#textbook tips

[patchworkofhearts]

honestly if you have to read textbook chapters or anything for an assignment, reading it out loud like you're the smart character from a tv show explaining it to the other characters makes it so much more doable

[lilaclorcan]

Textbook Tips

College textbooks are expensive, and I highly recommend that if you can, you try and rent textbooks!

Renting textbooks comes with some struggles though, sometimes quality isn't that great, and you cannot highlight or write in the margins.. and for some people that is really crucial to their learning / studying process. 

The essentials for making the most out of rented college textbooks are literally all in the photo below! 

Post It Note Tabs: are so helpful because they let you mark pages without folding them doggy ear, and they don't tear the pages. I’ve used these on extremely thin pages and haven’t had a single issue! I highly recommend using these, or some variation. They also let you color code, and have a variety of sizes. 

Sticky notes: You can't write in a rented textbook, but if you use sticky notes you can make as many notes as your heart wants, and you just remove them after the fact! Another thing you can use these for is to cut up and make your own post it tabs! 

Pens: A good reliable gel pen is always necessary if you want to take a lot of notes. Again, I seriously love the pen+gear pens from Walmart! 

A notebook: Taking textbook notes is sometimes really helpful if you don’t want to carry a textbook around campus, so a notebook can be helpful for writing condensed notes to study on the go. The notebook pictured is a FiveStar 5 subject notebook, that I use to rewrite lecture notes / textbook notes! A notebook also lets you annotate and highlight as much as you want! 

If at all possible, if you can avoid buying textbooks at full price, I would definitely do it! Textbooks are insanely expensive! 

There are so many ways to get discounted textbooks, there are rental sites, such as Chegg, Amazon, etc, rental stores usually near campus, and some colleges even have like textbook re-sell groups you can usually find some things in! Look around at different websites, and compare prices! Students with an .edu email address can get Amazon Prime discounted, and free 2-day shipping when you have like 3 days to get a textbook is a serious life saver! 

[olivia-studies-neuroscience]

Tips for a Carleton University Science Student

Textbooks

Don’t by used books until you’re sure that you don’t need an access code for a homework website 

If you need a $200 chemistry textbook that comes with the access code, and you buy the book used, you’ll probably only get the book for as cheap as $50 at a used quality, and the access code on its own is usually $150 anyway, so you’re actually losing out rather than saving by buying used books; buy books new if you need the access code with it

Make sure you actually need the textbook before buying it, if you look in the syllabus and there’s only one reading, you probably don’t need to shell out $100 for it

Email the prof if the textbook information hasn’t been provided for you ahead of the class and you want to get ahead in your readings 

Sometimes you can buy a previous edition for cheaper than the most recent and the prof is usually cool with this; the homework questions are different but the profs often have sample ones to give from the old textbook as well as the new, and important figures you need for the midterm/exam you can get from a friend with the newer version of the textbook

Carleton students: go to Haven Books instead of the Campus Book Store 

Be careful when looking for used books, not everyone is trustworthy to buy from, especially if you’re buying from someone on the Facebook used book group

Always flip through the textbook to make sure there aren’t any chunks of pages missing, and if it truly isn’t highlighted like said in the ad; check if there are separate booklets that usually come with the textbook when bought new and make sure you get those too

Try and bargain with the seller, often upper year students are just trying to get rid of their old books and if you ask for a lower price they will probably say yes

LOOSELEAF textbooks are the best!!!! They save you like $50-100 and all you have to do is buy a binder for like $10 (you need a sturdy one for heavy textbooks like for biology) 

Don’t open the plastic until you’re 10000% positive you have the right textbook (and make sure you have the one that comes with the access code if you need one for the class) because you can’t return it once opened (except if you return it as a used book)

If there is an electronic copy available and you can (legally) print it, do it! Being able to highlight it and hold it in your hands while waiting for the midterm hall doors to open is (in my opinion) better than just having it saved to your desktop 

Rent textbooks through the campus book store 

The (Carleton) library has a reserve section that has textbooks that you can borrow for a few hours (while still in the library) so you don’t have to buy them; however, not all prof’s put their textbooks on reserve and there aren’t endless copies so someone else may have it when you want to read it 

Take good care of your textbooks so you can sell them next year

Sell them back to students rather than the bookstore so you can get more money to help pay for your textbooks for the new year 

It’s harder to sell the books with highlighting and marking in them so an alternative is to use sticky notes in your book (a little costly if you want nicely coloured ones and such but pretty and keeps the textbook pristine)  

Personally, I use pencil because I can just underline important bits, which I actually find makes me engage in the material more than highlighting, and I could erase it to sell it again (instead I’m just giving the books to my sister next year so she gets them free, lucky her, lol!)

A word on e-books: they expire after the course is over, so you can’t sell them after and if you failed the course/want to re-take it to improve your grade, you have to buy the text again 

If you have friends taking the class with you, split the cost of the book with them!

Picking Classes

The Carleton Central website is not user friendly at all. I hated every minute I had to use it when I first accepted my offer; to combat this: I suggest going on the website and feeling around it to get used to it and figure out where all the important links are before going on it to set stuff up 

Set up your school email as soon as possible because if you have any issues figuring out how to use the website to set up residence/meal plan/etc. you can ask for help, but no one will answer your emails if they’re not from your Carleton email (this is for privacy reasons, they’re not trying to be difficult) 

At Carleton, you can set up your timetable in advance of when you actually have to register for classes; do this as soon as the opportunity arises because the classes fill up fast on registration day and you don’t want to still be figuring out which section and time and everything when you need to just click the “register” button and be done with it 

Speaking of registration, you will receive a time-slot based on your student number/last name (I forget which) so don’t worry too much about classes filling up before you get your chance 

If a class required for your program fills up before your time-slot opens don’t panic yet; several classes have online sections where they live stream the lecture and you can watch it that way, and if the regular section is full then you’ll just have to register in the online section.

You can still go to class rather than watching it online, and most people do this; my chemistry class had people sitting on the stairs and on the floor at the front of the lecture hall for the first two weeks before people decided if they’d rather watch online or in the lecture hall; the only thing this really affects is where you write your mid-terms and exams, and if you complete your teaching-evaluations in-class, or online

I hate to break this to you, but if you’re in a science program, having one day completely free in first year is not a reality (if you get one please tell me how). I can almost 100% guarantee that you will have lectures every day

Mental Heath & Self-Care

Allow yourself mental health days where you can skip your classes to recover without feeling guilty about it

Don’t take classes at 8:30am if possible, even if you’re a morning person, you will regret it

Especially don’t take 8:30 labs because you can’t miss those without a doctors note

Don’t pull all-nighters in the library when its open 24 hours during exams. Go home. Shower. Eat real food instead of just snacks you brought to the library with you. SLEEP. IN YOUR OWN BED

Try not to fall into that hole of all-nighters where you start rewarding yourself for completing an assignment with a shower or something that’s a basic necessity. You shouldn’t put getting work done above taking care of yourself, no matter how important the assignment or lab report

TAKE BREAKS. It’s okay every once in a while studying, you don’t have to just curl up with a textbook in some corner of the library and study it until your hair falls out, you’ll remember more anyway if you allow your brain some time to absorb the information (trust me, I’m here learning to be a neuroscientist)

Fun fact: you can cry from any emotion. Why is this relevant in a list of tips for new university students? Because you will probably get overwhelmed at some point and cry, and crying is good for you, and also natural. Emotions are chemical levels in your brain and your body is constantly trying to maintain homeostasis (equilibrium, balance, etc.); if your brain notices that there is a lot (or too much) of once chemical, it will try and get rid of it. One way to do this is to package up those chemicals all nice and neat into tears and flush them out. (hint: this is why we feel better after crying, because those emotions were essentially “cried out”). So don’t try and hold everything in because you don’t want your family or new friends to know you’re struggling, because not only is it okay to cry, but your friends are likely just as overwhelmed and your family must know how hard you’re working and how hard school is. You can cry because you’re overwhelmed or because you’re happy or because you watched a wonderful movie (e.g. Moana) and all this means is that you are beautifully and wonderfully human! (pro tip: drink water after crying)

Keep a clean room; I know this sounds annoying but it will help clear your mind and give you a healthy study space. Coming home from a long day of classes and labs to a messy room might only make you more stressed

Drink some water you fool

Naps are cool as heck

Instead of making a competition out of how high your stress levels are, brag about feeling whole and at peace (and if you aren’t, pretend until you believe it)

If you have anxiety, cut out caffeine from your life (even if you don’t have anxiety this is a good idea to do) (I know some really good caffeine-free teas)

Don’t beat yourself up about not getting everything done, just do your best to get as much done as you can (sometimes, mental illness means your best is only doing one of your two assigned readings, this is okay)

One of the biggest lies you will be told in your life is “don’t half-ass anything”; waiting around for the day where you can do absolutely everything you need to do when you have a mental illness or even if you’re still getting adjusted to your new responsibilities as a university student (and adjusting doesn’t just take a few days or weeks, it’s a continual process) is silly, that day may never come. Do as much as your illness permits you to do. If all you can do is make your bed while the rest of your room is a mess, just make your bed. If all you can do is type the heading for your resume, just do that. If all you can do is put the papers for your taxes in a pile, do that, and take a shower or rest. You don’t have to do everything at once, it is okay to just do a little bit

There are 5 things to ask yourself if you’re feeling particularly yucky and don’t know why:

Have I eaten anything substantial recently? Eat an apple or go to the school cafeteria/make something at home

Have I had anything to drink? Grab a bottle of water

Have I slept a decent amount in the last 24 hours, and in the days before that? Take a nap

Have you engaged in any exercise or movement recently? Go for a walk

Have I spoken to anyone at all in the last while? Text or call a friend/family member

Essentially: eat, drink, sleep, walk, and talk

The pomodoro technique is lifeeeee!!!!! Study for 20 minutes or so and then take a break, then repeat (after about three sessions, reward yourself with a longer break than before); if you can’t focus, this is a great way to get a little bit of work done

If you have an IOS device, I recommend the app Tide

Residence & Meal Plans

Apply for residence as soon as possible because although most schools guarantee an offer for first years, they really only mean before the deadline and after that you’ll be on a waitlist. If you get off the waitlist and get a room offer, it probably won’t be in one of the buildings with air conditioning, an elevator, or windows that actually open

If you plan on having a job while at school, you can ask to be in a residence building that remains open over the holidays (this does cost extra though, and for some reason, despite this being an option at Carleton, and that you’re not allowed a hot plate or other cooking device in traditional style rooms; virtually all the places to eat on campus are closed for the entire winter break, including the caf)

On holidays and reading week, the caf closes like, 2 hours early, this sucks. More times than I’d like to admit, I forgot it was a holiday and went to go get dinner at my usual time to find the doors were locked and it didn’t open again until 7:30 the next morning, with literally every other food place closed for the holiday, Mr. Noodles was the only option remaining. Don’t do this to yourself, please

At Carleton you have to rent mini-fridges through a company with the school called coldex 

The prices aren’t bad and you can always split with your roommate if you’re in a double room

A bonus of this is that if you order it before a certain date, the fridge will already be in your room when you arrive on move-in day

I haven’t heard of people sneaking in their own and what happens if the school finds out, but I still wouldn’t recommend bringing your own (you don’t want to have to hide a whole mini-fridge when inspections come around)

Move-in day is hectic 

Arrive as soon as possible to get it out of the way so you can start exploring campus, check out the cafeteria, and go to some events for frosh week

There are volunteers to help you bring your stuff up to your room so no need to bring your entire extended family (unless you want them all there, of course)

If you have prescriptions of any kind, then switch your pharmacy to the on-campus one and write down the hours somewhere

A few words on the dorms:

Most of the desks have a built-in lamp so don’t buy a desk lamp before you know if you need one

They also have a push-pin board so bring pins to hang your pictures and class schedule

Christmas lights go a long way to making the place more home-y 

Buy a coat rack that goes over the front door, and one of those shoe organizers to go over the bathroom door and fill it with all kinds of things 

 Bring lots of storage bins 

Buy one of those fabric shower caddies that go over the shower head so you can all keep your soap organized in the bathroom (the showers don’t have very much shelf space and it can be a pain to carry all your soap in and out, especially when it’s all wet from your shower 

The room should come with a garbage and recycling bin, but might not have one for the bathroom as a heads up 

Act like your parents are visiting once a week and tidy everything up

Labs

If you are a science or engineering student, you will definitely have labs, lots if you’re in science 

Most labs (i.e. chemistry and physics) are every two weeks, and sometimes they have a tutorial on the opposite week (chemistry doesn’t, you just have an empty three-hour slot on one week). 

Biology labs at carleton are every week, going from experimental labs one week to analytical labs the next week (sometimes theres a computer simulation lab the week before the experimental, so in that case the lab topic spans three weeks) 

You will usually have two weeks to write your lab report and then hand it in at the beginning of your next lab session, but sometimes they only give you one week (this is good and bad at the same time) DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE NIGHT BEFORE TO WRITE A FORMAL LAB REPORT

They take at least 6 hours to write and thats once you get the hang of it and 6 hours will probably still only get you an 80%

Informal lab reports (write-ups) you can probably get away with doing the nigh before but don’t be surprised if you get a 60% with only that much work put into it

Don’t forget to do the lab assignments online, they are usually worth a lot towards your grade for that lab (even if you do the multiple choice quiz real quick before the lab starts, it’s better than nothing) 

Go to the Science Store as early as possible to buy your lab coat, glasses, notebook, and manual, the lines are crazy long 

You can’t buy an older version of the lab manual to use for a new lab session, they won’t let you and if they find out you’re using an older version of the manual, they could decide to give you zero on everything. They change little things so you might end up doing the wrong thing in your experiment which can be very bad if its a chemistry lab for example.  

If you don’t know something, or are unsure, ask the TA. Even if you’re mostly sure, ask the TA. Most labs are designed to take exactly there hours if you do everything correctly the first time, so if you do something wrong, you can end up rushing to finish before the lab ends 

THEY WILL NOT LET YOU STAY LATE TO FINISH YOUR LAB 

If you do happen to finish your lab early, instead of leaving as soon as the TA signs you out, do some calculations you’ll need for the report, you will thank yourself sooooo much later I’m not even exaggerating. One time I started them at the end of my lab and then forgot about it and you better believe there were tears of joy in my eyes when I opened up my lab notebook to start the report later and saw that I had already started 

Decorate your lab coat!!! Spice it up!! Spell your name in the periodic table across the back, cover it in sharpie! Put your favourite science joke on the pocket! Have fun! 

Roommates

Roommates can be a blessing or a curse; if they’re a curse, switch to another room as soon as possible

If you can’t stand your roomate, then you’re only going to be more stressed when you’re at home on top of all the stresses of your new life as a university student, and that’s not good

All roommates and canmates have to sign a roommate agreement once you’ve settled in

A canmate is someone living in the room that adjoins your bathroom (most Rez buildings are designed with two rooms sharing a bathroom)

Reach out to your roommate once you’ve been told who they are so that you can meet up before move-in day if possible to get to know each other, get each other’s phone number 

If you’re thinking of renting a mini-fridge, see if your roommate wants to split the cost of one so you can share! 

Consider buying a silent alarm (its basically a watch that vibrates to wake you up instead of ringing) and earplugs so that you don’t have to wake each other up if one of you has an 8:30 while the other doesn’t have class until noon 

Make sure you both agree with the decisions made in your roommate agreement, don’t agree to anything that you’re not comfortable with. 

Remember that its just as much your room as theirs, and vice versa 

Understand that dorm rooms are small, so don’t be afraid to voice your preferences and concerns; communication is key and it keeps everyone happy

Try to be understanding; don’t give your roommate a hard time about something they have no control over 

When it comes to alcohol or other substances, be open and honest about what is okay and what isn’t

Officially you’re only allowed 2 guests per roommate in the room at once (so 6 total), but unless you’re being loud and disrupting the whole floor, nobody is going around and policing it 

As with room capacity, there is a set limit on how many times you can have overnight guests, but nobody is really counting (except maybe your roommate) 

Definitely give each other a copy of your class schedule 

Some people like to leave their door open so that you can go in and meet them, it may be awkward but you should totally go for it! Most people are really shy and won’t go in, but you can still leave your door open too 

Go to floor meetings (officially they are kind of required) to meet people, and also because they usually provide snacks or participation prizes (I won a $10 Tims card at my first meeting) 

If you’re going to come home at 3AM drunk with friends after a night of bar hopping in Quebec, then get a single room 

Your roommate doesn’t want to wake up to the sound of you kissing your S.O. 

Do the dishes as soon as you can, don’t let them fester and grow old because you hate washing dishes in the tiny sink Don’t snoop, we all have things we like to keep to ourselves

 If you’re going to hook up with someone in the room while your roommates away, make sure they’re not going to come back early. And don’t forget to dead-bolt the door and lock the bathroom so they don’t go through the canmates room thinking their key card is just broken 

Share emergency information with each other; do you have a history of seizures that they should be aware of? Any allergies like peanuts so they know not to keep peanut butter in the room? And if you’re unconscious being sent to the hospital, whom should they call?

Always use headphones/earbuds. Even if your roommate has the same taste in music or likes the same movies/TV shows, wear them for the love of all that is good in the world. Get a headphone splitter if you want to watch a movie with a friend on your laptop.

Meeting New People

Academic orientation day was honestly the best time for me to make friends; everyone I talked to that day was either in my faculty or a related program (if not the same program as me). My closest friend now is a girl I met on academic orientation day who’s in my program, and we got to study for all our classes together and since we had such similar schedules, we had the same blocks of free time to hang out.

Make friends with people in your program. You can keep each other on track with your studies, explain concepts to each other, quiz each other, work on assignments together, and so many more things; you can hang out and study at the same time which is a really great thing

If you have friends from high school going to the same university as you, but in a program nothing like yours, then you’re probably going to have a hard time finding space in both your schedules to hang out. Make the best effort you can to hang out anyway

You know those people you can see rolling their eyes at you from the corner of your eye? Don’t make friends with them. They don’t have your back and they don’t care enough to listen to you when you’re talking about your personal struggles. Don’t waste time on someone who wouldn’t give their time to you

disclaimer: the information provided here is based mainly on my experiences as a neuroscience student at Carleton University, as well as from other sources that I looked at for ideas on what else to add here. 

[alexstudiesdeafpeople]

Minimalist Studyblr Challenge Week 1:5

find the challenge here

Well, when it’s just me and my textbook, one thing that helps me is color. Now, when I was in my first year of college, I tried to use way too much color; that ended up as too much work and I didn’t take a lot of notes [from textbooks]. This year, I think I’ll just sprinkle in some color.

Color helps keep me engaged and makes my notes more pleasing to look at, so that motivation of “it’ll look nice” is a pretty good one for me personally!

[agryffindorstudent]

Tip for saving with textbooks:

GET LOOSE LEAF! If you're given the option to get loose leaf, GET IT! I got at least $40 slashed off the price of each book just for all of my textbooks being loose leaf. Thank goodness for loose leaf! 😅 If you can stand to read on a screen for long periods of time (which I personally cannot), get the online version of your textbook- but rent it! For my theatre textbook (which is gonna be useless after this semester) I rented it on Amazon and instead of being $170 it's $45! You even get to choose the date it gets returned on. Plus, you don't have to worry about remembering to return it because it automatically does it for you! Another option is to buy them from other students- but I find as a freshman it's a bit intimidating asking older kids for that kind of stuff. But if you can do it, do it! I have friends who asked older kids they made friends with to buy off of them and they ended up just giving their textbooks to them for free!

[itsthecurseofthehumangirl-blog]

So I'd just like to talk about the awesomeness of selling books back.

I've bought 13 books for my first two semesters of freshman year and my four summer classes. The books themselves cost $1,056.18. That is A LOT of money. After selling back what I could so far, I only spent $518.18. That's less than half of what I originally paid and is about $40 a book instead of a little over $80.

I also was unable to sell two of my books because of access codes and that was $200. That means that  I bought 11 books at $856.18 and only ended up spending $338. This actually makes those other 11 books about $30 instead of over $75. I also intend to sell two more books.

I've so far spent $344.44 on books for my fall semester and I really hope to sell enough back that the price is closer to $100.

Books are expensive but there is a lot you can do to lessen the price.

Buy used to begin with.

Don't limit yourself to your school's bookstore. Those prices are almost always higher than what you can find elsewhere.

Shop around. Amazon, chegg, and half.com are all great places to look at.

Don't unwrap shrink wrapped books until you need to. You may not need it or can find something cheaper later.

Looseleaf is often cheaper but cannot be sold back to your school (although can be sold online).

Keep them in good condition. If you intend to sell them, they are worth a little more in better condition. 

SELL THEM BACK. And not necessarily to your bookstore. You can easily set up a seller account on amazon, which is what I've done. Amazon also had a trade in program that I've used. I love it because it includes free shipping for your books and you get an amazon gift card. 

Compare what will be the best deal: selling to amazon or selling on your own. Amazon takes a commission on books you sell and it may take a while for someone to purchase it. This can still sometimes be a better deal than doing trade in.

Most schools have a facebook group designed for textbook sales and I also see plenty posts in all the other groups I belong to. This is not only a great place to sell your books (and with no shipping), but it also a great place to buy your books, especially school specific editions.

Renting is another possibility. I have personally had better luck buying and selling back. My books either cost closer to 10 or 20 dollars or I make a couple bucks. However, if you can rent a book for much less than you think you could sell for, it is a good option. 

There are also websites you can search for that have pdf versions for free or do other things for free. I haven't personally done this but it is an option.

If you put in a little bit of effort, it can save you hundreds of dollars. 

[bookgatorweb-blog]

What You Can Do About Textbooks Starting In The Next 10 Minutes

Worrying about your budget for next semester’s textbooks? It’s no surprise, given that ordinary students can spend hundreds of dollars on school books; but by taking these few steps, you can end up saving a lot of money down the road.

A student always on the lookout for great deals on textbooks can shave a lot of time off of looking for his books come start of the semester. There are also other steps a student can make to be smarter about books and money.

Right now, these are some small but important steps any student can do now to ensure more savings down the road:

Sometimes, it is not just important where you are buying, but also when. If you buy at the same time as other students, not only will you most likely have a harder time looking for alternatives, but prices might also go higher due to the demand. If you have upperclassmen friends taking the same course, or know which courses you will take next semester, you can start asking those students or professors for a list of textbooks needed. Or better yet, start talking to those students about buying their books after the semester. So right now, start thinking of that course list and people you can approach who are taking or have taken those courses.

Start researching – there are a lot of websites out there that sell or rent textbooks, it’s handy to look at them right now and bookmark these pages. Read up on feedback and find the best ones out there. Open an account and sign up for free email alerts.

Look for sources of free textbook downloads. Not only can you possibly find free digital versions of your schoolbook, you might find other resources that might come in handy in the future.

Take care of your books now – wrap them in plastic covers or find other ways to protect them. Your books will still have value, and the better condition your book is in, the better the price you can sell them.

Get rid of that stack of textbooks lying around! If you have not used the book in the past few months, and if you foresee you will no longer use them, sell them and make some money on them now!

Form a book sharing club. Pool resources together, buy books for the whole group, and create schedules of book use. Start right now by thinking of who are taking the same set of classes or are taking the same majors.

A student can start taking these baby steps now and be more prepared for the coming of the next semester. At the end of college, one can find more savings made just by being more prepared and making smart choices about textbooks.

[bookgatorweb-blog]

3 Tips For Textbooks You Can Use Today

Textbooks do not need to be a significant addition to a student’s school expenses. In fact, by practicing some good research skills and looking at options critically, smart students can find ways to make these purchases easy on the wallet.

Although school books are one of the most important and worthwhile investments one can make in his lifetime, costs sometimes come up to hundreds of dollars. For a student trying to live within a small budget, tuition fee already is enough of a burden. Add textbooks, and students find out how much more expensive an education can be.

Thankfully, there are now more ways for a student to find the books needed for school. A student can now go do a quick search on the internet and find discounts on new textbooks, used books to buy or even find rental books.

eBook readers and other mobile devices like iPads, tablets, smartphones are also good for more than just movies, music and games: publishers are now rushing to meet the growing demand for eTextbooks or digital versions of their school books. With the new generation of students being more used to reading on these devices, the trend for the future might be to do away with printed textbooks.

For students looking for ways to stretch their limited budget, here are 3 tips for textbooks you can use today:

Do your research – as with shopping for other options, it is important not just to look around for options, but to also evaluate those options. Some offers might sound too good to be true – meaning you should read the fine print. A used book looks very affordable, but perhaps it’s an older version. Make sure you always have your textbook’s ISBN number to double check. Ensure the quality of the book. For rental books, make sure you read the instructions carefully and take care of the book you are renting to not end up with fees or penalties at the end of the semester.

Use your networks – are you part of an organization or perhaps have a group of friends taking the same courses and perhaps have used the same textbooks? Borrow or buy their used school books instead. Make sure that their editions are still allowed by your professor, and if they are, then you just saved yourself a lot of money.

Go digital – even if you are still unused to reading books from a screen instead of a printed book, there are actually free copies of some textbooks available online. If not, buying digital is more flexible – some publishers offer purchasing per chapter. One does not end up therefore, buying an entire book even if not everything is part of the curriculum.

Textbooks do not need drain your wallet more than necessary. By doing a little bit of research and being smart and thorough, students can save a few bucks per school book and end up with bigger savings.