Hello colleagues, should I sell back my textbook? Is it really worth it? Did you sell you books or kept them?
This is a very vague question. It really depends on you and the book. I’m a physics/math double major, and I keep my physics and math books. However, I have not kept the books for English Comp, communications, or any of my humanities classes. Aside from math and physics, the only books I’ve kept are my chemistry books and my anthropology books. I’ll probably get rid of my anthro books soon though, because realistically I’ll probably never look at them again despite how much I like anthropology. I’ll still read about it online.
For the most part though, it’s not really necessary to keep your books. These days I rent about half of my textbooks anyway, so keeping them isn’t an option. I only buy them if I know it’s a book I’ll want to keep.
This is really a personal choice question. Usually if you are trying to save money it is much better so sell the books either online or (better) to a student locally who will be taking the class the next semester. If the few dollars are not the big of deal to you (and you have the space) it may be worth keeping them.
I love books, so I kept many of mine (even the nasty Math books). I had an opportunity at my alma mater to borrow the texts for most of my classes. Looking back, I wish I would have bought many of them, especially the Social Studies books. I have used my books for reflection, research and even to help my kids get another perspective on subjects in school.
I recommend selling the book back directly to another student as you can control the price. The student bookstore near my college only buys back books at a small fraction of the original cost. Money is money, yes, but some people feel it’s more worth it to advertise and seek out another student who needs the book.
I have kept a few of my books, especially those pertaining to animal sciences, as I really love the subject. For others, I haven’t had the chance to sell back to anyone due to them not necessarily being in demand (they are older editions and many classes require the newest versions).
Yes, very vague.
Keep your textbook if:
- it is for a class in your major (or math for any engineering), and you will likely need to reference it for later classes
- there is any chance you might use it in your early career
- you really love the subject (I have an anthropology book I really loved that I kept)
Otherwise, better to sell it via ebay or to another student.
Depends on the book too - paperbacks no matter how much they cost usually get little return on the dollar.
If you see yourself throwing out the book after you graduate, sell it.
Should Not Sell Back Your Textbook because, the same book might be required for another course and the books could be useful in your career.
I’m a textbook collector, and I don’t sell my book back! It really depends on the person. Sometimes people sell it back to get some cash or something.
Textbooks are heavy, bulky, and not something you want to shlep around with you for the rest of your life. Every textbook I stupidly kept ended up sitting in my parents’ basement for 20 years and then being discarded. Sell them except those you firmly believe you will want for reference. The likelihood that any will be required for another class is close to zero; the likelihood that any will be useful in your career is about the same.
I sold back most of my textbooks. There was one that was vaguely useful and too damaged to sell back, so I kept that one. (It was an elementary education math book with lots of resources inside and useful methods for teaching math). The others (intro to teaching, multiculturalism in education, communications, Spanish, etc) I sold back to the university bookstore. I happen to know that everything I sold back will NOT be needed in the future, and a lot of my textbooks were pretty useless, anyways. It put some cash in my pocket for next semester’s books, too.
Absolutely keep any textbooks in your major-- you’ll find them a wonderful resource down the road.
Check if your library has the textbooks you’re thinking of selling back. If they do, more reason to sell them. Next time, consider renting instead.