Textbooks can rack up a hefty bill, but a Board of Regents request to assess textbook prices has spurred the creation a UW-Madison task force to help students plan expenses.
The Textbook Costs Task Force is made up of UW-Madison faculty, staff and students and is chaired by Aaron Brower, UW-Madison vice provost for teaching and learning.
The group began meeting this semester after the Regents requested in May that all UW campuses review textbook costs.
While other UW institutions have experimented with a textbook-rental program, a similar program is not feasible for UW-Madison, according to the task force.
According to a report by the task force, a rental system would be too financially risky for UW-Madison, since the university does not own the bookstores that sell textbooks.
Instead, UW-Madison has plans for Course Guide,"" a new program expected to launch next fall.
Course Guide will be available through MyUW portal, so students can look up course materials needed two to three weeks before the start of the semester.
This would enable students to search online for the best deals ahead of time.
""We think the future of textbooks '¦ is the Internet and people taking advantage of both searching for textbooks online and professors ultimately putting more and more of their material online,"" Brower said.
Additional textbook information made available to students could save time not only at the beginning of the semester, but money as well.
""This information will give students the chance to seek the lowest prices for their texts,"" Joanne Berg, vice provost for enrollment management, said in a statement.
However, Steve Scheibel, textbook manager at the University Bookstore, said textbook pricing is not on an abnormal rise.
""There is no significant increase from year to year,"" he said.
He added increased prices have not increased online competition.
""We've faced online competition on a fairly regular basis for quite a while,"" Scheibel said. ""That's been the nature of the textbook business across the country.""
This online competition ""isn't caused necessarily by the instructors posting the curriculum,"" Scheibel said. ""It's based on the awareness of the students.""
Gary Sandefur, College of Letters and Science dean, said UW-Madison faculty are aware of the high cost burden textbooks can put on students.
He said he knows some professors are making materials available online, as well as working with the library and other campus systems to help alleviate costs.
""Most faculty members want to do whatever they can to help students save as much money as possible,"" Sandefur said.
Before the launch of Course Guide, Brower said he plans to send an e-mail from the task force to all UW-Madison faculty before next semester encouraging them to post required materials and textbooks online somewhere.
Brower also encouraged students to communicate with professors regarding required materials if they wish to find the best pricing.
UW-Madison's Textbook Cost Report will be presented to the Regents at their meeting Dec. 6-7. Other UW institutions will also present their reports.
