How do textbook prices stack up?

During the first few weeks of every term, bookstores stock up and hire extra staff for the back-to-school rush while parents and students find new financial woes in the guise of textbook purchases.

Who can blame them? The average student today spends anywhere between 300 and 500 dollars every semester on textbooks; some spend as much as 700 dollars per term.

"I spend about 500 to 600 dollars on books a semester," said Angela Gill, a fourth-year Biomedical Engineering major.

To students, buying expensive textbooks that they will only be able to use for one semester is a wasteful nightmare, but to authors and publishers, the sale of such textbooks is an equally trying experience.

"Textbooks are produced for a very small market compared to best-selling novels, but the development cost is the same or more. Having been through two development cycles for textbooks, I can tell you that publishers put a huge amount of labor into each book, and sometimes sell as few as 500 copies," said David Smith, a Computer Science professor.

"From the business standpoint, 75 dollars is a small price [for a book]. I know it doesn't seem that way to the students, but this is the real business world," Smith said.

Roughly two or three months before the start of the next term, professors select and order the books for their courses through the Barnes and Noble in Tech Square and Engineer's Bookstore.

Barnes and Noble provides a list of required textbooks for most Tech classes on its website a month before the semester begins.

How are textbooks selected or new editions chosen?

"The [Biology department] has a committee that periodically reviews all aspects of introductory biology (1510, 1511, 1520, 1521), including the textbook and the curriculum. We did this three years ago and are doing it again this year," said Joseph Montoya, a Biology professor.

At Tech, students typically shop for their textbooks at either Engineer's Bookstore or the Barnes and Noble in Tech Square.

Although most syllabi are not given to students until the first week of school, students try to get to the limited supply of used textbooks by buying books weeks beforehand.

While the prices for new books are the same at Barnes and Noble and Engineer's, the latter has often proven to be a better bookstore for students looking for a bargain.

"[Engineer's] has more suppliers of both new and used books, so we're able to offer students more and cheaper used books," said Gary Gaines, textbook manager at Engineer's. "The bookstore has been on this campus since 1954, so we have a very long relationship with this school."

Both bookstores also sell older editions of textbooks at half the price of the newest editions. However, most students still purchase the newest edition if it is required by the professor.

"I buy the edition asked for by the professor," said Thomson Bender, a second-year Industrial and Systems Engineering major.

"I also try to buy them used at Barnes & Noble," Bender said.

When it comes to getting an older edition of a textbook for a lower price, many professors think it is acceptable as long as the content is not too different. In that case, students are advised to check WebCT for the course syllabus as soon as possible so they can determine which edition of a textbook they should get.

"In most cases, the older edition is fine. However, students are responsible for mapping our reading assignments onto the older text. The only issue is when the coverage or content differs between editions, which doesn't happen all that often," Montoya said.

For students looking for more places to shop for cheap textbooks, the internet is often a good resource, with online vendors such as www.amazon.com, www.cheapbooks.com and www.half.com.

For example, Barnes and Noble sells the new Campbell textbook, required for Biology 1510 and 1520, for about 144 dollars and used versions for 108 dollars. Amazon sells the used book for 80 dollars and also sells a used older edition of the book for 14 dollars.

"If the books are pricey, I'll buy them on www.half.com and look for reputable sellers with good prices," said Wei Feng Ho, a second-year International Affairs major.

"I get relatively cheap books from www.half.com and used ones from Engineer's Bookstore, [which] saves [me] from 30 to 40 dollars per book," Gill said.

However, problems can arise with purchasing textbooks online.

For instance, used books often do not come with the access codes for supplemental materials required for a course. These access codes would only be available in a new book.

Tech's two introductory physics courses require access codes to Mastering Physics, a homework assignment website. The access code alone costs 44 dollars, which is more expensive than a new book.

"I have experience with what professors want, especially with the access code situation. I don't sell, for example, the introductory physics book without an access code," Gaines said.

According to some, students who wish to save money should first ask around to see if they can borrow required textbooks from friends.

"Try to borrow or trade books first. If that doesn't work, then buy them online via eBay or Amazon," said Satoshi Kawasaki, a second-year Aerospace Engineering major.

To compare prices between different bookstores and sources, check out www.bestwebbuys.com, an online book shopping comparison site for college students.