Textbooks Are Killing Me!

Things I Know 217 of 365: Textbooks are killing me at Autodizactic

There is a constant struggle as a student to afford school while at the same time all around him teachers and textbook publishers seem to conspire against the simple motive of saving money.  Zac Chase of Autodizactic has a nice workflow for being a frugal triumphalist in the battle against the 'man'.

 

I’ve been thinking of how we might shape a new model of for texts that might lower the materials cost of higher education and thereby make it more accessible who find it cost prohibitive. Certainly, I realize tuition far out-paces course materials as an item on students’ higher ed budgets. Still, every bit helps.

Some steps I took:

 
• I downloaded Amazon’s student app and used it in the COOP to scan course texts for their Amazon.com partners. Where the Amazon texts were less expensive, I added them to my cart. (This was the case in all but two instances.)
• When I got home, I compared the items in my Amazon cart with used versions available through amazon. Whenever possible, I chose the used version.
• I took advantage of amazon’s offer of 6 months of free Amazon Prime membership for students. This secures free 2-day shipping and other as of yet unknown “deals.” (When selecting used texts, I only purchased those qualifying for Amazon Prime.)
• When it was possible, I purchased the Kindle version of texts. I’ll be reading them on my iPad, but I’d take advantage of the new Kindle Cloud feature if I didn’t have a Kindle or iPad.
• I opted against texts that were recommended but not required (with the exception of the APA style guide).
 

As a result, my possible costs of $600 ended up at around $450. That’s a chunk of rent or more than a month’s worth of groceries.

Give it a try next semester and then lobby your friendly, neighborhood academic departments to work with students to help in every way they can.