Buying Books under Budget

Hi ladies!

My name is Sarah Cosgrove, and I am a senior in Bioengineering.

As classes are approaching, students are starting to panic about what books to buy while staying in budget. After going through this for 6+ times I have figured out how to make this frustrating and stressful process easier. Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you start to prepare for your college career.

How to find out what books you need:

Log onto Elion

Go to the drop down menu on the top and expand Schedule

Choose Student Schedule

Select the semester you would like to buy books for

Click on the tab that says Buy Books

Click on the top square to select all

Click the button Confirm Selections

Click on Submit (don’t worry this will NOT purchase the books)

Your course materials for that semester will open up

Do not buy your books before you go to the first day of class!

Most teachers will state on their syllabus “textbook is required.” However, I have had teachers who on the first day of class will say that the book is only recommended for those who need additional reading to learn the material sufficiently. Another situation is where assigned homework problems are not even from the textbook, rather made-up by the professor. Personally, I had a math class where I bought the textbook, but never ended up using it because all of the assigned homework problems were made-up by my instructor. So the lesson to be learned is wait to buy your books until you hear what your professor has to say about them!

Avoid the Student Bookstore at all costs.

Buying any science or math textbook at the Student Bookstore (downtown or at the HUB) will easily cost a couple hundred dollars, even if used. When the semester is over and you go back to sell your books you only get a fraction of what you paid for them just a few months ago. I highly recommend using the website Chegg.com, where you can rent or buy used books at a much lower cost. Rent books only when you know you will not refer to them in a later class. For example, Math 140/ Math 141, Chem 110/Chem 112, as well as Chem 210/Chem 212 will use the same textbook if a new edition doesn’t come out in between. Some professors will even tell you that older editions of a textbook will be sufficient for their class.

Other resources to find textbooks are groups on Facebook, such as the Textbook Exchange group for Penn State or “Class of 20—” groups. Fellow Penn Staters will post used textbooks that they are willing to sell at a lower cost. This is a good resource for those who are good at bargaining for a better price!

Getting away without buying books all together

Davey Library is a great resource for us engineers whose books are mostly science and math related. At Davey Library a student is able to rent out not only textbooks, but also student manuals with just presenting their student I.D. card. The only downside to this option is that you are not able to take the books out of the library. There are however, photocopy machines available to use. Other textbooks can be found at the libraries around campus, just ask a librarian and they will be sure to be of help! Also collaborate with your fellow engineering buddies and share books. This is an excellent way to cut down on costs.

 


Sarah Cosgrove is a senior in Bioengineering, and she is a Mentor for WEPO '14!