College student Rob Christen sen has tried nearly every trick in the book to save money on books.
Last year, Christensen said, he took out a text from his university library and kept it all semester. It dawned on him that the fines (which turned out to be $8) would be less than the purchase price (around $40).
Christensen also has borrowed volumes from friends, split book costs with classmates and occasionally skipped buying expensive texts, hoping to get by without doing all the reading.
He often shops for discounts online, too, sometimes snaring older editions or versions that aren’t packaged with software or study guides that raise the cost.
Christensen attends school in an era when “Sociology: Your Compass for a New World” lists for $108.95, “Principles of Economics” sells for $141.98 and “Marketing Management” fetches $142.49.
“It’s a tough fight to get textbooks for an affordable price,” said Christensen, a Humboldt State University senior who hopes to become a high school history teacher.
The era of heading to the college bookstore and compliantly buying everything that a professor deems required reading is receding into the pages of history.
The ever-escalating cost of college and the ease of online shopping have spurred students to seek money-saving alternatives.
In 2003, 43 percent of the students surveyed by the National Association of College Stores indicated they “always purchase required textbooks.” Last fall the figure sank to 35 percent.
University of California, Los Angeles, economics professor Lee Ohanian recalls that when he started teaching in 1992, “there was never any question” about purchasing texts.
“Now, I receive literally dozens of questions about whether the book is ‘really needed.”‘
Still, a College Board report released last month estimated students at public four-year colleges are spending $942 on books and supplies this school year.
Another analysis found that hardcover college textbooks are selling, new, for an average of about $120.
Some students fire up the photocopy machine. Last fall’s National Association of College Stores survey found that 14 percent of students polled admitted that they sometimes photocopy a book or other copyrighted materials. Another technique: Order from overseas websites to buy cheaper foreign versions.
The trends frustrate college bookstore operators vying for the estimated $7 billion a year that students spend on new and used texts.
Jennifer Libertowski, a spokeswoman for the college store association, noted that students increasingly balk at buying textbooks even as they gobble up iPods and cellphones.
“There’s definitely a value shift,” she said.
Cost-saving strategies
Tactics used by college students to save money on textbooks:
65 percent didn’t buy all required textbooks
45 percent bought at least one textbook online (main reason: price)
14 percent photocopied books or other materials sold by publishers
13 percent resold a textbook online
6-7 percent bought all of their textbooks online
Source: National Association of College Stores, fall 2005 survey of more than 16,000 U.S. college students
