Universities adopt textbook rental program

Alexandra Posadzki — CUP Ontario Bureau Chief

TORONTO (CUP) — For Jeff Cook buying textbooks is like bargain hunting. He employs a variety of methods to obtain his texts, from scouring the library reserves to scoring online access through the public library.

“When I can I will get them used,” said Cook, a fourth-year student at the University of Toronto.

For the first time this fall, some students will have an alternative method of obtaining their books as textbook rental programs are launched at a few universities across Canada.

These programs, which allow students to pay a fee in order to rent a book instead of purchasing it, are already a mainstay at many U.S. colleges, like the University of Arizona, whose program launched in January 2009 and rents texts at 40 per cent of the retail cost. Popular U.S. site Chegg.com has been renting texts to students, regardless of their location, since 2007.

After a survey of U of T students revealed that the majority would like the option of renting their books, the university bookstore launched a pilot program over the summer, which was deemed a success. The program has been expanded for the fall, with more titles available.

The University of British Columbia bookstore also launched a textbook rental program this fall, with 25 titles available at the Vancouver campus and 10 in Kelowna.

Steven Glassman, bookstore director at Toronto’s York University, confirmed that the university will be next to jump onboard, with a rental program expected to begin in January.

But Cook is unsure about these programs as they’re making their debut north of the border.

The cost of renting a text — 60 per cent of the price of the book at U of T and 45 per cent of the price at UBC — has Cook concerned about ownership and user rights of the books.

“They're convincing students that it's cheaper to get the text, but actually it's more expensive because not only do you have to pay to use it, but you don't own anything,” he said.

“I think if prices of texts were lowered at the same time, then yes, it would be a good idea. But as it is, it's not a bad idea, but it's an unclear idea.”

Although the University of Arizona's bookstore prohibits any highlighting or writing in its books, programs at Canadian universities will allow students to highlight in the books and write in the margins, as long as the text isn't rendered unreadable.

This appears to be the selling point for many students and response to the program has been good so far.

“Overall response has been quite positive from students, from faculty on campus and even from Canadian publishers,” said Chad Saunders, vice-president of retail at the U of T bookstore. “We tried to consider everybody's needs when we built the program, and I think we've done it in a way that's great for everyone.”

Debbie Harvie, managing director of university community services at UBC, describes the progress as “slow and steady,” with about 25 books rented in the first week.

In order to rent textbooks at U of T or at UBC, students must be at least 18 years old and must have a credit card, a student identification card and an email address.

But Cook remains unconvinced of the benefits.

“I wouldn't rent [a textbook] until several other options were exhausted,” he said.

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