Students could save big with open-source textbooks

There’s plenty of focus on the rising cost of college, but many people don’t realize until they get there that the extra costs, including textbooks, can really add up.

According to a new report from the Student Public Interest Research Groups, switching to free or low-cost “open-source” electronic versions of textbooks could save students thousands per year.

Switching to electronic college textbooks could save students thousands per year.

Textbooks add to high college costs

The College Board estimates that the average cost for books and supplies for the current academic year is between $1,200 and $1,300, depending on the type of school attended.

To put this cost in perspective, it’s about 40% of the average cost of tuition at a two-year public college and 13% of the tuition cost at a four-year public college–a huge chunk of change for students trying to reduce their college costs.

Like tuition, the rising cost of college textbooks has radically outpaced inflation over the past few decades.

Since 1978, college textbook costs have increased 812%–3.2 times the rate of inflation.

Textbook costs limit students academically

And textbook costs aren’t just costing students money–they’re limiting their ability to take classes and succeed in them in the first place.

A 2014 Student PIRGs studyiv found that 65% of students had skipped buying or renting a textbook because it was too expensive, and 94% of those students felt that doing so would hurt their grade in a course.

Additionally, according to the study, nearly half of students said the cost of textbooks impacted how many courses they were able to take.

Electronic textbooks could save students thousands on college

According to the report, open textbooks are faculty-written, peer-reviewed textbooks that are published under an open license – meaning that they are available free online for download.

These free textbooks could save students $128 per course, the study estimates. This would allow students to take more of the courses they need and want, without fear of adding too much to their college expenses.

While the cost of textbooks may seem minor in the context of tuition, consider this: if each of the 11.1 million full-time undergraduates in the country were able to use these textbooks, students would save over $1.42 billion each year. This could go a long way in helping students reduce their costs–and help reduce the $1.2 trillion in national student debt.

Given that colleges across the board have risen tuition, it’s crucial to find ways to reduce college costs in all areas to help students avoid debt.

As Ethan Senak writes in the report,

In order to reduce costs for students now, and in the future, we must break free from the traditional textbook market and deliver educational materials through an alternative model.

Colleges should take responsibility for reducing student costs

The study says that there are currently more than 100 open textbooks available, and more than 3,000 faculty have already adopted open textbooks.

We hope to see more college mandating their use and professors taking responsibility for student costs by switching to e-textbooks.

While they may not have control over the price of tuition, faculty can help students reduce their costs so that their ability to pay does not impact their ability to succeed or enroll in a course.

Until e-textbooks become widely available, however, there are ways for students to reduce their costs. Check out our tips for saving money on college textbook costs, or contact us to learn how we can help you make college more affordable.

photo credit: August 19, 2009 – Day 233 via photopin (license)