Kendall Emtman // News Writer

Beginning this semester, all undergraduate students were enrolled in the Torero Unified Access Program. Students who do not wish to participate must manually opt out of the program prior to the Sept. 11 deadline at 11:59 p.m. to receive the full refund. This $299 flat-rate materials program provides students with access to all digital textbooks through Canvas and print textbooks through the Torero Store.

Director of the USD Torero Store Jim Thrailkill explained that this program aims to reduce stress, eliminating issues that undergraduate students run into when purchasing course materials.

“This program directly addresses affordability and timely course material delivery,” Thrailkill said. “Under the old model, students often had to make hard choices about which books they could afford, or they suffered academic setbacks while waiting for orders to arrive.”

The goal of the Unified Access Program is to support students by removing common obstacles in the textbook purchasing process.

Additionally, if a class is dropped from a student’s schedule, physical books can be returned to the Torero Store, and virtual books will automatically clear once Canvas updates.

The Torero Store website states that all course materials included in the program have been negotiated to their lowest market prices, which are covered by the $299 flat fee. The program works in tandem with scholarships and financial aid, supporting students and helping them avoid immediate out-of-pocket costs in the beginning of the semester.

Students may either select the “opt out of all materials” option, which will automatically unenroll them from the entire program, allowing them to purchase all course materials elsewhere, or the “inclusive access” option, which will allow them to opt out of course materials individually. If students select the inclusive access option, they will only be charged for the materials they choose to purchase at the university’s pre-set negotiated price.

If a student chooses not to participate, they must manually opt out to receive the refund. Students will need to click on the eTextbook tab on their Canvas page, which will redirect them to VitalSource. Then, they will need to click the “view program options” button located at the top of the screen, where they will choose from two alternatives. Billing to student accounts will begin the week of Sept. 21.

Students who opt out will need to purchase their course materials individually, as they did before the program began.