Textbooks have long been a source of financial strain on college students, and can sometimes interfere with the accessibility of higher education as a whole.

To try and help with this issue, Western Sydney University and ProQuest teamed up to provide free digital textbooks to incoming university students through the University’s library. This article from No Shelf Required includes statements from both the University and ProQuest regarding the collaboration. Some of the goals for collaboration include making the cost of college more affordable, and textbooks more accessible, particularly to students with disabilities. The digital textbooks come from 60 academic publishers and can be accessed by students via Ebook Central which is ProQuest’s ebook platform.

This article from Campus Technology describes how Kentucky State University made the effort to make digital textbooks available to students at no cost. Through a combination of factors including a collaboration with Pearson and university scholarships, students can get the cost of their e-textbooks covered.

Having these digital materials available to college students, especially at little or no cost, can have a positive impact on their education experience. This study from the U.K. in 2016 described how students use their e-textbooks and other online materials to supplement their learning.

Academic libraries, what has been your experience with e-textbooks? Share with us in the comments!