Textbooks can be a constant worry for a college student. While tuition may be covered by grants and loans, books are not often included as a consideration for school expenses. This can leave students in the lurch, unable to complete important assignments or everyday reading. The effects of not being able to afford certain textbooks can wreak havoc with grades, so instead of buying straight from your student book store, look into one of these other options.

Buy Used

If you really can’t find the book anywhere else other than your student bookstore, then at least buy a used version. These are often significantly cheaper, and may even contain useful notes from the person who owned it before.

Buy Online

Try checking out sites such as eBay.com, Half.com, or Amazon.com where independent booksellers can list their textbooks. Sellers must list the condition of the book when they put them up for sale on these sites. You can choose to buy a textbook with a worn cover, highlighting, or writing in it, and it will be incredibly cheap – often cheaper than buying used at a bookstore.

Rent Your Books

There are plenty of websites that allow you to rent textbooks, and return them at the end of the year. Try places such as Chegg.com, Textbooks.com, or Campusbookrentals.com.

Swap Your Books

There are plenty of ways to go about this. If you want a large selection, go online to a swap site, such as swap.com, and see if there are any textbook swaps going on in your area. You can also try to institute your own book swap. If you belong to a larger society, like a club, or a sorority, you could try to organize a get-together where everyone can trade their books around. Read the rest of this entry »