2008 Woodie Awards
Book Bargains: Not at the Seattle U Bookstore
Your guide to saving cash--and stress
Cody Shepard
Issue: 7/14/08 Section: News
With textbooks often costing more than $100 each and with new editions coming out all the time, deciding where and when to purchase course texts can be a significant decision for college students--and a particularly confusing one for incoming freshmen.
Students can find out which books are required for their classes by visiting the Seattle University Bookstore Web site. Students say the most convenient location to buy textbooks is the bookstore itself, located along the lower mall in the Student Services building, the same that houses Financial Services and the Department of Public Safety.
Occasionally a course will require a "reader," a packet of photocopies whose reproduction rights have been paid for by the school. These can be found at SUperCopy Reprographics in the basement of the Student Pavilion.
Textbooks sold in the bookstore are sorted by department and course number. Many other items are available there as well and can be purchased online on the bookstore Web page, to be shipped or picked up by the student at their leisure.
While the university bookstore offers convenience, students say it isn't worth the price. In a cost comparison for a summer quarter math class and its textbook, "Modeling, Functions, and Graphs: Algebra for College Students," the Seattle U Bookstore charged $115 for a used copy while Amazon.com charged $123.96 for a new one. Additionally, cheaper options could be found from Amazon.com's third-party booksellers, with prices starting at $72 for a used copy and $107 for a new one. The Seattle U Bookstore did not offer new copies of this particular textbook.
This is just one example of a trend that sends many students to the Internet for their textbooks.
Danny Oetomo, graduate student in Seattle U's Masters in Business Administration program, said he always buys his textbooks from Web sites like Amazon.com or Half.com, unless he is short on time. He says he can often find textbooks online for half of what they cost at the Seattle U Bookstore, a situation he sees as a problem.
Students can find out which books are required for their classes by visiting the Seattle University Bookstore Web site. Students say the most convenient location to buy textbooks is the bookstore itself, located along the lower mall in the Student Services building, the same that houses Financial Services and the Department of Public Safety.
Occasionally a course will require a "reader," a packet of photocopies whose reproduction rights have been paid for by the school. These can be found at SUperCopy Reprographics in the basement of the Student Pavilion.
Textbooks sold in the bookstore are sorted by department and course number. Many other items are available there as well and can be purchased online on the bookstore Web page, to be shipped or picked up by the student at their leisure.
While the university bookstore offers convenience, students say it isn't worth the price. In a cost comparison for a summer quarter math class and its textbook, "Modeling, Functions, and Graphs: Algebra for College Students," the Seattle U Bookstore charged $115 for a used copy while Amazon.com charged $123.96 for a new one. Additionally, cheaper options could be found from Amazon.com's third-party booksellers, with prices starting at $72 for a used copy and $107 for a new one. The Seattle U Bookstore did not offer new copies of this particular textbook.
This is just one example of a trend that sends many students to the Internet for their textbooks.
Danny Oetomo, graduate student in Seattle U's Masters in Business Administration program, said he always buys his textbooks from Web sites like Amazon.com or Half.com, unless he is short on time. He says he can often find textbooks online for half of what they cost at the Seattle U Bookstore, a situation he sees as a problem.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 3
Amanda
posted 9/18/08 @ 10:42 AM PST
I went to the book store online and I clicked on my classes and I have a total of 4 books and I added them up and with tax and all it was going to be over $500 I was like wow that is outragous so I went to barnes and noble online and I got all my books free shipping and all for just under $400 which is more in my price range and all the books are new. (Continued…)
Christian
posted 9/22/08 @ 3:18 PM PST
An answer to confusing internet purchases, waiting for shipping, high prices, and low sell back value may be CampusLinkUp.com (www.campuslinkup.com)
The Spectator came out with an article about this company in its 5/21/08 issue, and is still available to read online. (Continued…)
Anna
posted 9/23/08 @ 11:05 AM PST
Tips for freshmans, as I have learned throughout the years...use alternative methods to find books. Most recently, I got my textbooks from a website called CampusLinkUp. (Continued…)
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