Processing Course Reserves Requests

Owned by Jennifer Koerber (Unlicensed)
Last updated: Aug 18, 2021 by Ronnie Broadfoot

Monitor Reading Lists

When a new semester approaches and it is time for you to see what reserves requests been submitted for your library:

  1. Go to the All tab
  2. Filter for Status Ready for Processing, Publication Status Active, Processing Department = your department
  3. Click Work On from the row action item list icon to choose a list to work on. Reminder: this will assign that list to you as soon as you click Save.
  4. Click View to just view the reading list, without having it assigned to you

Once you have a reading list open, you can process the citations/requests (see following sections). A good practice is to click on the Expand option at the top of the citations list so you can see all format options available for that citation, whether physical or electronic.

Multiple Reading Lists

Occasionally multiple reading lists will be associated with a single course. 

  1. To view all of the reading lists associated with a specific course click All Reading Lists for this Course from the action item list icon next to any reading list. 
  2. If there is more than one Reading List, see if they differ in citations. If one contains all the citations of the other, plus additional citations, the other less complete list should be deleted and purged as superfluous. 
  3. If there is more than one Reading List, see if the course title or semester differ. If one list is indicated as belonging to a different course or course semester then it's course association should be corrected. Using the action item list icon next to the incorrectly associated course you can use the Associate this List with a Course button to associate it to the correct course/semester. You can then use the Remove Associated Course button in the action item list to remove its association from the incorrect course/semester. 

Processing a Request for a Physical Item (Book, DVD, etc.)

To process a physical item of any media type:

  1. For the citation you're processing, choose Manage Fulfillment Options from the row action item list icon (ellipsis)
  2. Scroll down to the Physical Services section, the list of items available to fill the request
  3. Request a specific copy by choosing Request from the row action item list for that item

  4. Choose the Request Type:Move temporarily

  5. After you choose the request type, the page will refresh and show two sections: Create Request and Additional Request Attributes. Choose options from drop-downs or enter the appropriate information for each field.

    1. Create Request section:

      • Note: only required if there is more than one volume, part, etc. (e.g, Louis Agassiz letters)
      • To: Select library location by scrolling through drop down menu or typing and selecting library name
    2. Additional Request Attributes section:
      1. Number of copies: Select number of copies
      2. Destination location: Reserve or Open Reserve
      3. Call Number Type and Call Number: not applicable
      4. Item policy: Select appropriate loan period for a reserve item at the temporary location
      5. Due back: The best practice is to set the Due Back Date for a Reading List at least 14 calendar days after the last day of final exams. If the Reading List has a Due Back Date, that will be the default.
        • Note: The Due Back date will cause the item to have its Permanent Location automatically restored on that date, even if the item is still on the reserves shelf. Since items will need to have their barcodes scanned as they are removed from the reserve shelf, it makes more sense to restore their Permanent Locations at that time. See the End of Semester page for more information.
  6. Click Submit or hit Enter on your keyboard
  7. Select Manage Resource Options in upper left to navigate back to list


Processing Requests for an Electronic Item (Library licensed resource)

To process an electronic item of any type:

  1. For the citation you're processing, look for the word Other (#), with a number in the parenthesis
  2. Click on Other to see the link for the eResrouce
  3. Click on the pop-out icon to view the resource and confirm the link is working
  4. If all is functioning properly, choose Select Complete


Processing Requests for All or Part of a Reading List in Bulk

It is possible to process multiple citations on a reading list at once, but instead of an item-level request, each citation will have a title-level request that might be filled by any item attached to that title/bibliographic record. If this is acceptable, continue with your bulk request.

Note: Title-level requests in Alma for Reserves have shown, so far, to not work as well as was expected or as well as they seemed to work in the Sandbox. As a result, library staff is advised to request specific items for Reserves, rather than place title-level requests and let Alma choose. This, in turn, makes bulk requests from a given Reading List problematic as well, but still possible if care is taken or if the situ ation is favorable for the process to succeed.

Before Placing Bulk Requests

When faced with a long list of books for one course, it may be preferable to attempt a bulk request, then check citations with multiple locations to make sure the proper item was requested. It is up to you to decide how long a list seems too long to request an item at a time, or what scenario lends itself best to making a multiple-citation request, but here is a suggestion as to how to choose:

  1. At the top of the list of citations, choose Expand >> Expand All to see all print copies, their locations, and their availability statuses, as well as any links to electronic portfolios

  2. If all or a good majority of the citations have copies available now in the general collection of the library in which they will be on reserve, or the only available copies are circulating copies in other locations, consider proceeding with a bulk request.
  3. If a number of the citations fit the above criteria, but others do not, you can do a bulk request for some titles on the list and then request the others individually.
  4. Avoid including citations that include copies that you know to be non-circulating, as Alma may request those rather than copies that circulate.

Note on requesting multiple copies of a single item: In cases where more than one copy needs to be on reserve for a given title, request that title separately from the rest, since the number of copies in a bulk request is a request for the same number of copies for every title in the bulk request. This is an advantage if you need 2 copies of every title on the list (for instance), but can also catch you unawares.

Placing Bulk Requests

Once you've decided which titles to include in your bulk request, you'll mostly follow the steps for an individual request as described in that section.

  1. Select the citations to include in the bulk request:
    1. To request all citations on the list at once, click on the box next to Select All in the row above the citation list
    2. To request some citations:
      1. Click the box to the left of each citation you want to include OR
      2. For very long lists, click on Select All and then unclick/uncheck the box next to each citation you don't want to request in bulk. This will save time and clicking.
  2. Once all desired citations have been checked, click Place Request at the top of the list
  3. The same Create Request screens appear as for item-level requests
    • Reminder: If you select multiple copies when placing a bulk move request, all titles on the list will be requested for the same number of copies. If this is what you want, a bulk request speeds up the process tremendously.
  4. Click Submit
  5. Alma will confirm the number of successful or unsuccessful requests and let you know know if some resources are already in the desired location (i.e., if they are already on reserve)

After Placing Bulk Requests

Review the list of citations for alerts - these alerts tell you what happened as a result of the bulk request.

  1. Click Expand >> Expand All to view all information for each citation, including a list of items and all alerts
  2. If there is an alert saying "Citation Move Request In Process", the request was successful
    1. If a citation displays items at multiple locations, you can check individual requests by clicking Manage Fulfillment Options and checking the request to make sure the location listed as Managed By Library is the expected one.
    2. If a request was made to an item from a location that is not the expected or preferred one, delete that request and make a separate request for the item from the preferred location.
  3. If there is no alert for a given citation, the request failed and needs to be dealt with individually


Handling Unsuccessful Requests

If, after attempting a bulk request, a citation does not include an alert, that citation needs to be examined to see why the request did not succeed. There are various possible scenarios:

  1. The title is only available at Harvard in electronic form, so test the link out to the electronic version and, if it works, change the status of the citation to 'Complete.'
  2. The only circulating physical copy/copies available at Harvard is/are missing or lost; follow local practice or consult the owning library/libraries regarding acquiring a replacement copy
  3. The only physical copy/copies at Harvard are non-circulating; follow local practice regarding acquiring a copy for reserve

In scenarios 2 and 3, it is also a good idea to ask the instructor if access to an electronic version of the text would be sufficient for the course, unless local policy stipulates that if an e-book is available, that an e-book will be purchased rather than a physical copy. If that is the case, let the instructor know in case the syllabus needs to be edited. 


Purchasing Request

Note: this will be different based on your library’s practices. Please confirm with your selector how this will be done. You may need to talk to everyone involved in your reserve and purchasing process to determine this.

If if it done via ALMA/GOBI follow these steps: (This is based on how Lamont buys reserves)

If you use GOBI then do so as normal, placing desired item in shopping basket

In ALMA:

Check the box in the upper left corner of the citation. Scroll to the top of the list of citations and click Change Status, choose Purchase For Reserve, then click the Change Status button.

If there is no other work for you to do on this Reading List, Save the list, then Reassign it to the selector, making sure to check the box to email the selector and using the text box to say what book(s) need to be purchased. Include your email address in the message in case there are questions. Also, ask the selector to reassign the Reading List to you after the book(s) has (have) been ordered.


Pull List/Putting on Shelf

When you request an item for reserves, this is what happens next at the owning library and then yours:

  1. The items you requested will appear on the owning library's Pick Lists. They may print a list of all requested items or use the facet for Move Temporarily to print only items that are requested for a temporary move.
  2. The items are then pulled from the shelf, scanned in, and routed to the reserve shelf at your library.
  3. When items arrive at your library, they'll be scanned in. Since you already entered each item's Process Status and indicated Reserves as collection, the item will obtain this status when it is scanned at your library.
  4. Circulation staff process requested items according to local physical processing workflows determined by each library.