Many college stores are in the process of reviewing their return policies for the fall term. Unprecedented conditions mean college stores have a lot of new considerations. We recently asked several college stores if they had updated their return policy and what their policy will be for fall.
How college stores are updating their return policies
Lincoln Land Community College
“We have relaxed our rental return policy and, so far, have not charged late fees for these. We did work with the school library to use their book drop box for rental returns, so that they could be made seven days a week, 24 hours a day in a contactless manner, and that helped us quite a bit. I am very thankful to our library dean, Tammy Kuhn-Schnell, for working with us to allow this.
We are encouraging students purchasing clothing to make sure they have the correct size before taking them home since we are currently not allowing returns on these items. This applies to logo clothing, culinary clothing, medical scrubs and other wearable items. So far, students have been very understanding in this policy change implemented to protect them and bookstore staff alike.”
Lincoln Land Community College Director of Campus Services Andrew Blaylock
Northeast Wisconsin Technical College Bookstore
“Yes – our return policy was going to be changing anyway because NWTC is moving to 8-week sessions this fall. Being 100 percent virtual, however, has had an impact on how students can return their textbooks for a refund as well as how we communicate that:
- We are now attaching a two-sided sheet that has our return policy on one side and a form to return textbooks because many of our students do not have access to a printer.
- When we updated our Return Policy on inSite, we also added the information about how to return an online order — which is something we didn’t have before. We will be taking photos of those books that are too damaged for a refund. We will send the picture to the customer in case they need to make a claim with their shipper.
- Even though the NWTC Bookstore is closed, we also invested in a parcel lock box from Home Depot that will be in front of the store for those students that would prefer to drop them off in person. A copy of our return policy is posted on the window above the box, and copies of the return form are available for those students who may have forgotten their copies.”
NWTC Bookstore and The Buzz Coffee Shop Manager Gretchen Bonnema
Hope College Bookstore
“We have not made any changes to our return policy this Fall. We have always tied it to our Drop/Add deadline, which is about ten days from the start of classes. This Fall, classes start Monday, Aug. 17. Our last day for full refund is Wednesday, Aug. 26.”
Hope College Bookstore Director Craig Thelen
Is your college store updating its return policy? Share how your store has updated its return policy in the comments below.
