Why Are Textbooks So Expensive?

In today's job market, a college education has become the minimum bar to enter the workforce at an entry level position. Many candidates are seeking jobs with a minimum of a bachelor's degree, putting those candidates without one at a great disadvantage. What's more, employers are less concerned with the candidate's bachelor's degree concentration as they are with candidates' exemplary achievements of discipline, intelligence and focus that a degree requires. This signals to the potential employer that the applicant is more likely to be reliable and should make a good employee. Economists refer to this as a screening/signaling device for employers. Based on the assumption that having a college degree puts one at an advantage when interviewing for a job, let's then explore why so many Americans still lack a college degree in today's marketplace.

The cost of education is usually the foremost reason why people either never start college, or begin but later drop out. One of the main costs associated with obtaining a college education, besides tuition expenses, are books. According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the cost of college textbooks have increased 200% over inflation during the past two decades. This is an astonishing figure considering textbook inflation is roughly the same as tuition inflation during that same period.

Students are certainly feeling the pinch from the increased cost of textbooks. Daniel Cooper, a student at Northlake College in Irving Texas said, "I spent about $800 on classes last semester before books. I was shocked when I went to the bookstore and found out my books cost more than my classes." One of the problems Mr. Cooper faced at the end of the semester was selling his books back. "I went to sell my books back to the library, and out of the six books I had, three of them they wouldn't buy back, one of them I bought for $172, and they offered me $54 for it, and the other two combined, I sold for $52." He continued, "Out of the three books they wouldn't buy, two of them were lab manuals for biology courses at Northlake, so if they wouldn't buy them, I have no option to sell them."

What Mr. Cooper experienced is something that a lot of students experience at the end of each semester; the bookstore buyback issue. Most bookstores make an average profit margin of 22% on books they sell. At the end of the semester, they typically buy books back at roughly 50% of what they sold them for and then resell them for slightly less than the original sales price. In effect, they are selling the same books multiple times which in turn drives up their profits. This is a completely logical maneuver for the bookstore, but unfortunately, the student gets the short end of the stick.

CONTRIBUTORS TO HIGHER COSTS:

So why do textbooks prices keep going up? Textbooks, along with tuition and other fees, are affected by inflation. By nature, a new product this year is going to be less than the same new product five years from now. Inflation, however, is not the main reason why the costs of textbooks have increased in recent years. According to the GAO, one of the main reasons contributing to increased textbook costs has to do with the rising costs associated with developing products designed to accompany textbooks. These products include such things as CD-ROMs and other instructional supplements requested by the instructors of the courses. Although the instructors feel these ancillary products are important, many wholesalers, retailers, and others expressed concern that the creation of these new "supplements," in addition to more frequent revisions, might unnecessarily increase costs to students.

WAYS TO SAVE:

Although the costs of textbooks are continually rising, there are creative ways to save. E-commerce has opened up a whole new market for college textbooks. Places like Amazon.com and Half.com (a subsidiary of eBay) allow students to purchase books over the internet which may be cheaper than their local bookstore. Once students finish a semester, they can go to these sites to re-sell their books online. Although buying books online can significantly save students money, there are some drawbacks. First, students may not be able to find the books they are looking for. Additionally, when buying and selling textbooks online, shipping cost and time can often be a major deterrent. Although small, retail websites do charge a commission for selling books.

Another alternative with similarities to the e-commerce sites, are sites like www.TradeMyText.com. This site provides students with an opportunity to buy and sell books to other students at their particular college/university with no fee. It's simply an online marketplace that lets users locate their college or university, and either list a book they want to sell or contact someone with a book listed that they want to buy. This option makes it somewhat easier for students since they do not have to worry about shipping costs, fees, or time frames. The one drawback, like the other e-commerce sites, is book availability. However, TradeMyText can be helpful to students like Mr. Cooper, who purchased books that are only used at one particular school.

Textbooks are an essential part of obtaining a college education. They are full of knowledge and need to be continually updated if they are to remain current. By remaining focused and persistent, almost anyone has the intelligence to graduate college, and with a few of these money saving tips, they can find creative ways to pay for it too.