Every year students require various college textbooks for their classes, spending a small fortune to purchase them. High standards should be improved in the business deal of purchasing new and used books so that all students would benefit of improved methods of learning. In recent years, college bookstores have begun to lose their monopoly over the market, generating pronounced imbalances regarding the average costs of most study materials.
Thousands of
students who will soon head off to college campuses nationwide are beginning to
realize that it takes quite a bit of capital these days to buy textbooks. In
the past two decades, college textbooks prices have increased considerably, at
twice the rate of inflation. According to government estimates, students and
their families have spent more than $6 billion on new and used textbooks over
the period of the academic year 2003-2004. During 2002 and 2004, the average
college student spent up to $900 a year for textbooks. Studies have also
revealed the fact that the average student spends about $100 on a single
curriculum-oriented new book and about $65 on a similar used book.
Fortunately, there
are various high-standard educational institutions that are currently striving
to overcome such topical issues regarding the low affordability of curricular
study materials. The University of Phoenix for instance, has corrected such
problems by modifying the general curriculum and preparing a lighter course
load for attending students. By replacing most traditional textbooks with e-books,
the University of Phoenix has become the first “textbook-less” college in the
country.
Highly skilled
students joining selected programs nowadays benefit for Microsoft's e-book
readers software. However, in order to obtain unlimited access to interactive
materials and up-to-date texts online, students still have to pay a per-course
fee. Universities striving to integrate all students in the e-book-oriented
study program.
In order to achieve
a better position on the market, the great majority of booksellers have started
to sell textbooks at a considerable discount off the cover price. Furthermore,
special areas have been created in order to improve the selling of textbooks on
the Internet. Another great source for college books are the online used
bookstores, which help students find the textbooks of their interest at
considerably lower prices.
Students must be
very careful when closing a deal on the Web. Considering the fact that textbook
prices greatly vary on the Internet, students are advised to closely analyse
all possible alternatives before choosing a certain bookseller over another. It
is important to note that the purchase price should not be the only considered
aspect when buying textbooks online; students should also factor in shipping costs
and delivery time before deciding upon buying their desired textbooks on the
Internet.
In order to fight
the high cost of college textbooks you should double-check for the correct
10-digit International Standard Book Number, or ISBN. This number is situated
above the bar code on the textbook's back cover or title page. When you are
purchasing online you should check for the ISBN along with the book title,
author and edition.
If you simply can’t
afford new textbooks, you should consider purchasing used textbooks, as they
are considerably less expensive than their new counterparts. You can purchase a
used textbook at about 75 percent of the retail price of a new textbook. Prices
vary anywhere from $10 to $80, with an approximate average of $40. Due to the
fact that used books are a scarce and limited resource, often being sold out by
the beginning of the school year, students may need to shop early in order to
obtain their required used books. In spite of this fact, used textbooks are
still a reliable, cost-effective alternative to new textbooks, allowing
students to spend less money for their education.
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