Campus shop expects low buy-back prices for textbooks due to
new editions
Jessica Patchett / Editor in Chief
This year may be one of the worst for Elon University
students trying to get money back for turning in used
textbooks, according to Kathy Scarborough, Campus Shop
manager. She suggests students sell back their used books
between May 10 and 22 for the best possible prices.
“The bad news is, there are a lot of new editions, a
lot of changing books, maybe more than I’ve ever seen
here before,” she said. The good news is students can
expect cheaper book prices in the fall, as many new editions
will be paperbacks, Scarborough said.
This semester, students should not expect to receive the
retail buy-back price for many books.
The retail buy-back value is one of two possible prices at
which the bookstore may take back used books, the other being
the wholesale price. If an Elon professor requires a book and
the store is not overstocked with that book, the bookstore
will buy the book back for 50 percent of the value at which a
student purchased it. This price is the retail buy-back
price.
Scarborough said she plans to post a list outside the Campus
Shop of the top 10-20 books in demand on campus. Students may
check this list for their books and expect the greatest
payback for these titles.
The bookstore deals with more than 600 titles at a time and
Scarborough said the staff can not produce a list of all
titles and the buy-back value, as it may fluctuate daily.
“We want to make sure students get the most bang for
their buck,” Scarborough said.
The wholesale price is used when professors cease to require
a book on campus. The bookstore can then only purchase a book
at the national demand or market value. The greater the
demand, the more money students can expect to receive for
their used books. Books such as paperbacks generally produce
a low buyback yield, as there may be millions of books in
circulation nationwide.
With the turnover in Elon text requests this semester,
students’ cash back for books may not be enough to buy
books for summer courses, though books may be cheaper next
semester. Books for summer online courses are now available
in the bookstore.
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