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Course Readings Service

The Course Readings Service gives taught course students access to digitised materials that are in high demand and essential, and not available as e-books, or e- journal articles.

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About the Course Readings Service

The Course Readings Service gives taught course students access to digitised materials that are in high demand and essential, and not available as e-books or e- journal articles for example extracts from books and print journals. Readings are digitised where possible and delivered via your online reading list for each course. Students registered on the course may download and print out a copy of the extract.

All material made available through the Course Readings Service must comply with the provisions of copyright law and UCL's CLA licence. The TLS is set up to administer digitised course readings so they comply with the licences. More details about the CLA licence. 

N.B. You do not need to use the CLA / other licences if the work you wish to copy is:

  • out of copyright
  • covered for this use by a UK copyright exception
  • already licenced for this use (for example, with a CC licence or an explicit Open Access statement)
  • if you own the copyright in the work
  • you have explicit permission from the rights owner. The rights owner may be the publisher, rather than the author, so check carefully.

Similarly, readings already available as full text through UCL's e-journal or e-book subscriptions, and also material that is accessible on Open Access platforms and websites, can easily be linked to your online reading list.  You can request editing rights to your online list by submitting a simple webform, and once you accept the invite, you will be able to add these resources to your online reading list.

If you are not sure if a reading can be digitised, please don't hesitate to get in touch. Teaching and Learning Services (TLS) administers the service - contact TLS.

Course readings: what can be included

Course readings are typically book extracts and journal articles, but can include copies of images and diagrams from printed sources, lecture notes and other teaching materials.

The Course Readings Service takes advantage of UK copyright licensing schemes (including the CLA, NLA, ERA and others) to make available material protected by copyright. There are certain restrictions on what material can be added to the collection using these licenses, please bear them in mind when selecting material to be digitised: CLA Licence limits.

How to request digitisation of Course Material

Our library guides provide information on how to use the 'note to Library' field on your online reading list to request essential items for digitisation. The process is also summarised below:

  1. Click the three dots to the right on an item on your online reading list.
  2. Select 'note for Library' from the drop down menu.
  3. Add the bibliographic details e.g chapter title, author, number and pagination.
  4. Add the date you added the note, and Publish your online reading list.
  5. In order for your readings to be available for the start of Term 1, it is advisable to request digitisation 8 weeks before the start of term: that is, by 1st August. Similarly, course readings required for the start of Term 2, should be requested by 1st November.

Providing these details will help TLS staff copyright check and digitise your readings quickly: inaccurate or missing details will slow the process down.

OR

  1. Complete a Course Readings submission form (one for each extract). Download form.
  2. TLS use the Scan and Send service to digitise extracts, but if you want to provide your own PDF copy for TLS,  please scan the extract from an edition held in UCL Library, and include a scan of the front and back of the title page of the book from which the extract comes (this page gives details of publisher, date and place of publication).
  3. Send the submission form and the PDFs to TLS via UCL Dropbox .
  4. In order for your readings to be available for the start of Term 1, it is advisable to submit your request 8 weeks before the start of term: that is, by 1st August. Similarly, course readings required for the start of Term 2, should be submitted by 1st November

Providing these details will help TLS staff copyright check and digitise your readings quickly: inaccurate or missing details will slow the process down.

What Happens Next

  1. Readings will be checked to determine whether they are copyright compliant, and whether they can be digitised under the terms of our CLA Licence. 
  2. TLS staff will ensure an accessible PDF to the standards specified by the CLA licence are linked to your online reading list. The reading will sit safely on a UCL server and, if you are off-campus, you will be prompted to log in with your UCL ID to access the reading.
  3. If the reading cannot be digitised, because it is excluded from the CLA licence, TLS will seek permission from the rightsholder, and if granted, will link the item to your online reading list. Please note that publishers often take several weeks to respond to permission requests, so requests should therefore be submitted as far in advance of the required date as possible. If permission is denied or otherwise unobtainable,  TLS will be in touch with the requestor and the Subject Liaison Librarian about further options.
  4. TLS will notify you when the reading is made available via your online reading list. 

Can It Be Digitised?

Yes, if:

  • UCL Library owns a copy of the book or journal from which the extract was taken;
  • the source publisher and work is opted in to the CLA licence. The CLA's look up tool can give a good indication of whether the source can be copied from.
  • the extract falls within the limits of the licence (e.g. 1 chapter or article, or 10% - whichever is greater).

    Course readings remain available for the whole academic year. Each Summer all course readings are reviewed, and TLS may be in touch about specific readings. 

    Contact TLS

    TLS staff are happy to answer questions and give advice.

    • Hazel Ingrey, Head of Teaching and Learning Services: extension 65752
    • Pamela Clarke, Supervisor, Teaching and Learning Services: extension 65729
    • E-mail: readinglists@ucl.ac.uk

    Course Readings Service