Textbooks Shouldn’t Cost This Much

By Amber McCain

New semester, new professors and a new stack of overpriced textbooks. Let’s be honest, $144+ to rent an eBook for six months? Seriously? It’s not even a physical book. No physical pages to flip through, no highlighting with a real pen, just the privilege of scrolling through a time-limited digital version on your device of choice. Whether that be a laptop, smartphone, or a tablet, each comes with its own set of limitations: eye strain, screen glare, battery limitations, and a general lack of authentic engagement. It’s frustrating, and quite frankly, it feels like a scam. According to the Education Data Initiative, undergrads are graduating with more than $37,000 in debt. The cost of textbooks only adds to the burden. 

In recent data (2021-2022) from BookScouter, the average student spends about $620 per semester on textbooks and course materials. This varies of course depending on the institution type and course requirements. Why are college textbooks so expensive, especially digital ones? 

One of the major issues here is corporate consolidation. A handful of major publishing companies dominate the textbook industry: Pearson, Cengage, McGraw Hill, Macmillan and Wiley. With so little competition, these companies can set whatever price they want, and students are left footing the bill. 

Even UAF’s own Bookstore Bundle (that you’re automatically enrolled into and have to choose to opt out of) sounds like a convenient deal, all your books arriving the first day of class, ends up being part of the problem. The Bundle charges based on your entire course load, whether the professor requires the book or not.  If you’re taking five classes but only need books for three, you’re still paying for five. It feels like a less helpful service and more like another way to squeeze money out of students. 

While used books are sometimes an option, even that comes with strings attached. Need an access code? A lab manual? Good luck finding those in a secondhand copy.  Professors often require lab access, and students end up buying a new book or package deal, even if they only need a small piece from the package. 

Forget about cheaper softcover editions. A professor recently warned students not to order the soft cover, saying it would take four to six weeks to arrive. And in a summer semester, the class would be half over by then. That’s part of why many students wait until the first week or two of class to even buy books— to see if the professors use the material, or if it’s a class they’ll even want to continue. Nobody wants to drop $200 on a book for a class they might end up dropping.

Some professors have started switching to Open Educational Resources, or OERfree, high-quality learning materials available online. According to a 2022 report from the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition, or SPARC students have saved over $2 billion through OER initiatives in the United States. Others are finding creative ways to minimize material costs. But, students are still left scrambling for expensive solutions.

And once you’ve paid all that money, you might wonder: Is it worth keeping your textbooks at the end of a semester? If a book is closely tied to your major or career path, it might be a useful resource down the road.  But most just gather digital or literal dust. Poof.

The bottom line: students shouldn’t have to choose between affording groceries and getting the course materials they need to succeed. Change won’t happen overnight, but it can start with small steps: more professors choosing open resources, universities supporting more affordable options, and students pushing back on unfair costs. Education should open doors, not drain bank accounts.