Cost of Books

[DisneyLeith]

How much, on average, does everyone wind up spending per semester on books? I realize the costs could vary wildly from class to class, program to program, etc., etc., but I'm just trying to get some sort of general picture of what to expect.

Thanks!

Edited March 30, 2011 by DisneyLeith

[poco_puffs]

At my English program, we take two seminars per term/quarter, and professors seem to be pretty considerate on keeping our costs down. A novel seminar might require 4-6 novels, priced at $7-10 used or $9-13 new. Lots of secondary reading is put up on Blackboard or a similar classroom site as PDFs or links to websites with the documents available, but occasionally a reader, anthology or packet might cost $20-$35 in addition to the books.

Overall, I normally spend less than $100 on books per term (for both seminars combined). That is also taking advantage of Amazon or other sites where I can, and checking some good local used bookstores for the novels and anthologies that aren't completely obscure.

Edit: Something I'm dealing with right now, however, is when professors put ALL of the reading up as PDFs my reading rates suffer horribly. So now I'm paying $20-30 to print out all the PDFs for the term. It's still cheaper than the cost of a fully cleared packet, but it takes some extra effort.

Edited March 30, 2011 by poco_puffs

[robot_hamster]

It might depend on the professor too. I've had classes where professors will scan entire chapters from books and then distribute them as PDF files via blackboard or other system. No need to purchase the entire book then. This works well if they have a lot of readings, but they don't involve entire books.

[Riotbeard]

It might depend on the professor too. I've had classes where professors will scan entire chapters from books and then distribute them as PDF files via blackboard or other system. No need to purchase the entire book then. This works well if they have a lot of readings, but they don't involve entire books.

3 seminars. 300-400$ If i bought books at the school book store, it could be 6-700$ Order off biblio.com and compare to amazon. school book stores are a Huge rip off. I have bought books for 2$ that were 20 or 30 in the book store.

[stillthisappeal]

It's hard to remember, but $100-400 seems like the right range for two lit seminars. Keep in mind that you may have to add more for .PDFs if your school doesn't provide you with free printing services. On the other hand, most research libraries should allow you to check out the same editions that you'll be using for class from the stacks or interlibrary loan. You don't have to purchase every book.

[KRC]

If you're doing poststructuralism, literary/critical theory, etc. there's a certain website that rhymes with the town "Fargo" (minus the 'o') that can have you pretty covered depending on the class.

Also, regarding used book buying online, the site to go to is bookvolume.com that does a meta-search of all the major sites for the lowest cost plus shipping.

If possible though--support your local [used] bookstore!

[runonsentence]

it's possible to get a lot of lit texts really cheap secondhand. (especially using half.com—if a seller has more than one book that you need, shipping costs are reduced per subsequent book.)

that said, and bearing in mind that I occasionally "splurged" on a new copy or on a text that was outside reading not directly related to my current coursework (but pertinent to my exam reading in two years), I claimed $439 in book costs on my taxes this year. and yes, I amazed even myself in tallying that.

other caveats: I am in rhet/comp (I take fewer lit courses—straight-up fiction seems to be cheaper in general), and I am on the quarter system, so i enroll in 6 different 10-week seminars per year.

Edited April 12, 2011 by runonsentence

[poco_puffs]

So, um... what's the deal with claiming books? Where do you file it on your taxes? I might need to start keeping track of those costs if it's an option.

it's possible to get a lot of lit texts really cheap secondhand. (especially using half.com—if a seller has more than one book that you need, shipping costs are reduced per subsequent book.)

that said, and bearing in mind that I occasionally "splurged" on a new copy or on a text that was outside reading not directly related to my current coursework (but pertinent to my exam reading in two years), I claimed $439 in book costs on my taxes this year. and yes, I amazed even myself in tallying that.

other caveats: I am in rhet/comp (I take fewer lit courses—straight-up fiction seems to be cheaper in general), and I am on the quarter system, so i enroll in 6 different 10-week seminars per year.

[runonsentence]

Hah, I have to admit that my dad (an account) does my taxes for me, despite the fact that my age now rounds to 30. I'm not sure exactly where. But if you file as a student, you can claim education-related expenses and get a bit more of a refund, if you do withholding on your paycheck.

I find my Gmail (and/or buyer accounts on Half.com and Amazon) to be a really easy way to track my book purchases. Half and Amazon help you out by filtering by year. Took me no more than 5 minutes to compile.

[Riotbeard]

Hah, I have to admit that my dad (an account) does my taxes for me, despite the fact that my age now rounds to 30. I'm not sure exactly where. But if you file as a student, you can claim education-related expenses and get a bit more of a refund, if you do withholding on your paycheck.

I find my Gmail (and/or buyer accounts on Half.com and Amazon) to be a really easy way to track my book purchases. Half and Amazon help you out by filtering by year. Took me no more than 5 minutes to compile.

As I have to do my taxes this week, thank you.

[robot_hamster]

Hah, I have to admit that my dad (an account) does my taxes for me, despite the fact that my age now rounds to 30. I'm not sure exactly where. But if you file as a student, you can claim education-related expenses and get a bit more of a refund, if you do withholding on your paycheck.

I find my Gmail (and/or buyer accounts on Half.com and Amazon) to be a really easy way to track my book purchases. Half and Amazon help you out by filtering by year. Took me no more than 5 minutes to compile.

I use Turbo Tax and there is a place where they ask for it and you just enter in the amount.

[StrangeLight]

i've had classes that require one book a week, so 14 books per seminar, 3 seminars a semester. you could easily spend $600-900 if you buy those books new from the university bookstore. look on amazon for cheapo copies and get the books through interlibrary loans. if you decide you'll need the book for future work, THEN buy it, but until then, just get it for free from the library. that method reduced my book costs from $800 in my first year to $200 in the second.

[runonsentence]

i've had classes that require one book a week, so 14 books per seminar, 3 seminars a semester. you could easily spend $600-900 if you buy those books new from the university bookstore. look on amazon for cheapo copies and get the books through interlibrary loans. if you decide you'll need the book for future work, THEN buy it, but until then, just get it for free from the library. that method reduced my book costs from $800 in my first year to $200 in the second.

yes, excellent point. I've gotten more judicious in my seminar book buying, especially if it's a class that doesn't directly relate to my PhD exam areas (I'm currently finishing my master's...).

[runonsentence]

As I have to do my taxes this week, thank you.

Glad to help!

[IRdreams]

Grad students can also lower the bills collectively. In my program, we established a norm of dividing the weeks among the students and then each week one of the grads was responsible for scanning the readings for that week and disseminating them to the class. It worked pretty well as a case of collective action. Since you have names it is pretty hard to free ride.