Finally, some people who understand where I'm coming from when I grumble about how much textbooks cost! Everyone else I know is just like, "Well, that's the way it is--deal with it." But it sure seems wrong to me! HOW on EARTH can They (whoever the mysterious people behind this whole robbery scheme are) justify selling a $#%^&*@ BOOK for $150? It amazes me. I could figure out the markup they get, but I'd rather not go there...that would be like adding insult to injury. :p

one of my professors wrote a damn book, made us buy the expensive thing, we never EVER used it, then she left the university. grrrrrrrrrrrr

a professor of mine wrote his own textbook.. and instead of making us buy it at the bookstore for $100.. he put it on the school's website, let us download it and print it. sure it costs money for printing paper (say $5 a ream) and for printing ink ($20 depending on what kind you have) but it beats spending $100.

and with a ream of paper and cartridge of ink you can split the cost between friends and it won't cost you more than $5!

I thought books in UG were bad - then I got to law school.

I easily spent $1000 on books this semester. Ah, the joys of having a common law and a civl law system - twice as many books to buy.

And, the best part is, I'll probably have to spend just as much next semester - only one of my classes is a two-part class that uses the same book.

AFAIK, they don't buy books back in law school, either. Everyone's books are so marked up and scribbled in, they're not much use.

I never buy used books. They feel dirty.

I like used because the important stuff is already underlined.

I laugh. Be an architecture student for ONE semester, and you will never complain about the cost of books again. I'm taking an arch class this semester, and it's mid-semester, and I've spent a good $500--ON THIS CLASS ALONE. I always have to buy supplies--paper, glue, ink...not to mention the general major supplies like a mayline, adjustable triangle, lead holder, drafting pens, lead pointer, etc...it adds up.

I only sell back the books that I didn't like--being that I don't have any classes that I didn't want to take (ie, no core curriculum). I end up keeping most of them, because they are art and architectural history books, and most are beautiful.

At least you can use your books and equipment when you graduate... I don't have a clue what I'd do if I couldn't sell my Organizational Communication textbook:D

Yeah, as an English major, I was happy to keep most of my books. And the prices were pretty reasonable ... I mean, we all pretty much know what fiction costs, so they can't overcharge too much. I understand they charge a little for overhead, which is OK in general, but ... There was one text I remember ... our school had bought a lot of them dirt cheap, I mean like $1 each, from another school. And the price was stamped right on it! Yet they had the nerve to charge like $15 bucks for it. At least our professor was equally POed.

ouch!!!!! i thought my 500 dollars minimum was bad, but 1000 is horrible! i think id just make copies of the reading from someone in the class if my textbooks got that expensive