By Shelby Becker
Staff Writer
(Appeared in the Sept. 7 print edition of The Woods)
Textbooks have become the most expensive part of college outside of the tuition and board. A recent article by The New York Times reported that the price of textbooks has risen almost 10 percent in the last decade and prices are expected to keep rising.
Maybe in response to the outcry from textbook customers about high costs and getting back as little as zilch for re-selling a pricey text, there are now some alternatives to buying textbooks at full retail prices. Renting printed books or downloading e-textbooks have become attractive alternatives to buying books.
What you get back for a textbook depends on the demand for the book and its age. Some books, especially if they had just been published, you can get back over half of what you paid. Sites including Amazon.com and Chegg.com sell books and provide a search engine to compare the best deals on textbooks.
But something as little as a change of picture or addition of a paragraph allows for publisher to issue – and charge for – an entirely new edition. For example, the required texts for Spanish Intermediate and beginning Spanish at SMWC are older and cost very little to buy, but selling them back is difficult if the newest and latest editions are in demand.
Buying versus renting is also a growing debate. Renting books can often save you as much as half of the retail cost of the book. E-textbooks are similarly cost effective, but you can only rent them for a short time – anywhere from a semester to a full year. A better deal is used hard copies that cost about half the average rental.
An example is the organic chemistry book used at SMWC. The list price to purchase the text is about $240, while the rental price is $60.99 per semester on Chegg.com. Renting seems like the better deal in this case. But if you account for the text’s value as a reference book and the fact that SMWC chemistry courses typically use the text for two semesters, buying starts to look a lot more sensible – especially if you buy it on Amazon for $180 – or $90 a semester.
Textbook purchases sometimes have hidden costs including shipping, fees and taxes. These can add up quick, even if most online orders are tax-free. Taxes can be as high as $7 per $100 spent, so a $300 book could cost $321, plus shipping. Take advantage of sites that offer special deals on shipping or free shipping for orders over a certain amount. Amazon.com has a great deal offering two-day shipping free for one year if you have a college e-mail address. Chegg.com plants a tree for every book purchased and offers free return shipping on rentals. Half.com offers reduced shipping after spending a certain amount, but remember to also check if its partner sites are legit. With so many people selling textbooks, some can be scams or accidents waiting to happen.
In spite of the frustration of paying so much for textbooks, some encouraging signs are taking shape. Federal laws went into effect in July to prohibit publishers from only selling books in bundles. Publishers also must reveal the price of a book when advertising it.
In addition, colleges including SMWC are now required to provide a list of required books during course registration so students have time to compare prices among the overwhelming number of textbook sellers.
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