Back to buying books
STUDENTS SHOULD LOOK AROUND TO FIND THE BEST BOOK PRICES
STORY AND PHOTO BY JAMES HARLEY
It ’s back to school tim e, the tim e that
every stu den t is to tally pum ped for:
listenin g to hours o f lectures, looking
th rou gh pages o f n otes you h ardly
remember taking, and studying a textbook
you paid over $100 for.
Every fu ll-tim e college student has to
spend money on textbooks at some point
in his or her college career. W hether it’s
for m ath, science, history or any other
class, there’s alm ost always a required
book.
For students at Clackam as, there are
several different options when it comes to
purchasing books. The bookstore is likely
the most convenient place for students
to go, but for those wanting to buy a book
brand new, it is a little spendy.
W hen I have purchased textbooks, I
have bought them m ostly through the
bookstore. I always check there first to
see if the book I need has a used version,
which tends to cost much less than brand
new. The bookstore can rent out books as
well. One thing about the bookstore that
many students tend to forget is that books
bought there can be returned at the end
o f the term for some money back.
Many other students I have asked find
themselves looking on Amazon for books.
From my personal experience I find that a
lot of the books from Amazon are not too
much cheaper. Then there’s waiting for
it to ship compared with the convenience
o f getting the book im m ediately at the
bookstore. However, with Amazon Prime’s
h a lf-o ff membership for students, two-
day shipping is free.
I have also personally looked online for
textbooks, and have bought electronic
versions that I can view on my computer
or tablet. This has its own pros and cons,
and really com es down to preference
as m any students would rather have a
physical textbook to highlight words and
take notes in.
Another option is getting books through
the Associated Student Government. They
have a book exchange, which lasts about
the first two weeks of each term. The book
exchange allows students to put their
books up for sale, and purchase books
that other students put up for sale. If
a stu d en t’ s book sells, they keep the
m oney. If it doesn’ t, then the student
gets the book back.
A SG also has a len din g library they
set up in the Com m unity Center, which
allows students to rent books for $20 a
term . However, the book exchange and
lending library only have a select number
o f books to choose from . It’ s possible
that a particular book may not be there,
but I recommend still checking it out to
see if it is.
If any o f these options don’t work, it is
always useful to check with instructors
and other students to see if a textbook
is actually needed to get through a class.
I have easily passed some classes such
as Math 111 without using the textbook,
but instead using other resources such
as the m ath lab to learn and study the
material. However, it depends on how the
instructor runs the class as to whether
the book is necessary or not. It’s always
good to double check.
Unless college textbooks suddenly and
miraculously become free, many students
will have to face the challenge of handing
over a large chunk o f money to pay for
them . Until then, if students need to buy
books, there will be plenty o f places to
look.
B
O
©
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Student Ryan Smith looks at book prices in the Clackamas bookstore.
On the Cover: Adrian Lemus plays “ Pokémon Go” near the sculpture garden. Illustration by Victoria Tinker, Alexis Wagar and Austin Boitz.
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