Students have more options for textbooks than they know

Classes have started, financial aid money has been distributed on schedule and yet many students have put off buying textbooks because of the cost.
The average student pays over a hundred dollars for books and supplies every term and they only get a portion of that money back, through book buybacks or textbook tradeoffs.
The MHCC bookstore has several options to purchase books. They currently offer rental books, new and used books, loose leaf books [with three hole punches that can be inserted into a three-ring binder for reduced cost] and eight titles of eBooks.
“EBooks are something the industry is going towards so they are now selling a few selections of eBooks,” said MHCC bookstore manager Julie Godat.
The bookstore has recently started selling the Toshiba Thrive tablet, which can be used as an e-Reader.
“In the last year we have had a lot of people ask for eBooks,” Godat said, adding that the bookstore has 234 of 800 book titles available for rent.
Godat also said the prices students pay at a college bookstore depend on the net price of the book. The prices for book buyers will be the same for all institutions and then a price margin will be added. The price margin is the money that the bookstore makes off of the sale of the book. The percent of added price margin is determined by the price of the book.
According to Pauker, the MHCC bookstore sets their profit margin, and each margin varies by institution. For more than three years the added price margin has been 25 percent.
Mt Hood Community College offers other resources than in store purchase of new and used text books and eBooks. The college has also created an online system similar to many school’s on campus book trades.
The MHCC bookstore’s student trade option is located online. The textbook tradeoff is a solution for students to buy and sell books to other students and set their own prices.
To access this service from my.mhcc.edu click the “Student life” tab and under that section it is accessible from the “Textbook Tradeoff” link. Those looking to sell a book should select “Want to Sell,” and those looking to buy should click, “Want to Buy.”
Also available for students is the option to post a flier for a book on the bulletin board located in the entrance of the library on campus.
Other community colleges in the area, including Clark Community College and Portland Community College, have student government offices facilitate their own textbook trading and buying systems that help students obtain cash and still get a good deal by offering a student buy and sell option.
At both colleges the trade takes place at an on campus location. At PCC Cascade the students are directed to a basement where there are posted lists of books and their student-designated prices. The student service cost for the book exchange is $1 per person, each student can sell up to eight books.
Clackamas Community College, according to Student Life and Leadership Adviser Michelle Baker, has been operating since before she started there 11 years ago. Their exchange is open through the second week of classes in fall, winter, and spring term. The exchange is closed during the summer term.
MHCC currently does not have a student-run or student-government-run service for buying and selling textbooks on campus.
Associated Student Government President Jackie Altamirano said: “We have something planned for winter term, it will be called “Book Swap” it will be on a Saturday before the term starts.
The future exchange will be before the term begins and again after the term ends. The Book Swap will happen in the College Center, Altimirano said. She also mentioned, students will set their own prices, and there will be no fee paid by Students to ASG, only students to students, ASG’s role will be to facilitate and provide refreshments.
Instead of paying high bookstore prices on campus students can review online resources or personal connections.
Amazon.com or other reliable websites may make purchasing an eReader to upload textbooks more simple and less costly than the bookstore.
Borrowing or buying from a friend could also be an un-reviewed option. Other options students may explore are looking on Craigslist, or posting on Facebook or Twitter.
After the term ends in order to make money for the following term or just to have on hand the bookstore does offer one solution for students seeking quick cash.
During finals week the bookstore offers book buyback for students.
The MHCC bookstore buyback is only available at the end of every term and during the first week of classes.
According to MHCC bookstore Book buyer Carol Pauker, the bookstore offers 50 percent of the price of a new or used book back to the student if the book is going back on the shelf in the MHCC bookstore.
“We have a third party company that buys books nationally; they pay 30% to nothing for textbooks,” Pauker said.
However, if a third party buys the book, a student can receive less than 50 percent of the book’s price, Pauker said.
Pauker also said that there must be a demand for the book, if she only sold two she cannot buy back 40, buying back also depends on what edition teachers are using.