The news is full of reports on textbook costs in higher
education. OnCampus Research,
the research arm of the NACS, found student spending on course materials
actually decreased during the 2016-17 academic year.
Student Watch, Attitudes & Behaviors toward CourseMaterials,
a survey of more than 20,000 college students, noted that average spending on
10 required courses was $579 per student, down $23 from the previous year and
$122 from 2007-08. Students also said they spent another $500 on technology and
school supplies.
The report found an increasing number of students cut
their course materials costs by borrowing, sharing, or downloading free
information needed for class, and by using formats such as open educational
resources. A quarter of the students reported using free course materials, up
from 19% in spring 2016 and 15% from spring 2015.
When obtaining course materials, 82% of students purchased
and 57% rented from their campus store. Nearly three-quarters bought new textbooks
and 70% said they purchased used copies. Just 23% bought digital, but that was
an increase of 8% over fall 2015. On average, the campus store was the main
source for students' course materials.
The cost of the Student Watch report is
$199 for NACS store members and $999 for everyone else, and includes the final
report along with data tables from both fall 2016 and spring 2017 surveys. To
purchase, email mmeyer@nacs.org or go to the Insights link at oncampusresearch.com.
