Frequently Asked Questions

All purchases are verified and connected to your CWL account for access, which requires you to purchase the materials through the UBC Bookstore in order to get a receipt that provides the redemption codes. Enter the order number (without the dash) listed on the receipt. See the text highlighted in yellow in the above seciton "Did you Purchase your Canvas Course Materials In-Store". If you purchased your textbook secondhand from another student, there is no way for you to activate your course materials in Canvas.

There are a few reasons why you received this declined order notification: 

-          Your billing address does not match your credit card’s address. Your billing address must match exactly what is shown on your credit card statement

-          The address you’ve entered is incorrect and/or our system doesn’t recognize the address

-          The credit card has been reported stolen or lost

-          The credit card limit has been reached

-          Also note, our website cannot process debit cards (VISA or M/C debit)

Finally, this can sometimes be a system issue on our end that will resolve itself within 24 hours. Please check all of the factors above first. If after 24 hours you are still having problems with your online order, please contact us using the link below and we will do everything we can to assist you.

Please contact us by email.

Click here to read our return policy.

You must submit payment info at the time of placing your order – we hold payment info and do not bill your order until it has arrived at the Bookstore and been checked for accuracy and quality assurance.

If you are ordering for a department please request a quote, and then you can either:

§  Authorize payment on an open account at the Bookstore (provide your driver worktag information for us to check or help you set up the account) OR

§  Pay online using a departmental credit card

If you are ordering for a student group with an AMS account then please request an invoice and then submit a cheque payable to the UBC Bookstore.

If you are ordering for yourself or a small group that are not affiliated with an undergraduate society or department then please request a quote and we will provide the steps to make a payment using a credit card.

There are a few common reasons why you may be encountering an error message at checkout. 

If you are ordering from an international location (other than the US) and you need your order shipped to you: Our address form has line-character limits. if you have a long address, try adding the second optional Address Line to space out your address onto two lines. In the Postal Code panel, enter 000000 (six zeros) instead of your actual postal code (don’t worry, your parcel will still find you).

If you are ordering for pick-up in store: to collect your purchase in store, please complete your billing address first. Once this has been added, please select the option for picking up in store. Your shipping address will automatically match your billing address, but this does not mean your items will be shipped to you if you have selected to pick up in store.

Ensure you are using an accepted method of payment: our ecommerce site accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards and UBC Bookstore gift cards only. We do not currently accept Visa or Mastercard debit, American Express, WeChat or AliPay.

Check carefully to ensure your billing information is correct: your billing address must match exactly what is shown on your credit card statement. 

If you are still having problems placing your online order, please submit a support request using this webform and we will do everything we can to assist you.

As of September 2020, we no longer offer rentals for printed textbooks, however many of our digital materials are still offered as rentals.

Our textbooks area is located in the back of the UBC Bookstore. Go to one of our book list terminals and print off your alphabetical book list. Circle the items you would like to purchase and give the list to one of our helpful staff who will be happy to find your book(s) for you.

Don't worry! You can also rent a gown and hood on the day of your ceremony at the gown pick up area for an additional fee. We have enough regalia of all sizes and colours to allow anyone who missed the deadline to attend. The cost for day-of rental is $75.00 and we will accept Credit or Debit (Visa, Mastercard, Visa Debit). Please arrive at the gown pick up area 1.5 hours before your ceremony start time to allow enough time to rent your gown on-site. There is no need to provide us with your information in advance once the online rental website has closed.

Vancouver Pickup Location: Buchanan Building Block B (1866 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1)

Okanagan Pickup Location: Upper Fitz Hall of the Commons Building (3297 University Way, Kelowna BC)

We accept both Visa and Mastercard credit cards and UBC Bookstore Gift Cards for online orders. We cannot accept American Express or debit cards for online orders.

We wish we had more, too! The number of used textbooks we offer is determined by how many textbooks are being reused for each course and are returned to us each term. After a brief hiatus, we are pleased to announce that our used textbook purchase and resale program will be returning for the 2023 fall term. Please check back later for more details!

As an ethical buyer, the Bookstore responds to any reports of labour rights violations as follows:

• If we receive a report, that we consider credible (examples might include reports from a non-governmental organization, labour organization or media source), that a vendor or subcontractor has violated the Vendor Code of Conduct contained in this policy, the Bookstore will inform the vendor of the specific complaint. The vendor will have 30 days from the date of the notice to respond to the allegation on behalf of itself and its subcontractors. If the vendor acknowledges the allegation is wholly or partially correct, it must provide a detailed rectification plan acceptable to us outlining a program of  how it will rectify the problems within a year
• We can request an inspection of a vendor’s facilities by a third party to determine if a violation occurred or to establish whether the violation has been addressed. The cost of this inspection is borne by the vendor
• In the event that violations are found, whether they are acknowledged by the vendor or verified in an inquiry by an independent inspector, remedial action by the vendor must include, as a minimum, the reinstatement of any worker found to have been unlawfully dismissed, as well as compensation for lost wages
• If the vendor does not respond to the report of a violation, fails to cooperate with an inspection or fails to provide a rectification plan acceptable to us, we will terminate without notice or penalty any contract and will not conduct any future business with the vendor.

Yes. All digital materials that are classified in our system as "ETEXT + ACCESS CODE" include the ebook as well as the publishers digital homework aids.

All purchases are verified and connected to your CWL account for access, which requires you to purchase the materials through the UBC Bookstore in order to get a receipt that provides the redemption codes. If the cashiers swipe your student card at the time of purchase, this will automatically grant you access . If you purchased your textbook second hand from another student, there is no way for you to activate your course materials in Canvas.

Gowns can also be rented on-site on the day of your ceremony. Please arrive a minimum of 45-60 minutes prior to the ceremony to ensure you leave adequate time to pick up your regalia from the Bookstore staff at the Robing Room. You can pay cash, credit, debit or with your Open Account Worktag (UBC Bookstore account).

On-site registration locations are: 

Vancouver – The Robing Room for faculty is located in the Royal Bank Cinema at the Chan Centre. Access via the Royal Bank Cinema entrance off of Crescent Road.

Okanagan – The UBC Okanagan Bookstore