Textbooks should be cheaper

Textbooks and course books are needed for study, surely no one can argue with this. But with people spending extortionate amounts on textbooks, it raises the question: should they be cheaper or at least subsidised in some way?

When I was in first year I forked out on a number of books that helped me out during the year, but I ended up spending over £100. I have heard many people admitting to racking up a bill of over £200 on just a few books; this is a ridiculous sum.

Our student loans may be in recently, but we shouldn’t have to spend so much on books. It does seem as if we are being taken advantage of, especially first-years, who may have had no experience of controlling their own finances.

Affording student life is getting more and more difficult. All students here are self-catered, so need to keep to a rigorous budget just to feed themselves. Taking advantage of the great nightlife here is also a must, but this is a costly venture.

We haven’t even mentioned the cost of licence fees, societies, sports, gigs, amongst many other activities integral to enjoying university. With tuition fees going up as well this year, money will be on the mind of those starting out this term.

So with course textbooks so expensive, it is easy for people to choose against paying those prices. When I was in my second year, I decided against it, but this was a mistake. I needed a textbook to look up every now and then, to gain a sense of the chronology of the course. My studies suffered as a consequence.

Some may say that every book is available in the library, but this is wrong. The library only has a limited number of books, so the one you are looking for mightn’t be available. Indeed, I had this experience many times last year.

It is pretty clear that textbooks are too expensive, so something needs to be done. Should the university subsidise them? Well they want students to reach their potential, and they should even if they are not being willing to spend stupid money. Some have no choice, because they just can’t afford them.