The Increasing Costs of College Textbooks
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009 Subscribe To Our Feed
Anyone about to start or already busy furthering their education is probably well aware of the ridiculous cost of all types of textbooks. Books are, unfortunately, an inevitable and expensive part of college life that cannot be avoided, making finding college textbooks for sale an absolute must. But, why are they so costly, and what, if anything can be done about the problem? Are the government or individual schools even concerning themselves with the issue?
Students must have textbooks, but the high cost it is becoming a financial hardship to many students. The only way to fix the problem is to understand it, so a solution can be found and students can save money.
Students Pay High Price for College Textbooks
A student walking into the campus store looking for college textbooks for sale may experience “sticker shock.” At most colleges and universities, the cost of books now averages about $900 per year. And it has increased $200 over just five years! This expense is in addition to quickly rising tuition costs, increasing the financial burden on those wishing to continue their education. For some students, the increase in textbook costs means more financial aid from the government, but many do not receive help.
Increasing Textbook Costs
Over the last 20 years the cost of college and university textbooks have been steadily on the rise with an average increase of 6% every year, meaning a student can expect to see a 24% increase during the course of their college career. To put this figure in perspective, simply use the national inflation rate as a comparison. During the years 1986 to 2004 the national average inflation rate was 72% while the cost of college textbooks rose an astonishing 240% in the same time frame.
With closer examination into a breakdown of the cost of textbooks it becomes more clear who is profiting the most from these outrageous prices.
A financial report from the National Association of College Stores gives us the exact breakdown of what it costs to make each textbook and who profits the most. Freight costs are the lowest at 1%, followed by 4% for the store selling the book, 7% for the publishing company, 12% for the author, 17% to pay for store operating costs, and the largest portion at 59% for publishing costs. Publishing expenses for college textbooks are the highest, and unfortunately, without real action and a definitive change within the industry, prices are likely to continue to rise quickly.
Combating the Cost of College Textbooks
The government has stepped in to examine textbook costs. The Government Accounting Office, GAO, has investigated why textbook costs have been on the rise at such an alarming rate. The GAO found that increases have been largely due to the increase in costs of product development, including the addition of supplemental aids, such as CD ROMs, which are requested by instructors. Also cost increases are due to frequent requests for revisions of the material.
Some state governments have helped by exempting textbooks from sales tax. There is also work to stop bundling of textbooks with supplements. Many times those supplements are not really needed, but the bundling increases the cost to students. There is current on-going work on what can be done at a government level to decrease textbook expense.
There is much that professors and students can do to keep costs down. Professors need to start thinking about the cost when choosing materials for their class. Much of the increase in costs have been linked to professors requesting improvements and supplementation of textbooks.Students should look into the growing number of companies that can offer access to a textbook online. As more books become available, this could help keep down costs.
Some universities place copies of textbooks in the library so they can be used there instead of being purchased. Some schools and businesses are offering a rental system for textbooks. This allows students to rent instead of buying the books and can saves a significant amount of money.
Students can also be resourceful. They can find university textbooks for sale in a variety of places, other than the campus store. They can share or borrow books from friends, or look online for used texts.
Inarguably, the high cost of college and university textbooks is a problem that needs to be addressed today so that more people can improve their lives by obtaining a higher education, without the added worry of finding a way to afford their textbooks.
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