Rising textbook prices leave some asking when colleges will go digital
By: Sarah Bleau
Issue date: 11/25/08 Section: News
Students spend an average of $900 per year on textbooks according to BusinessWeek.
So would they support the new digital textbook movement during these harsh economic times?
"If it's a higher price-no. I can barely afford [textbooks] now," junior education major Darion Lewis said.
But once he heard textbooks that are $100 for the printed version and $50 for the digital version on sites such as CourseSmart and iChapters, he changed his answer.
"I'm all for it!" Lewis said.
By purchasing digital textbooks instead of printed textbooks, students can save 50 to 60 percent, University Bookstore Manager Beth Cain said. Just 40 to 80 textbooks out of 3,000 titles are offered digitally at The University of Memphis, but no digital book orders have been placed by professors.
"We're happy to sell it to them if they want a savings cost," Cain said. "We want to offer whatever is most cost effective for the student. It's not something we're opposed to at all."
While students save money initially, "digital textbooks are not always the cheaper option," said Charles Schmidt, director of public relations for the National Association of College Stores. Schmidt describes digital textbooks as being rented.
"If you have electronic textbooks, it will probably be cheaper up front, but you're not going to be able to keep it," he said.
Therefore, if students want to reference back to a textbook later after the semester ends or after graduation, digital textbooks don't provide that option. They disappear after the semester ends.
Because the book is "rented," he also said students will not be able to sell back their digital books as they can with printed textbooks.
But having a less expensive option for textbooks is a big push for students to shift toward the digital textbook movement.
Even with the possibility of cutting the yearly cost of textbooks, some students aren't convinced going digital is worth it.
So would they support the new digital textbook movement during these harsh economic times?
"If it's a higher price-no. I can barely afford [textbooks] now," junior education major Darion Lewis said.
But once he heard textbooks that are $100 for the printed version and $50 for the digital version on sites such as CourseSmart and iChapters, he changed his answer.
"I'm all for it!" Lewis said.
By purchasing digital textbooks instead of printed textbooks, students can save 50 to 60 percent, University Bookstore Manager Beth Cain said. Just 40 to 80 textbooks out of 3,000 titles are offered digitally at The University of Memphis, but no digital book orders have been placed by professors.
"We're happy to sell it to them if they want a savings cost," Cain said. "We want to offer whatever is most cost effective for the student. It's not something we're opposed to at all."
While students save money initially, "digital textbooks are not always the cheaper option," said Charles Schmidt, director of public relations for the National Association of College Stores. Schmidt describes digital textbooks as being rented.
"If you have electronic textbooks, it will probably be cheaper up front, but you're not going to be able to keep it," he said.
Therefore, if students want to reference back to a textbook later after the semester ends or after graduation, digital textbooks don't provide that option. They disappear after the semester ends.
Because the book is "rented," he also said students will not be able to sell back their digital books as they can with printed textbooks.
But having a less expensive option for textbooks is a big push for students to shift toward the digital textbook movement.
Even with the possibility of cutting the yearly cost of textbooks, some students aren't convinced going digital is worth it.