The High Cost of College Textbooks . . . And How to Beat It
This article tells it like it is.
. . . A report by the Government Accountability Office found that the average student at a four-year school spends nearly $900 a year on textbooks. That's about 26 percent of the total cost of tuition and fees.
At our economically friendly two-year community colleges, where tuition is thankfully much less, students still pay about the same for books. So they're dolling out 72 percent of their college costs on textbooks that often have a shelf life of one semester.
College students get just a few days before finding out what textbooks are required by their instructors. Then they will go to the college bookstore and pay whatever the cost. If they're lucky, they MAY be able to buy a used book. At some schools, like Sullivan County Community College, they MIGHT even be able to rent the book.
None of this is cheap.
When the average new book is going for $100 -- you'll pay more if your major is engineering or medicine -- even used books can still run close to $40. And there's no guarantee that used or rental books will be available.
Not when textbook publishers print a new edition every other year.
The gimmick is to include unnecessary add-ons like CD-ROMs and workbooks that supposedly validate the jacked-up costs. Unfortunately, too many instructors seem unfazed by the slight change in content and will require their students to buy these updated models. The argument is that information is forever evolving. Sure.
We all know how quickly the textbook for Freshman English Comp I can become outdated. What? Are we suddenly getting rid of verbs? . . .
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070111/NEWS/701110314
How can you beat this? Here is my recommended strategy.
A month before the new semester, go to the academic department and ask the secretary to tell you which textbook will be assigned for the course you intend to take. She should know. If she doesn't, ask who is in charge of the course. Send an email and ask.Go to Amazon or some other on-line book sales company and search for the textbook.
Buy a copy of the preceding edition.
Textbooks rarely change much, edition by edition. The supposed facts and official interpretations of these facts don't change much. The previous edition will get you through the course.
You should be able to buy the book at 75% off the price of the latest edition.
If you can't find it on line, then go to a local off-campus bookstore. See if there is a cheap older edition, not underlined too much. Even if there are underlines, you can ignore them if the book is cheap enough.