I am a student at Salt Lake Community College and I looked online and called the bookstore at the Redwood Campus today wanting to know what books I will need for my classes for the fall semester.
It does me no good to give them my class numbers because the bookstore does not even know what books the departments and professors are using yet, and does not even have a list of books out either. They also told me on the phone today that they have not even started to get a list going yet and will not do so until Friday, and will not have the list finished and books all ordered until some time next week. Isn’t that a little late to be doing that?
They should already have the list done and the books ordered and on their way. The fall semester as you know is coming up soon on the 20th of August. A friend of mine at the U. called today and they are getting their books in this week and will have all of them in next week. They also have their list out already. Why can’t SLCC do the same? Just don’t want to be running around at the last minute getting my books or having to wait while the bookstore gets them or some more in and have to go without books for my three classes. I have had to do that before.
One time, for my college essential studies class, I had to wait until the day after Labor Day before they got the book I ordered the week before school, as well as half of the class. Hope you can help us students get our books that we need on time for class on the 20th of August. Just thought you should know what is going on with the bookstore and why don’t they have books ordered and lists out by now. Even PJ’s can’t get a list from the school when I called them about books today.
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Dear Mr. Horn:
I have been a student at SLCC since 2011, completing and continuing programs in Energy Management, Visual Art & Design, and Mass Communication respectively. Each program has had unique circumstances of varying faculty, required texts/supplies, etc. I sympathize with your experience because, perhaps like you, I like to purchase my textbooks early and have everything I need on the first day of class. It allows me to feel prepared, but also maybe to spread the costs over larger time frame.
The Bookstore does all it can to stock the necessary texts for students, but they rely on the departments and instructors to supply them with the titles needed to be carried on the shelves, and the number of students they anticipate enrolling. Often, that information does not arrive to the Bookstore in advance of the semester with enough time to allow us early purchasers to procure our texts a month ahead of time.
My advice: either contact the instructor directly to get the information you need, and then purchase your books through another outlet if it is not available at the Bookstore (e.g., Amazon.com), or wait until the first day of class. Any time you purchase texts early, you assume the risk that it may not be what is required for the course. This is so because instructors do change their minds, possibly deciding on an alternate book that fits better with their curriculum, or new editions are issued, etc.
It has happened to me that despite contacting an instructor a few weeks in advance, the first day of class that person actually changed the requirement. A different text was required. Or the instructor may allow the previous edition, particularly if it could be purchased for a fraction of the cost. Or the text that was a part of the syllabus in semesters past is now no longer required, but merely “recommended.”
It pays to wait until your first class.
The Bookstore is not perfect, and the process in how they stock books is not perfect. Patience will work to your favor for purchasing textbooks.
Have a successful semester!
Michael Hawker
Editor in Chief
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