Cost of college textbooks rising rapidly
By Amanda Knowles | 2nd July 2007
It’s that time of year when students start to think about going back to school. After paying for the steep cost of tuition at colleges and universities, many students and parents are often confronted with another high-priced expense: textbooks. The price of textbooks and other materials needed for courses is rising rapidly, and many students are not able to keep up with the costs. The average first-time student at a four-year public university spent $898 on textbooks during the 2003-04 year, according the Governmental Accountability Office, and the Illinois Board of Higher Education found that students attending public universities and colleges spent an average of $735 to $891 on textbooks in 2006. Spending nearly $900 worth of textbooks each semester causes a great deal of angst and confusion among students and parents, and everyone involved wants to find a solution.Who is Responsible?
A majority of students, parents, and administrators blame textbook publishers for the rise in textbook prices, because the companies report excessive profits and high wholesale prices. Oftentimes, CD-ROMs and workbooks are “bundled” in the same package as textbooks, which cost the consumer more. Even though many students never use these “bundled” materials, the publisher does not sell the textbook without the supplemental materials. Additionally, new editions of textbooks are released, on average, every 3.5 years, even in subjects like Calculus and Physics where no recent significant changes have been made. The release of these new editions decreases the number of academic years the same textbook is used in a course, which lessens the buyback amount and number of used books available for purchase at a discounted rate.
Faculty are also to blame for the high prices of textbooks. Sometimes they never know the price of the books they are assigning, or, if they are aware of the price, they completely ignore the high cost. Many also assign books that are only partially relevant to the course, making the students buy numerous expensive books for one class. Colleges and universities are at fault for not guiding the faculty during the book selection process, as well as with not guiding the parents and students on other options to acquire textbooks (like off-campus bookstores or the Internet).
Bookstores are blamed with not having enough used books for a given class, and students gripe about how little money bookstores give them back at the end of a semester.
Potential Solutions
Officials are aware this textbook issue exists, and they are trying to find solutions to the problem.
A May 2006 letter from members of Congress to the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance (ACSFA) asked the committee to investigate the rising costs of textbooks and to offer potential solutions. A year later, the ACSFA released their report, and some of the solutions highlighted in the report include: publishers offering students the option of buying a stand-alone textbook, as opposed to a bundled package; guaranteed buy-back programs; increase of availability at libraries; book rental programs; and textbooks available in digital formats. The report states that books in digital format are necessary for the future. Institutions that offer content digitally will give the students the option of viewing the information online, printing-out the material, or even buying the traditionally bound text.
Over the last three years, 34 states, including Illinois, have proposed more than a hundred bills related to textbook expenses, with many of these bills aimed at eliminating state sales tax and suggesting that schools implement a textbook rental program.
Senator Dick Durbin introduced the College Textbook Affordability Act earlier this year. The proposed bill requires textbook publishers to provide the price of a textbook and all of its supplemental materials to faculty members. They would also be required to give a history of new editions for each textbook and to note if a textbook is available in an alternative format, like paperback or digital. The Affordability Act also requires colleges and universities that receive federal assistance to include textbook pricing information in course catalogs and to have it available when students register for classes. Additionally, schools are obligated to give bookstores such information as course schedules, textbook titles, ISBNs, and course enrollment numbers upon request.
The Illinois State Legislature introduced three bills in February that aim at cutting the costs of textbooks. One bill proposes a state requirement for each college and university to establish a Textbook Advisory Committee. The committee’s function would be to work with publishers and retailers to review and enact policies pertaining to textbook sales. The Textbook Consumer Information Act, which is similar to the Textbook Affordability Act, would require publishers to freely and voluntarily provide information on pricing and what changes were made to new editions to the schools and retailers. Retailers would then be required to make this information readily available to consumers. Senate Bill 327, the third bill proposed by the State Legislature, would give students a 5 percent income tax credit on textbook purchases, with a $75 cap. The credit only includes the 5 percent of purchases that go to the state; city and county taxes would still apply. The bills were voted on at the end of May and were re-referred to the House Rules Committee, where they are currently waiting for the next step in the process.
legislation to reduce the overall costs of textbooks can visit MakeTextbooksAffordable.com to learn what they can do to help the cause. The site is home to The Campaign to Reduce College Textbooks Costs, which is an organization that focuses on supporting legislation that would reduce the price of textbooks. Its website summaries important topics and victories in the fight over textbook prices, as well as outlines ways students and the general public can get involved.
Alternative Resources
Until legislation is passed, students need to find alternative and cheaper ways to purchase textbooks and other materials.
Students at Bradley University have the option to purchase digital textbooks through Barnes and Noble for a limited number of classes. Purchasing digital textbooks is an inexpensive alternative and gives students the ability to search, highlight, tag, and print the text. It’s as easy as registering with the site and downloading the text to your computer.
Buying textbooks online is a popular alternative to traditional bookstores. There are many websites—like Textbooks.com, the Textbook Superstore at Half.com, and AbeBooks.com - that specialize in the selling and buying back of textbooks. Some sites even allow students to swap their textbooks - Bookswap.com and SwapBook.com, are a couple of examples. Whenever buying textbooks on the Internet, be sure to use the book’s ISBN to ensure the proper title and edition.
Students can also check if a textbook is available for checkout through the library. Oftentimes, university and college libraries have textbooks placed on reserve to give students the option of checking it out for a couple hours at a time. There are usually only a few copies available, so it may be a good idea to act quickly.