Any student attending college knows the high cost of textbooks. Unfortunately, textbooks are a requirement and there is no getting around that. Why are they so expensive and what can be done about it? Are the colleges or government looking at ways to contain the costs?

College students rely upon textbooks but with their increasing prices, this simply adds to the expense of getting a higher education. As with anything, the only way to find a real solution is to first discover the reasons behind the problem so that more people are able to realize their dreams of attending college.

Students Pay High Price for College Textbooks

At the beginning of each semester, students must look for their college textbooks for sale. According the College Board, a student can expect to pay about $900 just for their textbooks each year. This increase of $200 over five short years merely adds to the already steep cost of tuition. And, for students in all walks of life, this increase means they must seek more financial assistance from the government or be unable to complete their schooling.

The Steady Rise in University Textbook Prices

Over the past two decades, the cost of textbooks has been on the rise with an average increase of six percent each and every year. In comparison to inflation in general around the country, for example, in the years 1986 to 2004 the increase rate for college textbooks was a whopping 240 percent compared to the nation’s 72 percent inflation rate.

Looking at the breakdown of textbook costs puts into perspective who is benefiting the most from high textbook costs and who could exercise some control over the rising expense.

A financial report from the National Association of College Stores gives us the exact breakdown of what it costs to make each textbook and who profits the most. Freight costs are the lowest at 1%, followed by 4% for the store selling the book, 7% for the publishing company, 12% for the author, 17% to pay for store operating costs, and the largest portion at 59% for publishing costs. Publishing expenses for college textbooks are the highest, and unfortunately, without real action and a definitive change within the industry, prices are likely to continue to rise quickly.

Combating the Cost of College Textbooks

Fortunately the U.S. government has gotten involved with helping students deal with the great expense of university textbooks. The GAO, or the Government Accounting Office, has been busy looking into why such an important part of the college experience has been steadily on the increase. Investigations by the GAO have found that the culprit for rising textbook costs are mostly due to increases in product development and the addition of supplemental learning tools such as DVDs and CD ROMs to use along with the books. Frequent revisions requested by instructors are yet another reason for higher costs of college textbooks.

Some state governments have helped by exempting textbooks from sales tax. There is also work to stop bundling of textbooks with supplements. Many times those supplements are not really needed, but the bundling increases the cost to students. There is current on-going work on what can be done at a government level to decrease textbook expense.

On a smaller scale, students and professors alike can both do their part toward keeping the costs of textbooks reasonable. Instructors and professors must reevaluate their needs and realize that revisions and supplements add to the cost of books considerably.Some companies have started offering chapters, or even an entire textbook online. This is environmentally friendly and saves on printing and shipping costs.

Some universities place copies of textbooks in the library so they can be used there instead of being purchased. Some schools and businesses are offering a rental system for textbooks. This allows students to rent instead of buying the books and can saves a significant amount of money.

Students can also be resourceful. They can find university textbooks for sale in a variety of places, other than the campus store. They can share or borrow books from friends, or look online for used texts.

The increasing price of textbooks is definitely a real problem that needs a viable solution. But, if everyone works together, each doing their part, more people would be able to afford a higher education without needlessly worrying about how they will pay for their textbooks.