Tuesday, August 09, 2005

The College Textbook Scam...

After successfully finding several copies of the 4th Edition of Thermodynamics : An Engineering Approach for alot cheaper than the UT bookstore offered, for Emily, the Professor being some twisted soul decided to switch to the new 5th edition which of course has no used copies, or paperback either.

I did find some cheaper sources than UT, however it's a given if she sells the book after this class the best she can hope for is getting half of it back unless she tries to sell it directly. All the rest of the poor souls that have the 4th edition better hurry and sell theirs because as soon as everyone switches to the 5th edition theirs will be dollar bargin bin only.

Granted this is not the most expensive text book she has had to buy, however incase you Professors didn't notice, tuition went up again at UT, as well as some of the fees. Thank you for continuing to make earning a college degree much more of a challenge than it needs to be.

Thank you, this parental unit ranting has now ended.

:-)

6 comments:

Subcomandante Bob said...

We covered this subject here.

Barnes & IgNoble / UT Bookstore are vicious thieves who will occupy an as-yet unfilled circle of Hell.

DBK said...

Time was I could get a decent return on my books when I sold them back to the bookstore at school, and I was almost able to buy used every single time. I've heard that this stuff got bad recently. Someone should start providing the books really cheap on disk and kick the publishers' butts and also the bookstores, since you could then download them from a server.

My most expensive book back in my college days was the Riverside Shakespeare, which I think cost me over $60. However, I still have that one. I'll never give that book up.

Unknown said...

I did read that yesterday Bob, and I would suggest that professors that do these last minute text book switches should also be considered for nomination into the Circle of Hell.

It's not just UT that does this though, most of the buy back sites are rip offs unless you sell the book yourself which is what many are now turning too. The UT bookstore uses the excuse that a percentage of the price goes back to the University. My thoughts are excuse me? Doesn't the University profit enough from students?

:-)

Unknown said...

I'd be happy with a sixty dollar text book, g.d., some of her's have been over two hundred dollars. This particular one is quite the bargain at $135.00 yet used copies of edition four can be found for between 65 to 70.

:-)

Anonymous said...

There's no reason to require a new edition of some books every year. The only thing that usually changes is the problem sets. Looks like somebody's just trying to turn a profit.

The college of engineering (namely, Chris Smallman) began putting up the ISBNs of all the required engineering texts for each semester on the engineering website when the campus bookstore REFUSED to provide ISBNs to students, even when books were sold out. Sorry, it really sucks to not have a text until the 3rd week of class.

I bought all my books online this semester, and wow, I can afford books without taking out loans this year :-)

(Thanks for the help, Mom)

Anonymous said...

A few thoughts:

The Common Wisdom:
The College is a non-profit institution.

The woefully underpaid professors use the “buy my book” method to supplement their otherwise paltry salary.

The publisher HAS to charge high prices because the textbooks they publish have a limited market, and publishing profits are already razor thin.


The Reality:
Everyone is in it for the money and the student is getting “boned” royally. It’s the most important part of the educational process.

And, when you finally get your degree, it’s your turn to be the “boner,” rather than the “bonee…”