By Megan Herrera
News Editor
Students are no longer turning to Barnes & Noble at Bucknell University and Amazon.com to purchase their required textbooks. University textbooks are renowned for being extremely expensive, so it’s no surprise that there are plenty of alternative ways for students to find the books they need at a more reasonable price.
Several students have used various Internet textbook sites to rent or buy textbooks as a way to save money. These sites include, but are not limited to, Chegg.com, bookrenter.com and rent-a-text.com.
One such website, FindersCheapers.com, has saved college students hundreds of dollars every year with its price comparison feature.
James Krewson, creator and CEO of FindersCheapers.com, compiled data into a graph on his website showing the extent of possible savings on textbooks at universities across the country.
“For years I knew my price comparison website was popular with college students. Recently, I decided to compare textbook prices at campus bookstores to FindersCheapers.com. The results greatly exceeded my expectations,” Krewson said on the website.
The graph is based on a list of textbooks for five courses of moderate difficulty that would be the average courseload for a first-year student. While these savings are high, ranging from $130 at Pennsylvania State University to a whopping $417 at Miami Dade College, Krewson believes that it is possible to save even more. Students agree.
“Amazon had all of my books for $440, so I ordered everything on there once I got my schedule. I needed books for the first week, though, so I went to the bookstore and it came out to almost $620. Have to love saving almost 200 bucks,” Andrew Coe ’15 said.
In an effort to help students alleviate textbook costs, Barnes & Noble at Bucknell University has started a new program that allows students to rent their textbooks for the semester at an approximate 50 percent discount.
“Since I pay for my own books, it’s great knowing that I can get textbooks at a cheaper price online, and now that the bookstore allows me to rent some, I was able to save over $100,” Joey McCafferty ’14 said.
Many other students believe that the University’s bookstore has made a smart move because it encourages students to maintain their relationships with their campus bookstore.
“I used to rent my textbooks from Chegg.com, but now that the bookstore allows me to rent them so it’s a lot more convenient. Now I don’t have to worry about returning my books to the website or selling them back to the bookstore,” Brenna O’Neill ’12 said.
With so many avenues to save money on textbooks, it is to no surprise that students are researching all of their options. From the Internet to the bookstore, students have many more choices to save those extra bucks.