University Bookstores: total scam... or is it Virginia Tech's only?

[CptObvious]

I remember a few years ago, during the dotcom bubble, I saved a bunch of $$ using coupon codes at online textbook stores. Those were the days...

Publishers, bookstores, they're all evil, the whole lot of them :thumbsdown:

 

[PingSpike]

Originally posted by: KarenMarie
My daughter bought a book at PSU last year for $125.00 and realized she got the wrong edition. She went to return it after the weekend, and there was no one there to take it back, and they told her to bring it back on Wednesday when the manager was there. She went in on Wednesday and was told my the mananger that she missed the deadline for the full refund. They offered to buy it back for $40.00

But this is the same school that REQUIRES all first year students to live on campus and REQUIRES they purchase a food plan. The cheapest food plan was $1,200. ... $800.00 of which were admin fees. So, she had $400.00 food credit out of the manditory $1,200. food plan.

It is all al scam.

Requires a food plan? WTF is that? I wouldn't go to that school, and if I did I'd key all the admins cars.

 

[toant103]

Originally posted by: Xiety
Today I went to the bookstore to buy a Finance book... well, it was $100 USED :| I was pissed but since professors go over the material pretty quick during summer sessions, i decided to eat it and buy it from the bookstore (I normally buy from half.com or amazon.com). Anyways, while I was waiting in line, I saw this kid come into the store with the same book. Obviously he took this course last semester and was getting ready to sell the book back. So I got out of the line, went over to the Buy-back desk and began listening to him and the clerk. Guess what? "We will give you $26 for it." :Q They are selling the same book for $100 but giving him only $26 back? Wow... so I jumped right in and told him I will give him $30 for it. Of course being the college kid that hates the bookstore, he accepted my offer and we both left the bookstore quiet happy

So the question is, are university bookstores simply trying to be as profitable as possible (i think they should be a non-profit intermediary between students and the publishers) or do they just love ripping off? I can understand the bookstore putting an extra $15 or so to the price of the book but $74 is just ridiculous. There is no way that book costs them 1/4 of $74 to inspect, stock, etc. What do you think?

Same here. 2 years ago, i was taken MGT 4394 i think, the freaking book cost $125. Only used it for one semester. Can't even sell it back cause the new edition came out. Not only that, i had to pay $30 for the capstone silmulation crap for that class.

 

[Tiembo]

Best Book Buys - like Pricewatch for books. About 10-20% less than my local university bookstore.

 

[Goosemaster]

Originally posted by: austin316
quick question, does a school like VT have non-tech majors? If so, what does the techinical designation stand for?

Polytechnical


Obviously they have other majors, but engineering and science are their "speciality"

<--hopes to go transfer to vtech next year

 

[Nitemare]

I still can't believe they offered to pay 26 to buy a book back. thought 10 bucks was as high as they went.

Yes, its a scam

 

[Triumph]

Originally posted by: austin316
quick question, does a school like VT have non-tech majors? If so, what does the techinical designation stand for?

yes, vt is a full fledged university. the only thing they really don't have is a medical school.

vt is basically the "state" school of virginia, even though there is a University of Virginia. UVA is really more of a preppy rich kid school.

 

[TheLonelyPhoenix]

Originally posted by: austin316
quick question, does a school like VT have non-tech majors? If so, what does the techinical designation stand for?

Hopefully a fellow Hokie out there can correct me if my history is off, but as I've been told...

Around the beginning of the 1900s, Virginia Tech (had a different name back then, I think it was the "Preston and Olin" Institute) was offered a large state grant if they would include industry-related studies in its program, and also change their name to something that included "industrial-technology" or something like that. The major state schools at the time (UVA, VMI, William &amp; Mary) didn't care much for the name changing thing, but the "Preston and Olin Institute" was quite willing to swallow its pride for a nice big grant. That name led to its current one, "Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University", commonly abbreviated "Virginia Tech"

 

[thawolfman]

Originally posted by: jagec

Originally posted by: bradruth
Total scam.

Always. It's not just the stores though..it's the publishers too. They change three pages and come out with a "new edition" every other year, and SOMEHOW coerce the profs into requiring the newest version.

Sometimes ever sooner than that! :|

 

[oogabooga]

i go to UCI (University of California: Irvine) and i was so friggin pissed

I paid 160 bucks for this econ book plus study guides, and it's shrinkwrapped so no returns allowed (which also is teh sucks). On the first day of class we are told to take out our book, and turn to page one. So we're like ahh, well.. gotta open it at some point....
WELL : they didn't reference that book again. All they showed us was our professor was credited in the book! ! ! that was the most useless 160 bucks i've ever spent, the lecture wasn't even from the material!

University bookstores are the ripoff...

 

[Martin]

University Bookstores are for rich fscks and tards (and before you get all mad, I brought 1 first year book there...so I speak from experience)

Luckily, I now know better. I simply go across the street to the copy place and buy the 'book' at 1/4 to 1/5th the price.