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Inclusive Access FAQ

FAQ

 

1. What is Inclusive Access?

 

Inclusive Access (IA) is a partnership: a shared commitment to students, instructors, and institutions to increase affordability and achievement, ease friction, and keep business local, through the use of instructor selected course materials, which are digitally integrated via your institution’s Learning Management System (LMS).

 

2. What are the benefits of Inclusive Access?

 

Inclusive Access benefits everyone:

  • Students get the right materials, on day one, at a discounted price, boosting the likelihood of academic success and financial well-being.

  • Instructors retain academic freedom while providing their students with affordable, high-quality, easy-to-access content.

  • Universities get analytics surrounding student engagement, which helps closely monitor passing rates and retention, and can prove especially helpful during accreditation periods.

  • College stores are reinforced as the students’ trusted source of materials, offering consistent pricing and lower costs—savings which are passed on to students.

3. How does Inclusive Access work?

 

SAGE has worked successfully with institutions nationwide to build, test, and implement Inclusive Access. Working in partnership with an institution’s leadership and bookstore, we develop a streamlined strategy that frees faculty from having to individually implement the IA model. The only thing faculty needs to do is say "YES" to IA! It’s that simple.

 

Once you make the decision to transition to IA, your SAGE Representative will work alongside you and your campus partners with everything from helping to determine course content, to billing, to enrollment verification. SAGE is with you every step of the way.

 

Your Inclusive Access delivery model:

 

Course Content Selected

  • Your institution, faculty, or course administrators select course materials.

Students Charged

  • Included in their tuition or at time of enrollment, your students are billed a course materials fee. Scholarship, federal loan and grant money should apply.

Access Granted

  • Your students are granted code-less access to digital products on the first day of class, reducing friction, and ensuring they are ready to learn from the get-go.

Enrollment Verified

  • Your institution verifies course enrollment.

Institution Invoiced

  • Your institution or bookstore is billed by a third-party or by SAGE directly.

4. Why should I consider Inclusive Access?

 

  • 77% of students overwhelmingly favor colleges offering the option to purchase course materials as part of tuition.1

  • 78% of students want access: 78% of students believe they would generally do worse in class without their own copy of the required text.2

  • 60% or more savings: SAGE gives students access to quality content at a significantly reduced cost of 60% or more. This eliminates the intense financial burden many students encounter when purchasing course materials.

  • 97% effectiveness: Almost all students who acquire access to SAGE learning materials through this program retain their materials for first day of class.

  • Convenience and flexibility: Students can purchase learning materials when paying for tuition/fees and can use scholarship or federal loan and grant money3, all on a voluntary basis, allowing them the freedom to opt out.

  • Engagement: Students can have their learning materials in-hand by the first day of class, an important contributor to student engagement and success.3

  • Lower drop-out rates: By ensuring that your students have materials in hand from day one, you decrease the likelihood that they’ll drop out of, fail, or withdraw from the course.

5. Who does SAGE partner with to offer Inclusive Access?

 

SAGE partners with national digital content distributors, including—but not limited to—VitalSource, RedShelf, Barnes & Noble, Follett, and Unizin.

 

6. Is it mandatory for all of my students to partake in Inclusive Access?

 

No, it’s all voluntary. Students are given the option to opt-in or opt-out of the program by the add/drop date, even if they change their mind after enrolling.

 

7. How do I know if Inclusive Access is right for me?

 

We recognize that IA is not a one-size-fits-all answer. We are eager to work directly with you to understand your institution’s individual goals, and shape a solution that’s uniquely yours.
 

Your SAGE Representative is always ready to build a plan that’s tailored to you, your institution, and your students.

 

8. How can I learn more?

 

Connect with your SAGE Representative to learn more about this exciting new textbook model and to discuss an Inclusive Access partnership.

 

Sources:

  1. According to The VitalSource Survey conducted by Wakefield Research (www.wakefieldresearch.com) among 500 currently enrolled college students between May 11 and 18, 2016, using an email invitation and an online survey: https://press.vitalsource.com/vitalsource-survey-due-to-high-cost-of-col...
  2. According to Student Pirgs: https://studentpirgs.org/news/ap/high-prices-prevent-college-students-bu...
  3. According to the Association of American Publishers, Higher Education: http://www.aapbacktocampus.org/godigital/