diff --git a/C4/CourseReserves.pm b/C4/CourseReserves.pm
index c3e25e6172..86e230cd77 100644
--- a/C4/CourseReserves.pm
+++ b/C4/CourseReserves.pm
@@ -1052,6 +1052,7 @@ sub SearchCourses {
         GROUP BY c.course_id
     ";
 
+    $term //= '';
     $term   = "%$term%";
     @params = ($term) x 10;