The Price of Knowledge
College textbook prices have increased in recent years. For Olivia Van Avery, a Central Michigan University senior majoring in psychology, this semester's textbooks are "slightly too much" compared to earlier semesters.
Van Avery's textbooks, purchased from the CMU Bookstore, range from $20 to $150. The prices are set by the publishers, and then CMU determines the margin, according to Kimberly Yates, Assistant Manager of the CMU Bookstore.
"We are a retail business, and so we need to make a profit, but it all goes back into the university,"
"Shipping costs are outrageous, and that’s half the battle sometimes, but keeping costs down ... is one of our main priorities for everything we do."
To keep costs affordable, the CMU bookstore has increased the availability of digital copies and textbooks and continues to offer used books, Yates said.
Author's summary: College textbook prices rise.