I have been searching all over this site for some help but I cant find what I am looking for....Where do you buy your books for any nursing program??? I am about to start the BSN program at South University in FL 10-3-11 and I was hoping to buy USED books. I couldnt find many! the used books I found were only 5 dollars cheaper than new ones. I went back and forth from Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I don't get any grants and my Financial Aid only covers part of my tuition not all so I was hoping to save some money in books but i didn't have any luck...
I decided to buy most books from Barnes and Noble. I became a member for $25 a year. that will guarantee me to get my books in 1-3 business days. Did I make a good choice?
RENT them! You can always buy them later.. unless you know they will be used in subsequent semesters. Chegg.com has been my BEST friend... and they do give you the option to buy.
Chegg.com! If not, Amazon Prime (which has been amazing also).
I bought most of my books from Barnes and Noble because I get rewards points with them through my bank. Also it might be best to get new editions for your books because they might come with CDs and access codes. My fundamentals and pharmacology books came with access codes that allow you to access the e-book versions of the text for free. Its awesome!
RENT them! You can always buy them later.. unless you know they will be used in subsequent semesters. Chegg.com has been my BEST friend... and they do give you the option to buy.
Chegg.com! If not, Amazon Prime (which has been amazing also).
If you do chegg just rent... Do not buy, not good experiences
I've rented books from Chegg.com and Bookrenter.com.
I bought most of my ASN books off Amazon. I saved over $200 buying them that way instead of going through my school bookstore.
Last I checked Amazon Prime had a deal going for students, as Connie1109 stated above.
http://www.dealoz.com/ is an interesting website that pulls books from a lot of different websites to compare prices.
I agree with IUstudent...rent from Chegg...don't buy. I made the mistake of buying thinking it was "new" (or at least "newer") and it was missing the DVD/CD component.
I use BN for most of my books, but also Abebooks and ebay. I go thru the ebates website. It's free to register and when you enter member sites (and there are 100's including BN) you get a percentage of your purchase back in cash. They are reliable and I get checks regularly.
The best way to save money...don't buy the ones you don't need. You can ask the teachers beforehand, and ask students who just took the class. They'll tell you what you need. The book list is made up by a lot of people, and most of the time your teacher won't pull info from all the books. I bought maybe 3 books my entire way through the BSN program. Otherwise you can get your info that you need from lecture, skills, clinical, and the internet if you really get stuck. I think for my health assessment class they had 6 books(textbook, practice book, workbook, some kind of stupid other book, a food book, and something else). The cheapest of those 6 was about $59. I didn't even bother buying the textbook because I knew the teacher wouldn't touch it. They told us that we "NEEDED" to buy their EKG book for $45. The internet and youtube are free and have the same info..just keep that in mind.
I have managed to pick up some of them secondhand on eBay, and they did have the CDs and all with them. Once or twice someone sold me a "like new" book that was missing the extras, and I returned those for refund under PayPal protection plan. International editions are sometimes available. For some books that are more or less reference, like care plan and nursing diagnosis, you can get by with the previous editions, mostly. I even have picked up some books m from thrift stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army, in stores located near universities or nursing schools.
I'm not too impressed with the rental prices. In most cases, it doesn't save me what I consider a significant amount of money vs. buying and owning the book. And I often wind up doing my paperwork or studying at odd times of day/night. so I want as many books permanently at my fingertips as possible. I only have one chance to succeed at this, so I will spend what I need to to succeed. I personally learn more / better from reading the textbooks than from attending lectures. If you find that's true, then get the books.
For new books, I picked B&N just for convenience b/c their prices are sometimes better than the eBay and Amazon and other sellers of new books, and they usually have what I need in stock. If I have time, I try to piece together my books from the cheapest sourced, but when time is short, I just order all from B&N.
This is such a big thing for me. I hate spending more money than I have to, especially on books. lol. I always buy mine because in my program (ADN) they tell us we'll be reusing our books in the other levels. I always start out by going to the bookstore where they'll have the list of books. I find the books i need, write down the isbn numbers, edition numbers, and take a picture of every book.
Then I go home, and google the isbn number or book name. I'll use ebay, amazon, really any place that is reputable.
I write down EVERY price i see thats a match to my book and where I find it, then compare.
I also look at craigslist.org. They sell books there locally. I check my school library or buildings because students will post on the walls if they have a used book.
And ofcourse, Half priced book store. I cannot shut up about this place. I went there a few weeks ago and found EVERY book i needed last semester for like $10-$20 a book. So if you have one, I'd definitely try there.
I'd also email your instructor. Alot of my classmates used older versions. Up to 5 years to be exact. In our assigned readings, it'll say "Read Chapter on Antihypertensive Medication" It never says "Read Chapter 20". So it was ok to use an older version that wasn't really all that different from the brand new one.
I have came across this problem myself. The cheapest I have been able to find is between amazon and barnes and noble or once in awhile from half.com Most of my books I also get through Barnes & Noble. Does becoming a member have any other benefits besides that?
Yes I think they send you coupons too but I havent gotten any yet...
This is such a big thing for me. I hate spending more money than I have to, especially on books. lol. I always buy mine because in my program (ADN) they tell us we'll be reusing our books in the other levels. I always start out by going to the bookstore where they'll have the list of books. I find the books i need, write down the isbn numbers, edition numbers, and take a picture of every book.
Then I go home, and google the isbn number or book name. I'll use ebay, amazon, really any place that is reputable.
I write down EVERY price i see thats a match to my book and where I find it, then compare.
I also look at craigslist.org. They sell books there locally. I check my school library or buildings because students will post on the walls if they have a used book.
And ofcourse, Half priced book store. I cannot shut up about this place. I went there a few weeks ago and found EVERY book i needed last semester for like $10-$20 a book. So if you have one, I'd definitely try there.
I'd also email your instructor. Alot of my classmates used older versions. Up to 5 years to be exact. In our assigned readings, it'll say "Read Chapter on Antihypertensive Medication" It never says "Read Chapter 20". So it was ok to use an older version that wasn't really all that different from the brand new one.
Best of luck!!
thank you for the information! I did not think of checking craigslist ...you'll never know what you can find there :)
wow! I just want to thank everyone for all the information. there are a lot of websites I need to consider. thank you so much. I really felt lost when it came to buying my books. I also think at the end you gotta do what works best for you. renting, buying new or used books....so much to think about!
NP Sam
476 Posts
RENT them! You can always buy them later.. unless you know they will be used in subsequent semesters. Chegg.com has been my BEST friend... and they do give you the option to buy.
Chegg.com! If not, Amazon Prime (which has been amazing also).