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by Alexis Mattera

As a college student, my pockets were far from deep but they got even shallower when I stopped at the co-op to buy my books at the beginning of each semester. My wallet and I loathed the astronomical price tags (even for used copies!) with a passion because we both knew there had to be a way for me to get books and not be forced to subsist on Top Ramen until my next break. I was right…just kind of bummed it didn’t happen during my collegiate tenure.

Data from the Student Public Interest Research Group’s new survey disclose textbooks available for free online or sold in print for low cost could slash students’ textbook bills from $900 to $184 each year. Using eBooks and textbook rental services like BookRenter.com and Chegg.com can also reduce book costs by $300. Though 93 percent of students surveyed said they would rent “at least some of their textbooks,” Cerritos College student Donald Pass prefers the flexibility of open textbooks because he could read the material for free online, purchase a print copy with study aids or print it himself. (Daytona State's administration agrees and will begin offering eBook access to students this coming January.) Professors like Lon Mitchell of Virginia Commonwealth University, however, say this option is troublesome because students often bring only limited sections of text to class, making it difficult for instructors to review supplemental material in different chapters. Mitchell also said that a number of his students have resisted the online versions of the open textbooks because compared to the print versions, they felt the online text was lacking.

I hear what Mitchell is saying loud and clear but if a student can reduce their spending by up to 80 percent by using open books and textbook rentals, I have a feeling print editions are going to be seen less and less as the years go by. Students, are you utilizing eBooks and textbook rentals or are you still relying solely on hard copies you don't have to share or return? If you’re using both, is there a noticeable difference in the material quality like Mitchell said? What's your preference between these options?

by Suada Kolovic

Broke college students across the country have reason to rejoice: Amazon has unveiled an e-textbook-rental program which has the potential to save students up to 80 percent on textbooks!

The program will provide students with the opportunity to download temporary copies of textbooks from Amazon’s website for reading on a Kindle e-book reader, computer, tablet or smartphone running free Kindle software. The system allows customers to specify rental periods lasting anywhere from a month to a year. Students will have the option to purchase the e-book during or after a rental period, or extend a rental period in daily increments. Still not sold? Let’s use a real-life example: Intermediate Accounting retails at $197 in print and $109 as an e-book but with Amazon’s program, a student can rent the e-book for three months at the low price of $57!

And what about the students who scribble notes in the margins and saturate textbooks with fluorescent ink? Well, Amazon’s got that covered, too! Not only can students highlight and take notes in their digital textbooks but they’ll be able to refer to any margin notes and highlights made after the rental period is over. And with the cost of traditional print textbooks ranging in the thousands over the course of a college career, odds are rental programs like these will undoubtedly take off.

by Suada Kolovic

The start of every new semester calls for a new set of textbooks – very expensive textbooks. Students can’t really think about the cost of college today without factoring in the skyrocketing cost of textbooks. With the individual book prices well over $100 in many cases, textbook costs can easily add up and, depending on your major, you could easily be spending $500 or more on textbooks a semester. For years students have improvised on ways to dodge buying a new copy and it’s important to know that there are options available, so here are some tips put together by the Huffington Post that can save students some cash.

• Buy Used: Definitely not a new concept, but still a great way to save almost half the cost of a textbook. Most college bookstores have used options on campus but quantities are limited. Other reliable resources that sell used textbooks are Amazon, half.com and abebooks.com.
• Book Renting: This option is becoming increasingly popular. It allows students to rent a gently-used textbook for a semester for about half the price of a new edition. But if your campus bookstore doesn't rent books, check out chegg.com, bookrenter.com or collegebookrenter.com.
• Try the Library: Believe it or not there are FREE options out there, like campus and local libraries. And if you’re one of the lucky ones to actually find a copy of what you’re looking for, check it out fast before one of your classmates beats you to the punch.
• Buy Older Editions: In some cases, professors will permit students to buy a previous edition of a book that is just as good as the more expensive current edition. Therefore, it’s a great idea to ask your professor what their policy is before purchasing your textbooks.
• Get International Editions: According to the New York Times, international editions of your textbooks are often identical to U.S. editions and cost 50 to 70 percent less than their American counterparts.
• Go Digital: It seems like the end of traditional textbooks are near and increasingly more students have the option to purchase e-books directly from book publishers from sites like cousesmart.com and cafescribe.com.

by Jessica Seals

A typical soon-to-be college student’s priority list probably looks a little something like this:

• Step 1: Stay focused in high school by keeping a high GPA and doing as many extracurricular activities as possible.
• Step 2: Make a list of possible college choices and start on applications early.
• Step 3: Make a final decision on where to attend college.
• Step 4: Move into the dorms and get ready for four incredible years!

But wait!!! With all of the excitement of starting college, students can forget to get their finances together to pay for it all! Many students don’t realize that they can eliminate student loan headaches simply by starting the scholarship application process early. By doing so, students have more time to get their application materials together and apply for more scholarships because they are not rushing to submit everything on deadline day.

From my own personal experience, I found it advantageous to apply for scholarships early. I joined websites like Scholarships.com so that I could keep track of deadlines and scholarships that I qualified for. I sent it all of my materials early and when I started receiving letters that began with “Congratulations!” it made the time that I spent applying for scholarships worthwhile.

Another bit of advice that I found helpful was applying for scholarships even if the amount seems small. During my freshman year of college, I applied for the new member scholarship for the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society despite the fact that the award amount was $300. Nothing could make my smile turn into a frown that day because winning the scholarship meant that I wouldn’t have to pay out of pocket for books in the upcoming semester.

My final advice: Apply for as many scholarships as possible because you might just be what the scholarship committee is looking for. Even the smallest award can help pay for something!

Jessica Seals is currently a senior at the University of Memphis majoring in political science and minoring in English. At the University of Memphis, she is the secretary of the Pre-Law Society, the philanthropy chair of the Phi Kappa Phi Student Council and a member of Professional Assertive United Sisters of Excellence (PAUSE), Golden Key Honor Society, Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, Sigma Alpha Lambda Honor Society, and Black Scholars Unlimited. She also volunteers to tutor her fellow classmates and hopes to attend law school in the near future.

by Jacquelene Bennett

Kindles, eBooks and Nooks are all electronic alternatives to traditional paper bound books that are slowly becoming more and more popular. Though I prefer paper bound books, I must admit that I really want a Kindle but this gadget and others like it don’t really have a place in college classrooms (yet) for several reasons.

As anyone who has taken a college course can attest, the books and texts assigned to the class are the middle ground for students, professors and the course subject that is being taught. Professors often select certain editions of books for the class for a number of reasons and while the selection of books available for electronic download grows daily, these editions are oftentimes not available. For those courses that have lengthy book lists, another issue is that sometimes only a few books are available electronically while the rest aren’t (I’ve seen this while book shopping for classes on Amazon); this may not be an issue for one individual’s personal reading process but I can’t imagine being a professor and trying to conduct a class with that disruption of different media formats.

I think that one of the main reasons why these devices will have a hard time catching on in the classroom is the distraction they provide. Some devices just don’t store books but they allow people to surf the Internet as well. Professors already hate students bringing their laptops to class for this reason so I doubt they will approve of a Kindle or Nook that has the same capabilities.

The reality is that we do live in a technological world where even books aren’t safe from the oblivion caused by electronic innovations so I think it is just a matter of time before these electronic books become a staple in the classroom.

Jacquelene Bennett is a rising senior at the University of Redlands where her areas of study are creative writing, government and religious studies. When she is not studying or working, you can usually find her eating frozen yogurt or blogging about her day. She has a cactus named Kat and believes that Stephen Colbert is a genius. Jacquelene works hard, laughs hard and knows that one day you’ll see her name in lights.

by Aaron Lin

Being a college student has a lot of perks in terms of accessible facilities, discounts and resources. Here are a few tips on what to take advantage of while you’re a student:

• Amazon Prime. The power of a dot edu email address is amazing and here’s a great way to get a top-notch service for free for a year. Amazon Prime gives you free two-day shipping on eligible products and one-day shipping for $3.99. This is a sweet deal and I’ve used mine up already on my textbooks for the past two semesters. After the introductory year is up, you get a discounted rate of $39/year down from the original $79/year.
• The gym. Membership to your university’s gym is probably included in your tuition and fees anyway. You may as well get up off your butt and use their facilities and sport-specific courts like racquetball, tennis and basketball. Exercise hard and live easy.
• The student health center. Hooray for potentially cheap healthcare! The doctor might not always be there but someone will help you when Mom is what seems like a million miles away.
• Student movie tickets. If you and your date want to go out to a movie, a student ticket can save you a few bucks at the box office. Now you can spring for popcorn!
• Advisors. Universities are full of advisors specific to your major. If you don’t have a major, chances are good there’s someone who can help you choose one. Advisors have experience working with people like you and can assist you with everything from course selection to financial aid and it’s not like the general public can use them!
• Discounts on big-name computer software and hardware. Things like Microsoft Office, anti-virus software, Photoshop and Apple products all usually have some kind of discount for students. Cash in!

I hope some of you have ideas to add, too. Feel free to comment!

Aaron Lin is a chemistry major at Louisiana State University but has plans to transfer to LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans to pursue a medical laboratory science degree and further feed his interest in the application of scientific and medical knowledge. In his free time, Aaron likes to eat food, read and write about food, exercise to work off that food and play the occasional computer game. He also enjoys footbiking, running and Frisbee.

by Suada Kolovic

The start of every new semester calls for a new set of textbooks- very expensive textbooks. Students can’t really think about the cost of college today without factoring in the skyrocketing cost of textbooks. For years students have improvised on ways to dodge buying a new copy- purchasing a used one, borrowing a copy from the library, sharing with a friend, renting one, downloading an illegal version, or simply going without. We recently posted about how e-textbooks and textbook rental services are saving students money but it may not be too long before they’ll be a students’ only option. The plan is to have colleges require students to pay a course-materials fee, which would be used to buy e-books for all of them (whatever text the professor recommend, just as in the old model).

And why not? Electronic copies are far cheaper to produce than printed text, making a bulk purchase more feasible and with colleges ordering books by the hundreds of thousands, they can negotiate a much better rate than students were able to get on their own, even for used books. The hope is to thwart the possibility of students dropping out because they could not afford textbooks, whose average price rose 186 percent between 1986 and 2005, and continue to shoot up each year faster than inflation.

"When students pay more for new textbooks than tuition in a year, then something's wrong," says Rand S. Spiwak, executive vice president at Daytona State, who is leading the experiment there. "Our game plan is to bring the cost of textbooks down by 75 to 80 percent."

But not everyone is buying into the hype of the e-textbook. Issues of ethics have aroused, for instance, what if a professor wrote the textbook assigned for his or her class? Is it ethical to force students to buy it, even at a reduced rate? And what if students feel they are better off on their own, where they have the option of sharing or borrowing a book at no cost?

by Alexis Mattera

With the popularity of wireless computing devices among college students, it would seem that e-textbooks would be just as attractive for this tech-savvy generation. Not so, according to a new survey: The printed textbook is still the big man on campus.

Student Monitor’s survey of 1,200 full-time students at four-year institutions revealed that although 54 percent of respondents owned smartphones, 87 percent owned laptops and nearly 50 percent reported interest in purchasing a wireless reading device, only 5 percent of respondents purchased access to an e-textbook this spring – and usually only because professors required them to. The proportion of students who rented at least one printed textbook, however, doubled to 24 percent from last spring. With campus bookstores and independent sites like Chegg.com making book rental easier and more available, the trend is only expected to grow: Thirty-six percent of underclassmen said they are either likely or very likely to rent at least one textbook next semester.

The main reason students are renting textbooks instead of buying the electronic versions? The savings, which were reported as about $127. With that kind of money back in the bank, students could splurge on their other "likes" the survey revealed...or maybe get a head start paying off some of those student loans. Which side are you on in the textbook debate – Team E-book or Team Rental – and why?

by Lisa Lowdermilk

Hi everyone! My name is Lisa Lowdermilk and I live in Colorado. I just completed my Associate of Arts degree and I am transferring to the University of Colorado Denver this summer. I have completed my degree entirely online and I am transferring to UC Denver because of its online writing program. I prefer online schooling to traditional schooling because I feel it’s easier to stay organized and is more flexible. And hey, who doesn’t want to attend class in their pajamas?

I am majoring in English, specifically professional writing. I love being able to express myself through words – it is such a great way of connecting with other people – so much so that I have written a book, which I am getting published next year. It has always been my dream to be a published author and, though it’s been a lot of work, the end result will be worth it. If I had to describe my book, I would say it’s a young adult murder mystery set in the future and I’m so excited that other people will be able to read it! In addition to writing, I love to play video games, especially those for Nintendo and PlayStation. My favorite TV show is “Castle” (how many other TV shows have both murder and humor?); I also loved “Ugly Betty” and was pretty upset when it was taken off the air.

I was interested in becoming a virtual intern for Scholarships.com because I know that in today’s competitive job market, employers want workers with experience. I also like the idea of being able to help other students overcome the many obstacles of attending college...sometimes I think all the forms colleges require are more tedious than college classes!

Anyway, it’s great to “e-meet” everyone. Here’s to a great semester!

by Jacquelene Bennett

Soon-to-be college students, be warned: You’ll be doing a lot of reading and writing during your postsecondary education. From the moment you start to the moment you finish, you will read until your eyes bulge out and write until your fingers are numb. That being said, I can see how the thought of reading during your summer vacation may be unpleasant but you’ll soon realize the most successful and active college students share one thing in common: They are all well-read.

Now it is not necessary for you to read the entire Library of Congress before school starts but I’ve gone and listed three books that I think are important for all students to read before starting college.

• Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson: With all the conflict and war still raging on in the Middle East, this book is relevant to many majors and is often a topic of discussion. It sheds light on a heavily neglected issue – education for children, specifically little girls. Controversy or not, it’s a good read.
• On The Road by Jack Kerouac: While the only people reading this book in college are English majors, you will be flooded with references from this book by professors and students throughout your entire college career regardless of what your major is. So when a professor said he “went Kerouac” when he was younger, you’ll know what that means.
• The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho: I have yet to hear a professor talk about this book but everyone I know has read it. It is a powerful book about a boy’s spiritual journey and is a great conversation starter amongst people attending college. I can’t even begin to tell you how many discussions I’ve had about this book!

These aren’t the only books you should read but they are definitely among the most important ones. Grab copies at your local library or bookstore and enjoy!

Jacquelene Bennett is a rising senior at the University of Redlands where her areas of study are creative writing, government and religious studies. When she is not studying or working, you can usually find her eating frozen yogurt or blogging about her day. She has a cactus named Kat and believes that Stephen Colbert is a genius. Jacquelene works hard, laughs hard and knows that one day you’ll see her name in lights.