As summer nears its end and we prepare to go back to school, there are several things to start thinking about. Where you will live, which classes you will take, where you will find a job, and, probably the most prominent question, how will I afford everything?
I am entering my senior year of college, and over the past 3 years I have searched all over the place for the cheapest textbooks, best deals on clothes, household supplies, living arrangements, and best jobs, among many other things. Here I will discuss how to find cheap textbooks, so that you can get prepared for the school year without emptying your bank account.
Textbooks. They are one of the top priorities, as you cannot go to class without them, they usually rack up the biggest bill, and most people believe that they are only offered in their school's bookstore. This is where you will pay the absolute highest price for books, at your bookstore. However, practically every college has either a separate, used bookstore or a section of used books in their regular bookstore. Use these! It's simple, convenient, and cheaper. Check these used areas regularly, keeping in mind which books you'll use next semester, or even next year. This alone can save you hundreds a year in textbooks.
The internet also holds many options for you to save money on your textbooks. First of all there are websites such as www.ebay.com, www.amazon.com, and www.overstock.com, which we are all familiar with. But, most people don't know that you can also find great deals on textbooks on these websites. I have been able to find several books for school on these sites, and most of them offer shipping deals if you want to order all of your books at once, or several from the same seller. Another great online resource is www.craigslist.com , where you can find anything from a date, to a car, to a job, including books. You can browse for people selling books, or post a wanted ad for exactly what you want. This works optimally if you are living in a college town and using that craigslist site, where many of the people on there have probably gone to your school and taken the same courses as you. This makes finding the right books on here even easier.
If you have some general education, classics, literature, or philosophy courses that require books other than textbooks, try looking at local thrift stores. You'd be surprised how many great books they end up with. Also try local garage sales, church sales, or estate sales that you come across. If you don't have the time for looking around in garage sales, or would simply rather get all of your books at once, a great place to go is amazon.com. They have a huge variety of just about every book you can imagine, offering both new and used copies (from incredibly low prices) on practically every title. Most of these types of books are also available in places like Borders, Barnes and Noble, Hastings, and Half-Price Books. Borders and Barnes and Noble do have some series of paperback classics and philosophy books, often running under 10 dollars. Half-Price Books is, however, my favorite place to shop for used books. They offer great deals on all types of different books. And, since they have stores in many cities and states, it's easy for me to shop around between the different stores as well as to find what I need for next semester regardless of where I am. They also buy back used books for cash or store credit, so you can save even more money while buying your new books. Go to their website, www.halfpricebooks.com to see if they have locations near you.
Hopefully these tips will help you save money and find cheap textbooks for the school year. Also, don't forget that many loans and scholarships available will help cover school-related expenses, meaning textbooks! This will help you save money for things that they often don't cover, such as food, clothes, and travel expenses.
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Buy what you need for the first day of school but don’t buy too much for the rest of the year. Some items, such as pencils and pens, might be useful to stock up on if there is a great sale. But since many stores overstock on items, you may actually be able to find some bargains by scanning for sales after the back to school rush is over.
