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What is your opinion on professors requiring textbooks with online access codes?
I feel like these should not be allowed. Most of the time the only thing these online access codes provide are homework assignments - which sure, make the teacher's job easier but don't do a student's wallet any favors. It seems like an excuse to get the student to buy a new copy of the book rather than saving money and purchasing the book used or renting.
Another thing I have noticed is schools holding financial aid so you are forced to purchase the book from their bookstore unless you have the funds to purchase the book elsewhere then wait to be reimbursed (which at my school takes the entire semester). And coincidentally, the school bookstore doesn't offer the option to purchase the code by itself.
I find the access codes to be annoying, however I have been able to rent from amazon and have a code included, 2 semesters ago I rented a religion book that came with the access code.
And I have never seen schools holding financial aid. I never actually see my financial aid money because it goes straight to the school so I need my own funds regardless.
Sometimes, you can buy the access code separately. That's interesting how you can get an access code when renting from Amazon. I never knew that.
At every college I've attended that's on the traditional semester system, the financial aid has been disbursed 10 days before the beginning of the semester and the excess funds disbursed a couple of days afterward.
Another thing I have noticed is schools holding financial aid so you are forced to purchase the book from their bookstore unless you have the funds to purchase the book elsewhere then wait to be reimbursed (which at my school takes the entire semester). And coincidentally, the school bookstore doesn't offer the option to purchase the code by itself.
Every college has somewhat different rules for disbursing financial aid. One reason not to disburse until a certain amount of time has elapsed is to make sure the student attends classes. Some people apply for financial aid, take the money, withdraw from school, and never pay it back.
Every college has somewhat different rules for disbursing financial aid. One reason not to disburse until a certain amount of time has elapsed is to make sure the student attends classes. Some people apply for financial aid, take the money, withdraw from school, and never pay it back.
Yep. Because my husband was in the military, we've attended 5 colleges between the two of us, and every college we have attended has had this policy. Luckily, I always had sufficient cash flow to buy the book on Amazon and then wait for 4-6 weeks to be reimbursed by the financial aid disbursement, but I know a lot of people aren't so lucky, in which case it really does constitute a rip-off.
What is your opinion on professors requiring textbooks with online access codes?
I feel like these should not be allowed. Most of the time the only thing these online access codes provide are homework assignments - which sure, make the teacher's job easier but don't do a student's wallet any favors. It seems like an excuse to get the student to buy a new copy of the book rather than saving money and purchasing the book used or renting.
Another thing I have noticed is schools holding financial aid so you are forced to purchase the book from their bookstore unless you have the funds to purchase the book elsewhere then wait to be reimbursed (which at my school takes the entire semester). And coincidentally, the school bookstore doesn't offer the option to purchase the code by itself.
When you purchase a textbook new at full price, it comes with the access code. This is the only time the publisher sees any money from the sale of the book. When a book is purchased used, the entire transaction is done outside of the publisher's reach, and as such, even if the book was resold 100 times, the publisher only sees the money from the original, first, sale. The access code is from the publisher, not the professor or school, and is only sold in an effort to recoup some money lost to the used book market.
You are correct in that some professors require the access code only to make their own lives easier, but what is another $60 to you? I mean, why are you in college? Chances are high that the only reason (if you really think about it) you are in college is to increase your earning potential later on in life. Yes, college is expensive but is not an investment in your future?
I never heard of a school forcing students to purchase textbooks form the school bookstore (and many, if not most, college bookstores are 3rd party entities not affiliated with the school in anyway just like a lot of college cafeterias are run by Sodexo and not the school. Barnes and Noble owns and runs over 600 university bookstores, for example), but I wouldn't doubt it. Financial aid works differently at different schools.
If you cannot get the access code separately at your college store you can most surely get it from the publisher's website.
Sometimes an entire department will adopt a particular textbook, leaving individual professor's with no say. When I took organic chemistry there was just one textbook that all 10 sections were "required" to use. This was a decision made by the chemistry department in an effort to help keep everyone on the same page. The same was true with calc I, II, and III: everyone used the same textbook.
Surely it's a money-making strategy, but it also encourages activity on the internet and self-studying strategies, in my opinion.
They were a life saver for me in my quant business classes -- especially stats and accounting. The well-designed ones have practice homework, quizzes and exams that give you feedback and show you step-by-step where you went wrong with a problem. It is MUCH better than doing problems out of the textbook and banging your head against the wall when you can't figure out why you got it wrong.
You are correct in that some professors require the access code only to make their own lives easier, but what is another $60 to you? I mean, why are you in college? Chances are high that the only reason (if you really think about it) you are in college is to increase your earning potential later on in life. Yes, college is expensive but is not an investment in your future?
The codes / online access I've had to purchase have cost much more than $60 -- usually $99 - $110. The difference in cost between the books I could buy use vs. the brand-new book w/ access code / online access / whatever has ranged from $50 - $100+. (Accounting and finance double major.) Usually, I have to buy access codes for 2-3 classes a semester. This can easily add up to $200-$300+, which is not nothing to many low income students who are trying to improve their lives. Even at community colleges in my area, the cost of attendance is not completely covered by unsubsidized loans and grants. This means that kids with cash flow problems, who arguably need college the most, are forced into taking out subsidized loans -- or they may perform poorly (because they're waiting for weeks, saving up to buy all those access codes) and drop out.
Stepping off my soapbox now
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