FAQ: Purchasing your textbook from an off-campus merchant or over the internet.

1. How are college stores responding to online competition?

2. How can the same textbook, or a virtually identical textbook, be less expensive to buy over the Internet from an overseas supplier than through a U.S. college store?

3. Aren't some students saving money by buying directly from publishers?

4. If I choose to shop somewhere other than my college store, how do I know I'm getting the right book?

5. How long will it take to get my textbook if I order from an off-campus merchant?

6. What if I need to return my textbook?

How are college stores responding to online competition?

• The majority of college stores support their student customers with web sites offering the same round-the-clock convenience of the national online-only sellers, but with all the course materials their students need and not just the best-selling or large adoption titles.  Click here to purchase your texts online through the College Store at Harford Community College.
• College stores are partnering with campus libraries and classroom / course material management companies like BlackBoard and WebCT to provide access to content as more and more educational titles are digitized.

How can the same textbook, or a virtually identical textbook, be less expensive to buy over the Internet from an overseas supplier than through a U.S. college store?

• The lower prices are available overseas because U.S. publishers have sold these titles to wholesalers and retailers abroad at prices that are greatly reduced in comparison to those available to U.S. college stores.

Aren't some students saving money by buying directly from publishers?

• There are thousands of publishers, and some will sell directly to the consumer at the same price as they sell to bookstores. However, virtually every major textbook publisher has credit and business policies that act to prevent individual students from buying from them at the same prices as bookstores, because it simply isn't cost-effective for publishers to sell to individual students.

• Every year some students set themselves up in business, establish credit, and order quantities of textbooks from all types of publishers. This is a legitimate practice for both students and publishers. However, student efforts to research, order, sell, and return textbooks don't happen often, nor because of the work involved do they usually last very long. This is not a widespread national trend.

If I choose to shop somewhere other than my college store, how do I know I'm getting the right book?

• Be cautious about educational purchases made away from your campus  store.  The exact items you need may not be readily available.

• You should always check with your college store or professor to determine textbook requirements.

• Be sure to check the ISBN's of textbooks to insure that you are ordering the exact title that has been requested by your professor.

• Many courses use special textbook packages. In addition the the primary textbook, these packages may contain web site passwords, study guides or solution manuals, CD's and other special content.  In many cases, these packages are only available through your college store.  If you purchase any of these materials outside of the college store, be certain that you have all of the materials that are required by your professor.

• When comparing prices, be sure to factor in shipping fees.

How long will it take to get my textbook if I order from an off-campus merchant?

• It is the responsibility of your college store to see that sufficient quantities of textbooks are available for all students.  Unfortunately, other merchants are primarily charged generating a profit.  For this reason, off-campus merchants usually stock selected textbooks in very limited quantities.

• Be sure that the book you have ordered from these merchants will be shipped in a timely manner.

• It is not uncommon for textbooks ordered to appear to be in stock, only to find that you have to wait days...weeks... months for the book to arrive.

• Check with the off-campus merchant to see what their policy is regarding textbooks that arrive too late to be of use for your class.

What if I need to return my textbook?

• There are many reasons why students may choose to return a textbook once class has begun; changes in professors or professor requirements, classes may be dropped or cancelled, students may opt to share some books, etc.
• Your College Store has return policies that are designed to assist students in these situations.  In addition, the college store is located right on campus near your other classes and professors
• Off-campus merchants will have very different return policies, textbooks may have to be re-packaged and shipped,  and shipping fees will probably not be refundable.  
• Be sure to know the return policies of the off-campus merchant before you make your purchase.

Back to TOP