Thursday, August 22, 2013

Back to School: Saving Money on Textbooks [sponsored]

It's that time again! The "back to school" season is in full swing! This time of the year is one of my favorites: it's full of excitement, the anticipation of new classes, new people, and new challenges. It's also a very rewarding time of year: students returning to school to complete degrees and pursue something that can positively effect their lives!  

But it's no secret that college costs a pretty penny. Everything from tuition to room and board, and everything in between. I remember, as a new student fresh out of high school, I spent an exorbitant amount of money on textbooks. It was close to $500, and that was only for the first semester. In fact, according to The Huffington Post, the average college student pays $1,168 on textbooks and materials each year. Let's be real. That's a crazy high amount.

After that first semester, I didn't want to pay that same amount of money for textbooks. I decided to pursue other options for acquiring my textbooks. One of the ways that helped me save a huge amount of money was by buying used books and renting textbooks!

There are so many perks to renting your textbooks instead of buying them from your school! One of the most reliable online book rentals that I've encountered is CampusBookRentals.com. First of all, their website is extremely easy to use, and the layout is clear and uncluttered. This is a huge deal for me. Acquiring textbooks is difficult enough, the last thing I need is to stare at a webpage that offers no direction to the viewer.

CampusBookRentals.com offers so many other perks. Their prices are 40%-90% off of bookstore prices and they offer free shipping, both ways (whaaat??). Yup. That's a huge plus. There are some crazy-heavy books out there and no one wants to pay $10+ for shipping charges.

Another huge benefit is their 21 day risk-free return policy. If you accidentally order the wrong book, or you realize, two weeks into the semester, that your professor never uses the book, you can return it for a full refund. In fact, when you rent your books, CampusBookRentals sends you a prepaid USPS label and a bubble envelop so you can return it with complete ease. I've never seen a return policy this easy. They also have one of the largest selections of books in the nation with very flexible renting periods!

Perhaps one of the major reasons why I'm excited about CampusBookRentals.com is the fact that they donate to Operation Smile with each textbook rented. Operation Smile is an international organization that offers reconstructive surgery and medical attention to children born with cleft lips and cleft palettes. While I had heard of Operation Smile and was familiar with the charity and aid that they offer to children born with cleft lips and palettes, I didn't realize how serious those birth defects were to the lives of the children. According to Operation Smile, many of them die before their first birthday, as they are unable to eat, socialize, or speak properly, if at all. Sadly, many of these children's parents are unable to afford the medical care required to help their children.

That's where Operation Smile steps in: since 1982, they have offered free cleft surgeries that result in productive lives for each of the children who receive care! With their hands-on approach, Operation Smile operates under a volunteer basis, and trains medical professionals in developing countries to help provide care! I, personally, love doing business with people or businesses that give back and provide help where it's needed!

So, for those of you returning to school this semester, check CampusBookRental.com out! In addition to the perks and benefits I described, they're also having a Fall sale! With every $70 purchase, they'll give you $8 back. Simply enter the code Fall70 at the checkout. Whoot whoot!

When you are finished with your textbooks, they have a system called RentBack where CampusBookRentals will rent your textbooks to student after student after student. Each time your book is rented, you make money! You can learn more about their RentBack program in this video:


So tell me, how do you save money each semester??  

This is a sponsored post. In exchange for a post about their products and services, I received compensation.

2 comments:

  1. Emilyraphael@gmail.comAugust 22, 2013 at 8:48 PM

    I went to Western Carolina University. They had a program where the school rented you the books you needed and it was all part of tuition costs. It was fantastic! I can't imagine how much buying books would cost.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Man... You're lucky! My school didn't help with book costs at all. I went to a private college, so if anything, they overcharged for their books. I had to get creative! :)

    ReplyDelete

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