<p>So having read all the helpful comments about how to stay warm and keep a nice dorm room - where does one buy MIT textboooks? The COOP? Do they resell too?</p>
<p>The Coop definitely sells textbooks, but they mostly sell said textbooks at a much higher price than other vendors. However, sneaky persons that they are, they don't release the names/ISBNs of books needed for class anywhere but at the Coop itself. (Smart, eh?)</p>
<p>What I usually do is go to the Coop, write down the ISBNs of the books I need for classes, then use a book search engine like this</a> one to see how the prices online + shipping compare to the Coop's prices. If I know someone who's taken one of my classes, I'll go see if they want to sell the book too. (There used to be a website where MIT students bought and sold their used textbooks, but it closed down and like five sites replaced it. No one site has emerged as the clear leader in the MIT used book business.)</p>
<p>Usually I end up ordering most of my books online and buying the ones with a negligible price difference from the Coop. Particularly for freshman classes, it's useful to ask the sophomores/juniors around you if they still have their GIR books -- most are happy to be rid of them for a few bucks.</p>
<p>Quantum books is another store that sells textbooks, for a little cheaper than the coop; there's also a few websites set up for the MIT community for book exchange (bookx.mit.edu, <a href="http://www.mit412.com%5B/url%5D">www.mit412.com</a>, <a href="http://www.cambusbeacon.com%5B/url%5D">www.cambusbeacon.com</a>)
You don't really even need the book for most classes, you'll be fine to not worry about it now.. and take your time with getting the books (besides, pass/no record lalala)</p>
<p>So about how much do you spend on books per semester? I'm wondering if the number MIT uses for finaid purposes is high or low. (They say 1100/yr).</p>
<p>I think the most I've ever spent was around $300, but I'd imagine the MIT number is right if you buy everything new from the Coop.</p>
<p>On average, a new science/engineering textbook is about $100-125 new at the Coop, $75-100 used at the Coop, and $50-75 used online.</p>