Trust-busting:

Political science textbook: $150. Accounting textbook: $210. Biology textbook: $250.
Fairfield University students find themselves spending as much as $850 or more each semester, just as a current Fairfield nursing major, Erin Shea ’10, recalls doing prior to her first semester.

However, help might very well likely be on the way. The Higher Education Bill, which was signed into law this past August, will change the face of the textbook buying market, according to its supporters.

The primary goal of the bill, an update of the Higher Education Act, will be to lower the costs of getting a college education by regulating textbook costs and private loans, as well as, trying to give states incentives to increase their investments in higher education.

On the Fairfield front, a significant portion of the students feel that the bill is a great step in the right direction. The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) information will make it much easier for these students to purchase needed textbooks at a much cheaper cost.

‘College students don’t have the most money in the world,’ said Joe Bell ’10. ‘Saving a few bucks on textbooks could help with buying other textbooks.’

The ISBN is the unique ‘fingerprint’ that is used to identify specific books. With such information at their disposal, students could more easily deviate from the bookstore and purchase textbooks for cheaper prices from other retailers.

Jeff Seiser, the president of FUSA, said students will be most affected by the clause that says university bookstores will be required to give the ISBN information for all textbooks.
Students will have to wait a little longer, though, for this information, since the Higher Education Bill will not take effect until 2010.

Many other students said they are rather indifferent about the bill.

In recent years, these students have persevered in finding alternative ways to purchase textbooks at cheaper costs anyway, while using the information the University bookstore does offer.
‘You don’t need the ISBN numbers to get your books online, which is cheap anyways,’ said Meredith Moses ’10.

Among the leading alternatives to purchasing textbooks from a university bookstore are Web sites such as Half.com and Amazon.com.

On such sites, students can buy the exact same books from individual sellers, at significantly lower prices. Most importantly, these sites can direct students to the books they need, without the use of ISBN information.

There are some people who feel that the Higher Education Bill might not prove to be as helpful.

Barbara Farrell, the manager of Fairfield University’s bookstore, said she feels the publishers will find other ways to make a profit from college students.

‘E-books are on the cusp,’ she said.

An e-book, or electronic book, is a digital take on the traditional print book. Rather than purchase a traditional, tangible book, a person can purchase an e-book which they can view on their personal computers or special devices called e-book readers.

College students in other parts of America agree that there are problems with textbook prices.

‘People who select textbooks are not the people who buy them, so price doesn’t factor into textbook sales the way it would in a normal market,’ said Nicole Allen, a UC Berkeley student, as quoted in the Daily Californian.

As a result, the bill has found national support from college students.

‘It’s a great step for the federal government to prioritize higher education like this,’ Sam Dotters-Katz, a University of Oregon student told the Oregon Daily Emerald.

While the e-book option may be cheaper in cost, students will not have the option to sell these books back for money.

Also, Farrell predicts that in the future many e-books will expire after a period of time. In the end, this will leave Fairfield students with nothing for their money.

There is no denying, however, the massive financial help that can come from this bill, which some students are aware of.

‘I think it will make textbook purchasing easier and more economical for students,’ said Shea. ‘I am enthusiastic about the future possibility of saving a dramatic amount of money on my textbooks.’