us at textbooks@carleton.ca.

Please be sure to include the following information in your email:

– Name:
– Email:
– Carleton Extension:
– Faculty:
– Department:
– Course Term:
– Course number:
– Course Section:
– Textbook Title:
– Textbook Edition:
– Textbook Author:
– Textbook Publisher:
– ISBN number:

We’re excited to introduce a new system that will make adopting and managing textbooks easier than ever before. Click here to learn about Discover now.

You can submit an adoption from this website! Click here to get started.

There are two ways to access Discover:

1. Simply log in to Brightspace, click on the “jump to” menu in the top left corner, and click on “Adopt a textbook”. (Note: if you don’t see ‘Adopt a textbook’ you may see “Find my textbooks” – either one will take you to the same place!)
2. Or, click here to access Discover directly.

If you’re still having trouble, please contact our Textbook Manager for assistance!

A valid receipt or packing slip is required for all refunds or exchanges. Save your receipt! You cannot get a refund without it.

Course Materials (textbooks):

• Textbooks in sell-able condition may be refunded with receipt within seven (7) calendar days from the start of classes, and within two (2) days of purchase thereafter.
• Textbooks purchased during the last week of classes or during exam week are not eligible for return but may be sold back under the book buyback policy.
• Text sets must be unopened with all enclosures (codes, disks, etc.) included. Any software included with textbooks must be unopened.
• Digital textbooks are returnable if the code/password have not been accessed online within the 14 days of purchase.

Click here for our complete return policy.

Yes! Please tell us about any published books you have, we often carry books written by our faculty and staff in store.

We can even help you with organizing a book launch event if you’re interested. Please contact Kelly, the Bookstore Manager, for information.

Currently there are 4 ways to submit an adoption:

• Online: On this very site!
• Email: email your requests to textbooks@carleton.ca.
• In Person: Stop by the textbook desk in the Bookstore, located in the back right of the store.
• By Phone: call 613-520-2600 ext 8115 to place your order.

However you choose to submit, please include the following information:

• Name, email & extension
• Faculty
• School/Department/Institute
• Course Term
• Course Code
• Course Section
• Instructor Name (if you’re submitted on behalf of someone else)
• Textbook Title & Edition
• Textbook Author
• ISBN Number
• Quantity of Books Required

All Carleton faculty and staff get a 10% discount off clothing and giftware at the Bookstore!

In short, the sooner the better!

Ideally we’d like to receive adoption requests 4 months prior to the course starting, but we understand often this can’t happen for a variety of reasons. So, the sooner you send us your request, the sooner we can start ordering books!

One benefit of sending us your adoption request early is it increases our chances of getting used copies of the book. In certain cases we’re able to request used textbooks from other partner bookstores or from our central warehouses, but those are only offered on a first come, first serve basis to all our partner stores, so the early bird gets the used textbook, so to speak.