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Post by ohiofan1 on Jan 17, 2013 0:28:37 GMT -5
So I bought a book that was required that was $127, and I got it for the first class tonight but when I got there, his assignments point out that we really don't have to have it despite on his syallbus saying it is required.
I'm so upset because I opened it and now I can't return it. Yes, I realize I could have just waited til the first class to open it, but I still think it's ridiculous how books cost $100 plus. Now it can only be purchase as packaging and three hole punch paper. So now I can't sell it because it won't be in "good" condition.
I basically wasted $100 plus on a book, that is college life for you. I really hate how they have to squeeze every single cent out of you.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2013 0:38:09 GMT -5
Get ready to be taken for a ride. Books is probably the least costly thing they'll end up taking out of your bank account.
College is like high school, none of it really matters. haha
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Post by Father Dougal McGuire on Jan 17, 2013 2:53:16 GMT -5
There were 3 classes that books were optional(I E I didn't bother to buy them). History, Art Appreciation, and a padding course about how to use a computer that had a fancier sounding name that I don't remember. The art one saved me $300. This was over 10 years ago though, so I suspect with good note taking, most books in college might be optional nowdays.
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Post by Drillbit Taylor on Jan 17, 2013 3:01:56 GMT -5
There were 3 classes that books were optional(I E I didn't bother to buy them). History, Art Appreciation, and a padding course about how to use a computer that had a fancier sounding name that I don't remember. The art one saved me $300. This was over 10 years ago though, so I suspect with good note taking, most books in college might be optional nowdays. What kind of History class did you take where the books were optional? Every history class I had was at least 3 books. Hell even my Film history classes were 2-4 books each. Not counting external documents and the like. |
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Post by Father Dougal McGuire on Jan 17, 2013 3:14:18 GMT -5
They were 2 American history and an African history class that dealt from 1800 to the present time which was the late 90s. Then again I have always been a history buff and even though they were requirements, I had to take so many history credits, I chose subjects I already was well versed in to cover up my piss poor mathematics grades.
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Mozenrath
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Post by Mozenrath on Jan 17, 2013 3:17:16 GMT -5
The college system is in deep, deep trouble due to crap like this and borderline scam tactics. Get ready for a college crash sometime in the next decade or so, probably.
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Post by Baldobomb-22-OH-MAN!!! on Jan 17, 2013 9:15:36 GMT -5
The college system is in deep, deep trouble due to crap like this and borderline scam tactics. Get ready for a college crash sometime in the next decade or so, probably. I agree. we're looking at a skilled labour shortage and companies are still freaking out over it because they use colleges as an excuse to not have to train anyone themselves. oftentimes it is a money issue, but when your head execs take home 8 figures a year and your company is still "struggling to compete" you have a problem. so there's big changes on the horizon, at least for any company that wants to continue competing and not fall on its ass because it has nobody who can actually do the job. the main problem is that the campus bookstores are usually independent of the school and run by a bunch of schysters. there's no control over how they set their prices, so books you can get online for 40$ end up costing like 200$ in the store. |
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Arrow
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Post by Arrow on Jan 17, 2013 9:16:19 GMT -5
This is why I don't buy books until at least after the first day of class, where I can ask my professor personally whether or not I'll need it.
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Post by Zaq "That Guy" Buzzkill on Jan 17, 2013 9:37:39 GMT -5
There were 3 classes that books were optional(I E I didn't bother to buy them). History, Art Appreciation, and a padding course about how to use a computer that had a fancier sounding name that I don't remember. The art one saved me $300. This was over 10 years ago though, so I suspect with good note taking, most books in college might be optional nowdays. What kind of History class did you take where the books were optional? Every history class I had was at least 3 books. Hell even my Film history classes were 2-4 books each. Not counting external documents and the like. I actually had a History class where my assigned book was not even needed (It was Canadian History) our Prof said we should use it as a supplement for lectures, but we weren't even allowed to use it as an essay source which was bullshit. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2013 10:56:42 GMT -5
When I was in college I always waited until after the first class to buy books, because for some reason professors would semi-frequently put stuff on the list and then say you didn't really need it. Even with that though, as a history major I ended up spending several hundred dollars a semester on books.
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Post by Drillbit Taylor on Jan 17, 2013 12:19:47 GMT -5
The college system is in deep, deep trouble due to crap like this and borderline scam tactics. Get ready for a college crash sometime in the next decade or so, probably. I agree. we're looking at a skilled labour shortage and companies are still freaking out over it because they use colleges as an excuse to not have to train anyone themselves. oftentimes it is a money issue, but when your head execs take home 8 figures a year and your company is still "struggling to compete" you have a problem. so there's big changes on the horizon, at least for any company that wants to continue competing and not fall on its ass because it has nobody who can actually do the job. the main problem is that the campus bookstores are usually independent of the school and run by a bunch of schysters. there's no control over how they set their prices, so books you can get online for 40$ end up costing like 200$ in the store. School Bookstores are independent? Huh. Everyone I have been too the book part is actually a subsidiary of BN. I thought that was normal. The more ya know |
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Post by stinger on Jan 17, 2013 14:02:53 GMT -5
In undergrad, our bookstore was run by the school. They had a very limited supply of used books, since it was a small, liberal arts college.
In law school, I went to a public university, the largest in the state, and there were several options for books. One was run by the university, and was very rarely used by law students because their prices were higher. There was an independent store that was VERY popular due to its large assortment of used books. There was also eCampus, but they didn't carry law books for some reason.
This is all to say, while college textbooks (like college itself) is most definitely a racket, in my experience, the university-owned bookstores have the highest prices.
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The QC Loser
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Post by The QC Loser on Jan 17, 2013 15:15:13 GMT -5
I always just went to the bookstore or the Schools website got the IPN (I think that is the number) for the books I would need then get them offline cheaper. I think I saved over 100 bucks on 1 book a semester or 2 ago
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Post by Clash, Never a Meter Maid on Jan 17, 2013 17:45:10 GMT -5
This is why I don't buy books until at least after the first day of class, where I can ask my professor personally whether or not I'll need it. This is what I do. And in the instance that I can't pass without a book, half the time I can just get it at the campus library. |
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Post by Brother Nero....Wolfe on Jan 17, 2013 17:46:42 GMT -5
I buy ebooks instead. They are MUCH cheaper, and if you wait a week or so to get them they get even cheaper so you can usually get them for around 40-60 dollars.
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Post by Baldobomb-22-OH-MAN!!! on Jan 17, 2013 22:09:34 GMT -5
I agree. we're looking at a skilled labour shortage and companies are still freaking out over it because they use colleges as an excuse to not have to train anyone themselves. oftentimes it is a money issue, but when your head execs take home 8 figures a year and your company is still "struggling to compete" you have a problem. so there's big changes on the horizon, at least for any company that wants to continue competing and not fall on its ass because it has nobody who can actually do the job. the main problem is that the campus bookstores are usually independent of the school and run by a bunch of schysters. there's no control over how they set their prices, so books you can get online for 40$ end up costing like 200$ in the store. School Bookstores are independent? Huh. Everyone I have been too the book part is actually a subsidiary of BN. I thought that was normal. The more ya know it varies from place to place, but both the University I went to and the College I'm currently going to (they're different things in Canada) had bookstores that were operated independently. it's the norm by and large up here, and in a lot of parts of the states. |
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Post by Red Impact on Jan 17, 2013 22:23:33 GMT -5
Rent books if you can. You can usually return them if you realize you won't need them, and they're much cheaper. I got mine online and it was cheaper than it would have been if I bought a book and sold it back.
For the program I'm in now, we ask the students above us if we really need the books, and they'll tell us which ones to get and which to skip.
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