Student Financial Services

You can view your book authorization amount by logging in to Connections, choose “my Record,” “Financial Aid,” view your awards for the term, and select “Calculate Book Authorization.” Your book authorization will calculate based on your current enrollment and eligibility. Also, displayed will be the total amount of book purchases made by you using your book authorization for the term.

The bookstore will ask for your Essential Card ID to validate your eligibility for the authorization. Please make every effort to have your Essential Card with you when purchasing books. If you are purchasing online or do not have your Essential Card you must know your new student ID. You will not be able to access your authorization using your social security number. Your new student ID number can be found in Connections under the "my Record" tab.

Book authorization amounts for financial aid students are now calculated at $80 per credit hour for a maximum of $960 subject to the student's financial aid eligibility. The College is committed to reducing the cost of books to students but recognizes that book costs can be prohibitive particularly in some of our specialized programs. The increased authorization will assist financial aid students in obtaining required books.

Book authorizations are provided to the College bookstores two weeks before the term begins and end approximately two weeks after the term starts. Book authorization dates are published each term in the class schedule.

Financial aid authorizations are updated real time. If your authorization is not showing as available you should check the following before calling or visiting your campus business office.

• Make sure all of your classes for the term are paid. A financial aid authorization cannot be calculated until your classes are paid or completely covered by financial aid.
• Purchases you’ve already made do not exceed the authorization amount.
• You are within the book authorization time period.
• You are enrolled in at least six hours. You are not eligible for a book authorization from most financial aid awards unless you are enrolled in at least six hours. The exceptions are federal Pell awards and some private donor scholarships.
• You have been offered financial aid for the term and it is showing on the financial aid award screens in Connections.

Book authorizations are a loan from the College to the student and must be paid back. If you do not spend the book authorized amount you will have less to pay back to the College when your financial aid disburses and more money disbursed directly to you assuming your eligibility and enrollment remains the same.

Book authorizations are a loan from the College and are based on your estimated amount of financial aid, your enrollment, and the average cost of textbooks per credit hour for students attending Florida State College at Jacksonville. The College regularly conducts an analysis of textbook costs and determines the average cost of new textbooks required for classes. You can reduce your costs by considering the cost of the required book when registering for a class, purchasing early and purchasing used, or renting your required textbooks. Currently, the maximum amount loaned by the College for textbooks is $80 per credit hour.

Yes, once you have added the textbooks you want to purchase in your shopping cart, you can select financial aid as your payment type.

Yes, if the available authorized amount is enough to cover your books and shipping. 

When you order books online and indicate payment will be made by financial aid, the bookstore checks your balance and book authorization availability with the College. The bookstore does not charge your book authorization until the order is filled and your books are ready to ship. Your book authorized amount could be reduced between these transactions if your eligibility changes due to a dropped class or a change in the amount of your financial aid. If this happens the bookstore will contact you. You will be required to pay the difference or reduce or cancel your order to match your book authorized amount.

If you plan to use your book authorization, you should purchase all of your books for the term regardless of when the class starts. Your book authorized amount is based on all paid classes for the term regardless of class start date.

The book authorization period is open at the beginning of each term. If you plan to use your book authorization, you should purchase all of your books for the term regardless of when the class starts. After the book authorization ends, the College begins disbursing financial aid directly to students and book purchases must be made from the student’s funds.

Yes, your authorization will pay for purchase or rental of textbooks. However, you will be required to provide a credit or debit card for collateral in case you do not return the book as required.

If you return a book within the book authorization period a credit is issued and your financial aid is not charged. If you return the book after the authorization period ends, Follett will notify the College and a check will be issued by the College in the amount of the refund minus any amounts owed.

The book authorization will pay for electronic textbooks as well as printed textbooks.

As a general rule, supplies and other items sold in the bookstore can be purchased using a book authorization. However, some types of aid require you to return a receipt to the program office and restrict what you can purchase with the authorization. If you are unsure, check with your program or financial aid advisor before purchasing other items. Authorizations do not allow purchase of gift cards.

Students who receive both a financial aid book authorization and a grant authorization will only have one authorization forwarded to the bookstore. Generally, the grant authorization is forwarded.

Contact your campus bookstore. They will allow you to purchase your book and charge your authorization now. You can then pick it up when the book becomes available.

The College regularly compares the campus bookstore prices to other bookstores and find they are generally very competitive. However, we do recognize that there are cases where you prefer to purchase your books at another store, either online or at another location. In these cases, follow the book exception process to obtain funds for your purchase. The book exception process is available the first week of class and requires that you do not make any changes to your schedule. You simply provide how much your books will cost and where you plan to purchase. Your book authorization with Follett will be cancelled and funds will be made available for you to purchase from the bookstore you listed. Funds are limited to the maximum amount calculated by the book authorization.

Purchase your books from Follett online through Connections. You will immediately know what books are required and recommended and whether they are in stock or on backorder. You can have all of your books shipped free of charge to one campus bookstore rather than visiting multiple bookstores to get your books.

View “My Books” provides you the ISBN number of the book and allows you to consider additional cost when registering for a specific class. This information is also available from the College’s main website when viewing class schedules. “Buy Books Online” transfers you to Follett Bookstores and creates a shopping cart with required and recommended books for all of your classes. You can then pick and choose which to purchase. Your classes must be paid before using the “Buy Books Online” function. 

Books are available for pickup within 24 hours of ordering. You are notified of this with a confirmation e-mail when your order is placed.

You have give business days to pickup. You will be notified of this in a confirmation e-mail when your order is placed.

Credit cards are charged when books are pulled and made available for pickup.

Standard Ground is $5.95, 2nd Day Air is $12.90 and Next Day Air is $18.90.

Yes, the bookstore will ship to a military or international address.

Absolutely, once you enter your class reference number, the required textbooks will be made available new, used or rental if in stock in our online bookstore. In addition, you can view current inventory availability at each of the campus bookstores. Inventory is updated real time but you still may experience times when a book shows available but later learn differently. Inventory cannot take into account those times when a student may be standing in line to purchase the book showing as available. While in your shopping cart you will be asked if new or used can be substituted if your preference is not available when order is filled.

The online bookstore does not store purchase information. Each time you select “Buy Books Online” in Connections your schedule will be analyzed and all of the books identified for the classes you are enrolled in will display. You must unselect the books you have already purchased.

The online bookstore will contact you by phone and e-mail to resolve the issue.

You can choose one location to pick up all of your books. Any of the five campus bookstores can be identified as the location you wish to pick up all of the books ordered online.

Yes, see the FAQ section of efollett.com for additional information.

You can save 45 percent or more off the retail price of the book purchased new if you return the book during the time required.

Sometimes things change and you need or want to keep your rented book. If you need the book because you are repeating a class and don’t want to keep it long term, your best option is to return the book during the required time and rent it again for the next semester. If you do not return the book as required, penalty charges and the additional cost of paying for the book’s retail value will exceed what you would have paid to purchase originally. If you want to keep the book long term, contact the bookstore during the required time to return to determine your best option.

If you do not return the book as required, you will have to pay the full cost of the book new and incur substantial penalty costs. The credit or debit card used as collateral will be automatically charged.

Yes, a prepaid envelope will be provided to make it easy for you to return on time.

You will receive 50 percent of the retail price of the book new if the book has been adopted for next term’s classes regardless of whether you purchased the book new or used. Any of the campus bookstores will pay this amount regardless of where the classes needing the book are located. Once the number of books needed college-wide for next term are bought back, the value of the book will drop and you will not receive as much for the book in buyback. Things to remember when selling your books back to the bookstore are:

• Don’t hold on to your books for multiple terms before selling back. Sell your books back as early in the buyback period as possible. The chances that the book is still needed decrease each term you hold it.
• It's usually best to check with the bookstore on the buyback value (in person) as soon as you finish using the book. Part of the calculation of value for your textbook depends on how many the bookstore still needs to acquire for the upcoming term. When that need is met, the store may not need your copy and the value offered to you would be less.
• Go to the campus bookstore most convenient for you.
• Maintain the book in good condition.
• Purchase current editions rather than cheaper previous editions to have the best resale value. 
• Use the money from selling your books back to purchase your books for next term as early as possible to have more options for new or used and start the process again.