As Drop/Add week comes to an end, students are finishing up one of the most dreaded activities of the semester: Acquiring textbooks. Whether you have already purchased all your textbooks or are heading to Broad Street to pick up the final ones, you will all end the week having dealt with one of the worst cases of sticker shock possible. Because while the mile-long line is annoying, nothing is more horrifying than seeing your purchase total turn to a three-digit number for the nine textbooks your English class requires. Of course, there are cheaper options: you can buy used or rent new/used copies, borrow, lend, sellback after buying, have parents pay, pay part, pay full. But sellback can be difficult and asking parents difficult to navigate, especially if the money situation is tight. And with the prices sitting at a cringe-worthy level no matter what, paying for textbooks has become a serious concern for most college students.
Have you ever wondered why you’re textbooks are so expensive? Even normal books aren’t always cheap, but textbook prices have soared far above that level. There is some disparity in data, but on average it is reported that textbook prices have risen 800% in the last 30 years. And with choosing to not buy a textbook possibly hurting your grade, it poses questions about a rigged college system that favors those with money, even after you get past the golden gates. So what’s causing prices to be so high?