UMBC students enrolled at The Universities @ Shady Grove are eligible to receive book loans. The Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships’ book loan process allows for the purchase and delivery of your books from the UMBC Bookstore, Main Campus. Book loans will be available no later than two weeks prior to the start of classes.
Spring 2025: Available January 2 – February 19
Students who would like to be considered for a book loan must complete the application linked at the bottom of this page, once available. Please review the book loan eligibility criteria below before submitting your application.
How to determine if you are eligible:
If you can answer yes to all of these statements, you are eligible for a book loan:
- I have submitted all requested financial aid documents and they have been processed by the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships (this includes all loan applications) – I do not have any outstanding To-Do’s in my Alerts on myUMBC.
- The amount of all aid I will receive is more than the amount of my bill (I have reviewed my bill on my self-service page of myUMBC).
- I do not have a past-due balance from a prior semester and I do not have an account that is currently in Collections.
How Much Is My Book Loan?
Book loans are awarded based on your enrollment status OR your refund amount, whichever is less. Use the following chart to determine the maximum amount you can receive in a book loan:
| Undergraduate Credits | Graduate Credits | Max Book Loan Amt (Fall/Spring/Summer) |
| Full-time (12+) | Full-time (9+) | $800 |
| Three Quarter-time (9-11.5) | Three Quarter-time (7-8.5) | $600 |
| Half-time (6-8.5) | Half-time (6-6.5) | $400 |
| Less than half-time (<6) | Less than half-time (<6) | $200 |
How the Book Loan Process Works:
To request a book loan, you must apply using the link below. Staff will evaluate your eligibility and will contact you with the outcome via your UMBC e-mail within two business days. If you are approved for a book loan, this e-mail will include the amount you have been approved for.
If you are approved for a book loan, you will need to do the following in order to purchase your
books online using your book loan:
- Please wait at least two business hours before emailing the UMBC Bookstore at textbook@umbc.edu to purchase your books.
- In your email, please include the following:
- That you are a UMBC Shady Grove student using a book loan
- Your UMBC Campus ID (Note: Your UMBC Campus ID is different from your Shady Grove student ID. Your UMBC Campus ID is two letters followed by five numbers, e.g. AB12345
- Your shipping address
- Information regarding the course(s) in which you are registered and the required textbooks for each course
- Please note: It is $12.99 to ship all of your books at once, so please be sure to purchase all of the books you will need in a single order. You can also arrange for pickup at UMBC main campus.
Please note that you will not be able to use your book loan at the Shady Grove
Bookstore, which is managed by Barnes and Noble College, and does not
participate in any book loan programs.
The amount owed from your purchase, including the shipping fee, will be billed to your student account because the book loan is an advance on your anticipated refund. Be sure to monitor your myUMBC account to confirm that the book loan charges have posted to your billing account. Remember that it is your responsibility to use your financial aid refund to pay charges assessed to your student account if you use a book loan.