The price of college textbooks ... wow

I've still never spent more than $150 on books. Not having classes in which textbooks are needed really certainly helps. Almost all of my books are 300-400 page books for my history classes that I can buy on half.com or amazon for cheap. I try to save as much as possible so that the rest of my stipend can go to more useful things, like beer or weekend trips.

 

I've always said a smart guy wouldn't go to college. He's open a book store across the street from one.

As far as a degree helping you do your job, it isn't necessary really, but it does help you get a job. At least here, if an applicant doesn't have a college degree in journalism, they aren't even considered.

 

I paid $110 for an e-book several times. That's just a freaking download of the book. After that, I wouldn't bitch about paying $110 for the real thing.

 

I work with a professor who teaches the largest class on campus and wrote the textbook for this class. He purposely makes minor changes to the book at least once a year (sometimes every semester) so students have to buy the book new and he makes more money (this also makes it so the book is next to worthless during buyback). I really hope there's a special section of Hell for him.

 

You want to know what's fun? Do what I did every fall.

I knew I was getting raped for money from the bookstore so every fall I would buy my books and immediately upon leaving the bookstore I would attempt to sell them back to see how much they were fucking me.

I'll never forget buying an $85 criminal justice book, walking right out the door and having the bookstore offer me $6 for it. I asked them "If it's only worth $6 why are you charging me $85 for it?"

Their responce? "We don't make the prices sir, we only charge what we're told to charge."

I replied: "No, you're the ones that put the stickers on the books. I've seen it."

They replied. "Do you want the $6 or not?"

Needless to say, that's when I began looking for ways to rip the bookstore off every chance I got. (You know, like buying a book, photocopying the whole thing and returning it or waiting until the week before the exam, studying with the book and returning it. Good times).

 

Just checked. Not there. Good thought though. 8)

As was the idea of photocopying all the pages and returning the book. Doesn't work when it's 704 pages.

Did find this site, which has the potential to be useful in about 10 years, and this similar one and also the Open Textbooks project site. Might be similar to the Wikibooks project.

 

It depends on what you're studying, and why. If you go to college to learn specific skills that are valued in the job market it's worth it. If you go to find yourself, or engage in personal growth it's not, you can do that without paying tuition.

 

Channeling spnited?

 

I do my fair share of reading on a palm pilot. It's amazing to me to see the cost of a download approach those levels since 90 percent of the time, there's a way to get it for free.

I mean take a walk in torrent or p2p land. It's not just for movies and music anymore.

 

you can always try ebay, it has netted me some very good prices on some very over-priced textbooks. Sorry though, there was only one listing for this one, and it has been removed.

 

I saved a good $200-$400 bucks a semester by buying on Amazon. Then I'd sell 'em back for pennies at the book store and buy a pizza and some beer.

 

they add a chapter here, take away a chapter there, all to rape the students. what frauds.