Buy or Rent Nursing Textbooks

Nursing Students General Students

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Hi,

I start my nursing program in August and wanted to know what is better renting or buying when it comes to the actual nursing textbooks? I usually rent my textbooks but one of the nurses that I work with says she regrets not keeping her books, so now I'm wondering if I should buy them to keep as reference for later.

Another nurse said she wished they had a rent option when she went to school because she just gave all that "money away." In other words she had no use for them after school.

So what have all of you done? I really like renting but I'm torn apart on what to do! Did any of you need your textbooks after you were done with your classes? Have any of you who are nurses already used your books to look something up for work? If so, which books are the best or the ones I would most likely want to buy and keep? I kept my Nutrition book but I rarely look at it. Maybe I will once classes start or maybe not, I don't know!!

Any advice or experiences welcomed.

Thanks!!

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I would buys the textbooks, I start my first semester in the fall and I bought all my books. I like to write in them take notes on different pages and im a highlighter fanatic! Also I look at them as an investment because I can always reference back to them if I needed to do so.

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Specializes in Operating Room.
I would buys the textbooks, I start my first semester in the fall and I bought all my books. I like to write in them take notes on different pages and im a highlighter fanatic! Also I look at them as an investment because I can always reference back to them if I needed to do so.

This.

I purchased all of my textbooks either brand new or "like new," for the same reasons as stated in the above quote. I don't want to get confused by someone else's handwritten notes or highlights; instead, I'd rather write in my own notes, and highlight the specific information that has been lectured. However, I do have a few books this coming semester (it's my first semester) such as one for Nursing Informatics, that I can't imagine needing again in future semesters.

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I rented all of my textbooks and just recorded the lectures and highlighted the notes I took on my laptop in class. Renting my textbooks saved me $710 during nursing school. As we were not allowed to work, that money helped me greatly. We had a lot of book highlighters in my class, but in the end, they all wished they had rented because they learned better by typing the notes on the laptop. To each his own.

Also, if you can get away with getting the previous edition of any book on your required list, it will save you TONS of money. And there is rarely a huge difference between the new and older book.

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In our program, we tend to use the books from earlier classes in later classes, so I recommend buying them because you will need them again. I'm also a big highlighter/note taker in my books, and I love to have them for references for subsequent classes.

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Thanks for all the advice!! I'm not a big highlighter lol but I get where y'all are coming from.

Saving money is why I've always rented just don't want to need the books later!!

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I did both. Most renting places allow highlighting. I rented some books and bought others. I bought the adult book, peds/ob, and patho.

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I buy all my books. I have two bookshelves filled with books I've bought from pre-reqs. I take pride in the knowledge I've learned and I always refer back to books when having discussions with people. Referencing nursing books is a great idea. I'm planning on buying all my books. Although probably from half.com :D

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Check with your program, because we bought all of our textbooks for the whole program at the beginning of the first semester. If I had rented them, I would have had to rent them for three semesters and that would not have been cost effective. Plus, you are also going to need to study for the NCLEX, so I do not think renting is a good option for Nursing School

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Specializes in CVICU.

I bought all of my books from Amazon. Most were 'like new' or 'brand new', but some were just 'acceptable'. Regardless, they are all in usable conditions and we will be using them for the next four semesters. I only paid $650ish for all of my books.

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We use the same books (all 9 of them) for the entire program so it actually would cost more to rent all of them for the entire length of the program than to just buy them outright.

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Specializes in Ambulatory Care.

I'm sorry, I can't offer an experience because I am only a pre-nursing student. With nursing, I would buy books rather than rent. ORNursetobe33 offered a reassuring advice to get a previous edition of the book, when possible, and I'm glad that "there is rarely a huge difference between the new and older book." Perhaps it's not true for every book, but likely holds true for most, especially when the new edition has been released several years after the previous. I feel that having your own books will indeed come very handy during studying for NCLEX. And it is possible that you might need to reference them throughout your courses!

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