Students waiting to buy textbooks on a long line in the University Book Store. Textbook prices have risen at a faster rate than college tuition, housing and health care.
As many college students can attest, book smarts have a price — and given the 812 percent increase in textbook costs over the last 35 years, that price is only going up.
The percent increase in textbook prices — which strain many students at the start of each semester — is larger than the rising costs of tuition, health care and housing over the same time period, according to the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank based in Washington. Nationwide, about 20 percent of textbook costs go directly to bookstores, according to studies by the National Association of College Stores.
“This trend doesn’t surprise me at all,” said Angeline Johny, a sophomore neurobiology and physiology major. “I figured [textbook price] inflation was due to bookstores trying to make money off of students.”
Students like Johny and sophomore Hilina Tarekegn, who is enrolled in letters and sciences, regularly deal with bloated receipts during each book-buying trip, despite comparing the costs of their required readings at area bookstores and on websites. Selling books back at the end of the semester only yields a fraction of the original cost, they said — Johny sold back $800 worth of textbooks this semester and received $388 in return.
Although publishers no longer provide the NACS with statistics on exactly how textbook money is divvied up, 2008 figures show about 12 percent went to authors, about 15 percent went toward marketing textbooks and about 32 percent went to paper, printing and publishers.
The data demonstrate not only high costs industry wide, such as in publishers’ employee salaries, Tarekegn said, but also a profit-maximizing trend resting on cooperation between publishers and book stores. Costs for supplemental materials, such as online access codes and new editions, also drive up prices. In July, textbook costs saw an 8.1 percent increase from a year before, with prices for all other goods growing by 1.4 percent overall, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Because of this close tie between bookmakers and booksellers, Tarekegn said she could not blame bookstores for charging more money to stay open.
In College Park, the Maryland Book Exchange, operated by Neebo, and the University Book Center, operated by Barnes & Noble, take a 5 to 20 percent commission, said Rosanna Jesse, Maryland Book Exchange assistant manager. The exact percentage is determined by the university’s contract with publishers.
BookHolders, on the other hand, which many students called their go-to option for cheaper textbooks in the area, charges a flat 15 percent commission, said marketing manager Ryna Luckert Quinones.
“Textbooks are generally extremely expensive anywhere I look, and I have no other option but to buy them at the high price,” said Nevina El-Leithy, a sophomore public health major.
Like many college students, El-Leithy tries to hunt for the best prices but often comes up with few options for big savings.
“You can’t change much,” she said.
