Save Money Textbook Shopping

College textbook prices rise each year. One way that students can get the best deal is to compare bookstore's prices.

Many students receive loans, scholarships or other types of financial aid to attend the college of their choice. College textbooks can be a very big part of the overall college expense, especially when taking a full load. " The further along you get into your education, the more expensive your books will be," said Noami Ramirez, a sophomore Nursing major at Palo Alto College.

For this article, three bookstores were compared, The Palo Alto College Bookstore, R&R University Bookstore and Varsitybooks.com (an online bookstore).

The Palo Alto College Bookstore is the most convenient for many students. Here, you can find not only textbooks, but also other materials you may need besides school items. Students who purchase their books before classes start have the advantage of finding used books. Those who wait until they get their syllabus may have to purchase them new.

R&R University Bookstore, located at 1107 San Pedro Ave, is right across from the San Antonio College campus. They offer many used and new books and carry a wide variety of books that are required for many courses.

Varsitybooks.com is an online bookstore where students with computer access can purchase their books online. This site does it all for the student. The only thing a student has to do is input data from the school in which they will be attending and the courses they will be taking. Then, in a matter of minutes, you get the total price for the books you have chosen. You can then purchase the textbooks by entering your credit card number. The big advantage of using this site is that all you have to do is wait for your books to arrive in two to three working days. There is a $4.95 shipping and handling fee added to your bill, no matter how many books you order.

In comparing three student's textbook needs to theses three bookstores, R&R University bookstore was the least expensive. Nursing, Biology and Communication majors all would have saved money, ranging from $20-$80, if they had bought their books there. " Books are either too expensive or they lose their value, said a Communications major, many of my books have been replaced by newer additions, making it harder on me to buy the new edition each semester, especially when the old ones are not bought back. " said Daniel Castro, a sophomore.

Many students do not take the time to compare different bookstore's prices. From these comparisons, however, students can see that it pays to shop around.