College classes may still be a month away, but many students have already begun the hunt for textbooks. And although its obvious that the price of tuition is costly, the textbooks are no bargain either.
“It’s crazy expensive, and I’m not certain how our students do it!” said Chris Hakala, a textbook author and Psychology professor at Western New England College.
“I try not to even consider it. I go in with my credit card and just charge it and whatever occurs happens,” stated Western New England College Senior Justin Martins.
It’s a mentality that many college students share, but buying your books online might save you a pretty penny.
22News discovered one calculus textbook that would price you $225 at a college bookstore.
You can get the same book from online retailer like Amazon.com for $140, and from Half.com for just $104.
Its a great method to save some cash but, students beware.
“When you buy online generally you’ll save lots of money but one of the downsides to buying online is that you do not know if your going to obtain the books on time for when the professor needs them to ensure that could be tricky too,” said student Erika Ellis.
If your not comfy with purchasing your books online, you might wish to see if you are able to ‘Rent a Textbook.’
At the Western New England College Blue & Gold bookstore the program can conserve students up to 50%.
“The cool thing about the program is that you can actually write and highlight from the text and then give it back to the bookstore.”
But why are textbooks so costly in the first place? 22News asked an author.
“The book publishers are taking a little bit more cash. The way they recoup the price is by selling new editions every few years because after the first edition is sold, the author and publisher don’t see any new money.”
And if you do buy your books from a bookstore, you’ll always pay less if you buy them used.