How much are your Fall Textbooks?

AlphaGam1019 · #1 08-17-2002, 04:44 PM

Waited in line for 45 mins...the line wrapped around the entire store. It was quite chaotic!
Bill came up to around $650

(It's for 6 classes)
Most were used too!

How much did you dish out for Fall semester books?

j_gets · #2 08-17-2002, 04:51 PM

I don't have mine yet, but it's usually around $300, and then I have to buy all my supplies and materials and such (I'm a fine art/graphic design major, so materials end up being a major expense; It almost always ends up being two or three times what I paid for books or even more. Most of my art classes don't have books, and if they do they never actually get used so I don't buy them 'till I need them.)

J

EDIT: I just went and priced my books and supplies and it came to $270 for books and another ~$600 for programs/supplies. Eesh.

J

Shawndalynn · #3 08-17-2002, 05:01 PM

This semester mine are probably going to come out to about $450. I haven't bought them yet but I have looked at the bookstore on the internet. Books are so expensive.

Hootie · #4 08-17-2002, 05:08 PM

I'm guestimating around $200. That is IF I buy all the text books. I am not sure that I'll have to. I love to buy used books, but honestly, I'll wait til the first day of class, read the syllibus and then find out if the text book is manditory. I've also done the cheap route where I'll just go photocopy the book for the necessary readings once I get the syllibus.. Terrible I know, however I cannot afford to be buying books and then not getting jack crap back when you sell them at the end of the semester.

NOT TO MENTION, that all the journalism/communication/pr books are ALWAYS changing so they'll get a whole new book in every year! You buy a new book and the staff doesn't want to use it anymore so they can't buy it back to begin with! URG!

Hootie

Kevin · #5 08-17-2002, 05:09 PM

Quote:

NOT TO MENTION, that all the journalism/communication/pr books are ALWAYS changing so they'll get a whole new book in every year! You buy a new book and the staff doesn't want to use it anymore so they can't buy it back to begin with! URG!

I feel your pain. One of the few downsides to being a comm major.

EagleChick19 · #6 08-17-2002, 05:10 PM

I won't get mine until the 26th (when school starts for me here in PA!!). When I get them, they run about 250-300 bucks.

Shine · #7 08-17-2002, 05:27 PM

I priced mine online the other day. W/O my anatomy class books or supplies, they clock in at $300.

I've got $470 to throw around after rent, so hopefully those Anatomy profs don't expect me to buy a ton of supplies.

APhiRattlerGal · #8 08-18-2002, 02:02 AM

ok, the grand total is ::drum roll::

$437.33

#9 08-18-2002, 05:38 AM

text.....books??

you mean you have to actually BUY those books they put on the syllabus?

Here i've been just borrowing them from bros or friends in the class for this whole time.

Haha, i make a personal vow not to spend over 250 a semester on books. I buy the most expensive, then borrow the other ones as the semester goes on.

not the most effective plan, but hey, i'll graduate someday

Kitso
KS 361

#10 08-18-2002, 05:51 AM

I just price checked my books online, and for six classes, providing that all my books are used--the total comes out to $176.45...and that's including tax.

That's one thing I love about being a Poli Sci major. My profs hate dealing with the University bookstore so they often order books through small hole in the wall bookstores along University Ave. Some texts are 40% cheaper than what I'd pay at the campus bookstore! I also like the way some profs make readers available for pickup at the nearby copy store. The most I've ever paid for a reader is $15.

SilverTurtle · #11 08-18-2002, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by OohTeenyWahine
I also like the way some profs make readers available for pickup at the nearby copy store. The most I've ever paid for a reader is $15.

They need to be careful with this. Kinko's used to offer this at tons of their college locations. Profs loved it 'cause they could pull what they liked from different texts. Students loved it 'cause it was usually a LOT cheaper than text books (even used). In the 1980's Kinko's got sued by a few publishers that all banded together. Kinko's lost and it cost them a LOT of money. Not to mention it made some required texts unavailable to students during that time (I have a couple profs that were in grad school when it happened & they were in that boat). It's too bad, because it's a good idea for learning.

*FYI- Kinko's had been making these copies under the premise that it was for educational use and therefore fell into parameters that meant the materials could be copied. There is a LIMIT to how many copies educators can make of individual texts/photos/etc. before they are infringing on copyright. So just 'cause you're a teacher doesn't mean you can copy your books as much as you want, which is a common misconception *

I know I've seen references to that specific case online.. look under "kinko's" or "copyright" in Yahoo! or the like if you're interested. That being said, if it's a local copy place, the publishers will probably never know about it and everyone will remain happy.

I haven't been in school for a couple years now, but I NEVER bought all of my books. One prof actually kept a copy of every book she used on reserve in our library. Which meant it couldn't leave the library, but you could take it and make copies of what you needed. Luckily I had her for a lot of classes in my major!

Another class I had I just checked out the older version of my text book for the whole semester! I also waited at least a week to feel out what classes actually required reading and which ones I could get away without it. Another option is to check out used bookstores near campus that previous student's may have sold books to.

juniorgrrl · #12 08-18-2002, 09:13 PM

My last semester of UG, I bought one book. I spent about $100.

My law books have come to over $600 so far

And I just figured out that I have the wrong one for a class - so I've got to return it, and buy two more.

I hope I can reuse some of them next semester!

SATX*APhi · #13 08-18-2002, 10:22 PM

I don't even want to know!!

SigmaChiCard · #14 08-20-2002, 12:38 AM

This has been my most cheap semester at $350....it's usually around $400-$500

Shark_in_Skirt · #15 08-20-2002, 03:10 AM

I'm going to college this fall, and OMIGEEZ! I knew text books were alot of money, but over $500?

I was told that at UCR, professors rarely teach from the textbooks, so that we really wouldn't be spending alot of money on them. I hope that's true!

Good luck with classes this fall, everyone!

XOXO,
Annie.