by Lucius Trae

Created on: May 09, 2010   Last Updated: May 10, 2010

Some things in life are priced well beyond their actual worth. One thing that comes to mind is popcorn, and the other is college textbooks. In class, our professors regularly bring up the ridiculous prices of the text. In an Economics class, we learned about market influence with the example of university textbooks. Students buying the textbooks for high prices encourages those prices to stay the same, and the nature of college makes it difficult for students to obtain a required text.

Before you look for textbooks, look into the textbooks used in the class. In many classes, professors poorly utilize the textbook, or the textbook is written so badly it isn't worth the money. If you know someone who has taken the course with that professor, ask whether the text is necessary. In my last trip to the bookstore, I warned someone who was about to buy a text. The class is easy, all the notes are online, and you can pass it without even showing up. It's a basic logic course. If A=B and B=C then A=C doesn't warrant a textbook for most people.

Of course, avoiding the readings isn't always possible. It doesn't mean you have to buy them quite yet. Depending on the cost of the book, photocopying can be an effective means of saving money. You can also try using sites like BookMooch to exchange your old books for the old books of others. Finding your English novels is more likely than finding your Calculus book, but you never know what you might find.

If you really need the hard copy, email your professor asking them about the course requirements. Professors have deadlines for submitting their reading lists, but many colleges purposefully make these deadlines late. This makes it more difficult to order books online before they courses start using them. With the exception of new professors, most of them know what texts they will be using quite early. An quick email can save you money and stress.

When it comes to online ordering, Amazon is a staple for book needs. However, there are hundreds of sites for purchasing books, and they often have different prices. One company will be trying to reduce stock in a warehouse and decrease their prices on your textbook, but another company might have sold most copies to eager students, with the remaining prices raised due to higher demand. The more effort you put into the search, the more money you can save. Remember to consider your time, too. If you can make enough money to buy three textbooks in the time you spend bargain hunting,

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