Buyback policy

The Daily should be applauded for its editorial on the bookstore concerning buyback policies ("Fixing the book system," March 29). It is important that students know the bookstore does not set its own prices when buying back books, nor is there a conscious decision to offer more new books than used. On the contrary, from a purely economic point of view it makes more sense for the store to offer used books as they are closer to online prices than are new ones and are therefore more likely to be purchased. Selling back your books at the end of the semester allows the bookstore to get more used books and saves you money next semester (as well as putting some cash in your pocket).

However, to get the most money for your books, it is imperative that professors send the bookstore their book orders for next semester. If an order is received, the bookstore can offer 50 percent of the purchase price of the book, if not, it is forced to use the national wholesale price set by Barnes and Noble, often only a few dollars. Professors are simply not adhering to bookstore guidelines and students are paying the price.

Book orders were due from professors Friday, April 2. At that point, the bookstore had only received orders from 20 percent of the faculty. Imagine if you only handed in 20 percent of your paper on the due date. You would have to answer for your shortcomings, just as you should hold your professors accountable for theirs. Implore your teachers to get their orders in so that you can finally make more than $10 for a semester's worth of books.



Michael Robertson

LA '04