Do you sell back your college textbooks?

United States
December 17, 2009 7:27pm CST
One of the things that a lot of college and university students do is sell back their textbooks at the end of the semester. I have a few friends who do. My wife also occasionally sells back the ones that she does not believe she is ever going to use again. I, myself. on the other hand, have never sold back a textbook. Many of my textbooks I plan on using again. Either they are history textbooks (I hope to write history articles someday), or they deal with literature. As a literature major, I have occasionally used the same exact text for three different classes. Plus, given the number of economics articles I have written over the past couple of years, my textbooks in that subject have paid for themselves. So what about you? Do you sell back your textbooks? Or have you found uses for them?
4 people like this
25 responses
@ElicBxn (63233)
• United States
18 Dec 09
I have kept some, sold others, one I wish I hadn't sold was my History of the English Language book -
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (63233)
• United States
18 Dec 09
I loved the class, the prof, just about everything - even tho it was one of my closest calls on a class. I know many people get a minor in English around these parts since you have to take 12 hours ANYWAY, but I wasn't even TEMPTED to take another class to get a minor, because I'm so bad at English - and its my native language! Actually, I did flunk an English class, but I also flunked a History class that semester, I should've dropped out that semester since I totaled a car near the beginning of the year, but I did pass Anthropology, Government and something - forget what it was... I retook them the spring semester and passed them, also took one of my absolute FAVORITE classes with my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE prof that spring - Dr. Hahn - History of the Middle and Near East - that summer I took History of the Far East from him - and, as he passed out the final he informed us this was the last final he was ever going to grade, because he was retiring - GREAT teacher - GREAT man!
1 person likes this
• United States
19 Dec 09
I do not know what it is about the last semester a teacher teaches, but it always feels like a honor to attend a class with a professor during their last semester of teaching. I have experienced this a couple of times already.
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Dec 09
Ouch! I have yet to take that class, but I definitely will hang onto the textbook when I get it. I am fascinated by the way that the English language has developed.
1 person likes this
• Philippines
18 Dec 09
Hi. I have never sold any of my school textbooks. I have collected all for possible future use. But I regretted this because almost all of them are no longer useful. Most of the information in my college books are already superseded. Practically, these books are now being kept in my family's house for display purposes.
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Dec 09
What subject did you study?
• United States
19 Dec 09
Ouch! You gotta love it when the government changes everything on you. Here it seems like it takes forever to graduate because the government keeps adding classes that they want you to have under your belt.
• Philippines
19 Dec 09
I have studied bachelor of science in accountancy. Three years after my college graduation, the Philippine government decided to adopt the International Accounting Standards. The adoption totally replaced the old accounting standards we have studied. And what choice do we have but to embrace the change and unlearn what we have studied for more than four years in college. These made our college books almost useless.
1 person likes this
@babostwick (2036)
• United States
18 Dec 09
I haven't done it yet. I'm just getting started with school and some of the books actually have come in handy and probably will keep even after I am done. I'm going to be keeping probably my intro to PC book, Computer Programming book, Operating Systems, and maybe some of the program languages. I'll probably sell the others eventually.
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Dec 09
Programming books are definitely something that I can see one using again in the future. I know that I periodically end up looking up stuff in the instruction for Word and Excel. I also have an HTML book I consult on a semi-regular basis.
• United States
19 Dec 09
I know that feeling. Sometimes I look at them again so that I don't forget something when it comes to programming. Any slight mistake and it will not work. That's what I do and that's about it.
1 person likes this
@dawnald (85130)
• Shingle Springs, California
19 Dec 09
Long time no see - welcome back. You know, I never did sell back a textbook, don't know why. I probably could have used the money. And there were some that I would never have gone back and looked at.
1 person likes this
• United States
19 Dec 09
I have been busy dealing with college classes. Just got done with finals last week. I weighed my textbooks that I used this semester and decided to keep them. I can conjure up article ideas involving these subjects (in the history end), and I know that I need to hang onto one of the literature books already (following the advice of the professor---I have to take another class from him in the near future).
@smiley83 (1534)
• Malaysia
19 Dec 09
hi myloty friend,, well, i haven't done this in my entire study life and I don't think I would ever do such a thing although if i don't really need them..But, I do lend to my friends the books and the notes of the whole subject and they return it back to me at the en of the semester..the same thing goes with me as I do borrow theirs as well..but we never sell our books ever..although, my room is definitely full of so many books and i'm really thinking of giving some to students who need but i haven't made any decision because i do feel so touched to my books!! I'm still student and the semester just started this week..so, I think i would just postpone thinking over it till i'm done with my study *_^
1 person likes this
• United States
19 Dec 09
At the community college I went to, they had a small lending library at the student life office. I have considered donating some of my textbooks to it. Oh, I am so attached to my library. I just love books.
• United States
18 Dec 09
I try to sell my college textbooks but a lot of the times they won't take the books back because they came out with new editions, so a book you pay almost $200 for you won't even get a penny for. I'm a psychology major and I keep all of my psychology books, but everything else I sell at the bookstore.
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Dec 09
Yeah, at the college bookstore here, they will not buy back books if they are not going to be used by the professor for the next semester's version of the class. On the other hand, I did have an economy professor that got one of his classes a really good deal on a textbook because he worked out a deal with the publisher to help them clear out a warehouse of outdated textbooks.
• United States
18 Dec 09
I had to sell many of my textbooks back because I really would not have any money for the holiday season if I did not.
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Dec 09
That was one of the reasons that my wife sold back her books this semester. the other reasons was that she was transferring to a different college (university actually), and her pile of books was getting really big. Plus, these subjects were not her primary focus.
• China
19 Dec 09
I put most of my textboks in my bookcase,not only my collage textbooks, but also most of that I used in my senior high school.I treasured them as my memory of grow up. Also,I am using the textbooks that about the subject I major in.When I reading them ,I usually recall the days I spent int the school.I enjoy it.
1 person likes this
@happy6162 (3001)
• United States
18 Dec 09
I was like your wife I would sell back the textbooks that I new I would not use again. I did keep most of my computer book but most of them are outdated now. I would usually brought the used books if I could so I could save some money.
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Dec 09
Yeah, most of my textbooks I brought used because I needed to save money. Computer books go out of date fast. It what happens when you study a field that is changing rapidly.
@Althafk (172)
• India
18 Dec 09
I have a different answer.I am studying btech and i have never sold my college books.Actually i have'nt brought any book of my own.We just uses the books and xerox copies of our seniors and we just transfer those books to our juniors.On the other side there is a fully packed library in our college..
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Dec 09
That is so neat. That is a really good idea. I wonder why more people do not do that.
@megamatt (14292)
• United States
19 Dec 09
I have not done this. Mostly because a good portion of my text books, don't seem to be worth the value to sell back. And the fact is, I want to hang onto a lot of them, for future reference. You never know when you might need to look up something regarding to the major you're taking. I don't think it would be wise to throw away a potential resource. So I hang onto my text books.
1 person likes this
• China
19 Dec 09
Selling college textbook is better than puting them away,because not only the people who really want it can buy them cheaply,but also you get some money.Plus,what we learned from textbooks is unpractical when we enter into society.As for me,I will sell my college textbooks after graduating.
1 person likes this
• China
19 Dec 09
Selling college textbooks that you won't use again is better than put them away,because not only other people who really need it can buy it cheaply,but also you get some money.Plus,when we enter society,what we learned from textbook is unpractical.As for me,I want to sell my text book after granduating.
1 person likes this
• China
18 Dec 09
No,i didn'd sell my textbooks . I think the money isn't worth the vaule of my books .When graduated from my college , some books i gave my little college sisters and brothers ,and the others i took away with me.
1 person likes this
@AmbiePam (85295)
• United States
18 Dec 09
I did keep one of my college textbooks. It was an English Lit textbook. Well, I guess two really. Another one was for psychology/counseling class, and since I took many more psychology classes afterward, I did keep that one, and haven't resold it. It may sound weird, but I think it could come into use later on. But every semester after I was done with my textbooks I would sell them on www.half.com. I almost always got more than half of the original cost back.
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Dec 09
I sell back my college books. I'll like to keep them if I could but they are really expensive and I don't think I could afford too.
@umabharti (3972)
• India
18 Dec 09
i have some books which r to be placed as record and as a remembrance .But not all,because they can be a book store in the home , and create some problem in return.I have my computer texts as well as notes for going through them.,But i sold out my pg ,graduation,etc., books.my father has the interest in not even selling a book of religious context.so one of the room is full of these religious books.every now and then we have to dust them and see they are nt geting spoiled.
1 person likes this
• South Korea
18 Dec 09
NO ,I haven't . But that is OK . IF my friend need that ``` i will give to her/him.
1 person likes this
• Indonesia
18 Dec 09
Hi morgandrake, I've just finished my 4 year undergraduate of Chemical Engineering and I have like tons of textbook, journals, etc. So far I haven't sell them at all due to my job now that I'm still needing some of them. While some others that I don't need, I keep them in my bookshelf hoping that someday I'll manage to make my own library.
1 person likes this
@gauraw (22)
• India
18 Dec 09
even i sell my books but then i sell it to my juniors but the onesthat are of my interest i would keep them for myslef bcos there are sumtymes when i would love to read it from them I m an IT grad an i have made pretty good notes which i dont feel like selling it so mostly i sell basically my interest is into IT so i would sell of those books but then again if sum 1 needs it i would lend it to them and would xpect them to return it back to me