Here are some tips to keep in mind when buying books for school this year and ways that UGA is trying to help reduce your textbook costs:

Check out books from the UGA Library

Be sure to check the UGA Library as they may have the book you may need! “Sometimes we do have the book in our collection, so it’s always a good idea to check and see if we own the book,” says Lynn Cahoon, Distance Librarian at UGA. Cahoon also suggests for students to check GIL Express, a book-sharing service where all the libraries in the university system share their circulating books with each other. This is a free way to get the textbooks you need.

Scanned library books

Another perk of the UGA Libraries is that you can call the library to check and see if they have the book you need and they can scan articles or certain chapters for you as needed! The UGA Library has many services available to students, so don’t be afraid to call and ask.

Rent textbooks or buy used ones

Instead of buying your textbooks, rent them! You can do this through the UGA Bookstore, or even through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Used books are also a great option because they are cheaper than buying the newest edition. Another tip from Cahoon is that “when searching for new or used books it’s a good idea to look for paperback or electronic versions of the book. Sometimes they are less expensive.”

Use electronic books

Like Cahoon advised, electronic books are a good option when textbook shopping. Many UGA faculty members are opting for e-books because of the affordability of them! “For our faculty teaching online, Open Educational Resources (OER) offer the opportunity to make courses even more accessible to students by providing learning materials at no cost to students. Many of our faculty who teach online utilize these free materials to replace textbooks,” explained Deanna Cozart, coordinator of OER at the UGA Center for Teaching and Learning. Clearly our faculty members are working diligently to make sure you don’t have to break the bank on books.

Cozart also pointed out that “the University System of Georgia has become the biggest implementer of OpenStax textbooks, which are freely distributed to students in large enrollment classes. Here at UGA, OpenStax texts are being used in many of our large-lecture classes, and OER implementations of OpenStax and other OER have saved UGA students almost $2 million in textbook costs over the past 2 years.” Great news for UGA online students hoping to save some money!