I showed up for my first semester of school having already bought all of my books. I was a bit surprised when several of my classmates didn't have their books yet...
THEN a couple of my teachers let us know that we didn't even NEED the book, but we could use it if we wanted to... (so I returned mine for a refund! lol.)
So this semester, I was thinking of waiting until after classes start to buy them... but I'm worried about that backfiring on me (what if I need the book on the first day... or the bookstore sells out and I can't get one... lol.) I am the type who likes to go into things like this prepared, so it really goes against my grain NOT to have my books. (plus, I can usually find used books cheaper ahead of time, but people don't usually do refunds...) BUT I don't want to buy the books, then turn around and return them again. What a hassle that was!
So... Is it better to wait and see what I will ACTUALLY need, or should I buy ahead?
I always waited to buy books, until after 1st class . Like you said, many times , I didn't need the book. If I did need the book on the 1st day or they were short books, I would just make copies.
you should be able to email the instructor and ask them ahead of time. If you need help doing so ask your counselor or the librarian at the school library.
I would buy them ahead of time. You never know if the teacher is going to just go right into what they want to teach on the first day. I would much rather be prepared then having to scramble to get the books after I go to the first day of class.
I would buy them ahead of time. Like you, I like to be prepared.
Also, can you check to see if your instructors are available before the first day of classes to ask? Mine usually were so if I had a question I could call and talk to them beforehand, even if I had to leave them a message and have them get back to me.
When I was a grad assistant, it was my responsibility to dialogue with the book store and the library each semester. At that school the library had copies of every textbook being used, and the bookstore had enough copies for every student enrolled. This was at a time when students were really just beginning to use Amazon and Barnes and Noble online to buy books, so they bookstore might not buy as many copies now.
I teach (math) at a university now. I am off for the summer, and classes start in 4 weeks. I check my email everyday. I only get a handful of questions, but I do get some emails from students and respond as soon as I can.
I would email all of your professors and ask about the textbook. You might even be able to get a copy of the syllabus, which would get you a better idea of how much of the textbook is actually used in the course. I would also find out if the library has a copy that you can check out. Some just have one on reserve that you can use in the library and make copies of. I would not worry about not being able to get the textbook from the school's bookstore, but you definitely run the risk of them no longer having used books.
Last semester the textbook for my class was "recommended" and not "required." (University policy, and I don't fully understand.) My supervising professor has actually created his own on-line textbook to fit the class, so we don't use the textbook anymore. I tried to let the students know right away that they didn't actually need the textbook, but some of them still bought it and waited too long to try and return it. So it's definitely worth asking!
I've found that most professors go over the sylabus and that's about it the first class. The only one that wasn't the case for was my math class last semester. We went over the sylabus then went straight into the book.
Most of my classes tho ... the books were almost a waste of money. Studies have shown that 75% of students DO NOT read the textbooks ... so MOST college professors teach and lecture to that idea.
Things like math and a science lab of course are different.
get in touch with the teacher and ask. one of my sons attended a college prep highschool. His books were about $600 a semester. I went online on ebay and got his books for less than $300 for the year. So after checking with the teacher to see which ones you really need check out ebay.
Granted it has been a LONG time since I was in college, but I always bought the books. At that time, there were very few professors that didn't use the books specified by the class. Used books could be gotten early wheras they weren't always available if I waited.
Of course, the internet was just evolving when I was in college and e-books just didn't exist :)
If it is in my major then I would buy it. They thought enough about it to put it down as the text book. But if it was not for my major nor a book I'd read for the fun of it then I was waiting until the last moment.
ALWAYS get the book their is a cut off date where you can get a full refund,. its a pain yes but well worth it
I buy ahead of time.
I try to schedule my most heinous classes for fall quarter, so that I can have the summer to prep as much as possible (I'm currently up to my eyeballs in arabic. Actually, typing left to right feels kinda funny).
I WISH I'd done that with A&P. Oy. THAT class was 2 chapters per day, tests every day of class, and just ridiculous work load. Sure. I can memorize 100 bone features in 36 hours for the quiz monday. It's the next 100 for wed. And next 100 on friday. And being tested on all 300 monday (in addition to origin and insertion poingt of every freakin nerve of the spine the friday following) that kills me.
So for eye crossing courses, I try to get the books as much in advance as possible.
For "ahhhh.... Relaxing" classes, I still get the books ahead of time, and flip through them to familiarize myself... but don't actually study ahead.
I always keep my books, as well. I refer back to most of them at the oddest times!!! What's fun is looking at my mum's books, and my grandfather's books. It's amazing how much changes, sure, but also how much stays the same!
It varies. Sometimes I was without a book because I waited and sometimes it worked out fine. Find out the return policy (no highlighting, receipts, etc.) buy used when possible, or rent (my SS used Chegg) and realize that sometimes your plans will go just right and sometimes not. Usually whatever hiccup was minor and I'd rather err on having the book than not. I almost always bought ahead of time and often went back for more (I had a lot of literature classes and some of my profs didn't give out the final list til they handed out the syllabus).
It really depends on the class.
It can go either way. Foreign language? You DEFINITELY need the book. Lab books, you generally always need. History? Not so much, really - in my experience, that is mostly lecture-based. Math - probably. If the teacher assigns homework, it will likely be from the book. Literature? Probably - you will be using the specific abridgments in the books, or the particular texts the instructor has ordered.
Any time a teacher specifies as particular translation, buy the book ahead of time. Often, you can get textbooks online or even download them if you have an e-reader, but if the instructor has ordered a particular translation, I would not risk that anyone other than the campus bookstore will have them, and probably in limited quantity.
In some cases, too, the textbook is really mostly a convenience rather than a necessity. History or public policy classes, for example - you can make up the difference by using the lecture notes plus a little research, if you don't mind putting in a little time on the internet or in the library. I did this a lot as a poor college student.
I'm a bit jealous. I so want to go back to school. Sigh. I'd be a "professional student," if I could afford it.
Have a great semester!
