The price of textbooks seems to be a universal bonding issue among students and professors on just about any college campus one is likely to visit.
The prices seem to rise every year. So just what causes the discrepancy between the price of books one would try to purchase at their local neighborhood bookstore and those found at a college bookstore?
Speculations run the gamut from conspiracies involving the student government to a complex racket orchestrated by the publishing companies.
The truth seems to be tied in to the vary nature of the books themselves.
Much of the cost involved in producing a book relies on how many copies were produced (called volume), the quality of the paper (called the stock), the inclusion of supplemental materials (called supplemental materials), and the research costs involved with creating new texts and revising the old.
Another perception is that student textbooks increase in price every year.
This has been shown to be true, such as in this review of the book listing “Books in Print” (Bowker), has increased at a rate of 1.6 percent from 1999-2004.
The national inflation level for consumer prices during the same time frame was 2.4 percent according to Economic Education Link Online.
This relates to the majority of the cost of textbooks production, which comes from the intellectual cost. The research, writing, editing, design, and review of a book can cost up to $1 million, according to the Association of American Publishers (AAP).
The problem is that these books often only sell in the tens of thousands.
Lower volume of sale increases the end cost because the price of printing is not offset by the large sales numbers.
The quality of the paper is an important variable because often publishers of textbooks on glossy and or full color paper.
The AAP says that they often offer low-price alternatives such as one- or two-color editions, loose-leaf editions, split editions, black-and-white editions, custom books, abbreviated editions, electronic books and complete learning packages.
However, an independent study group known as the California Student Public Research Group (CALPIRG) contests that the complete learning packages, also known as bundles, are actually driving costs up.
They contest that the bundling offers students little alternative to buying the individual book at a cheaper price. In addition, they assert that students and instructors rarely use the packaged materials.
When asked if he requests and uses the packaged materials, BC sociology professor Ralph Cazares, says he uses them “as often as possible, I try to get it shrink wrapped at no extra cost.”
However, computer engineering major Erika Gutierrez, 19, says, “No, I never use the bundled stuff.”
According to the same study by the CALPIRG, science and math books are the most often bundled, and liberal arts books are least often bundled. A sample book examined by this study, “Chemistry: The Central Science,” published by Pearson Brown cost $130 unbundled and $60 bundled. However, an examination of the BC student bookstore shows that only 6 out of approximately 100 books surveyed are packaged.
The average markup price from wholesale to retail is rounded to approximately 30 percent from publisher to bookstore. The BC bookstore stays just under that average at 29 percent, according to manager Jennifer Caughron. “The publisher sets the price to us, and we set the price to the students.” The profits from this go back into maintaining the bookstore, which pays for its own salary, benefits, utilities, and etcetera.
“All the overhead profits, which are considerable, go back into campus activies, tutoring, extra curricular activities like football, or whatever the college deems necessary,” says Caughron.
She adds that most of the profits are funneled into projects involved with student benefits. “Paper prices, gas, and the other usual factors” are what drive up the costs of books up in her opinion.