Blog Post

Books and supplies, as a percentage of college costs, are going down

Jennifer Libertowski • October 27, 2016

OBERLIN, OHIO, October 27, 2016 – The recently released annual report from the College Board, Trends in College Pricing 2016, includes comparative data on what institutions recommend college students should budget for books, supplies and equipment. This is the first time in 17 years of College Board data that institutional budgets for books and supplies at both four-year public and private schools have declined. On average, public four-year schools decreased their budgets by $48 from last year, and four-year private schools decreased their budgets by $19. Community colleges increased their budgets by $26.


“These findings are consistent with our Student Watch research , which shows that annual student spending on course materials has decreased almost $100 since the 2007-2008 school year even as the number of materials acquired has stayed relatively the same for the past three years,” said Elizabeth Riddle, director of OnCampus Research for The National Association of College Stores (NACS). “Students have more options than in the past and campus stores have become much more competitive in their pricing as well as in their selections. Stores offer lower-cost rentals, e-books, custom course packs and print-on-demand open educational resources (OER) as well as price comparison tools that help students find the best price.”


Highlights from Trends in College Pricing 2016 Report:


Annual undergraduate budget estimates for books, supplies and equipment for 2016-17 school year:

  • Public four-year institutions: Decreased 3.7% from the previous school year
  • Private four-year institutions: Decreased 1.52% from the previous school year
  • Public two-year institutions: Increased by 1.91% from the previous school year

Books, supplies and equipment as a percentage of the undergraduate student budget

  • Public four-year institutions: Declined 5.56% since the 2000-2001 school year and now accounts for only 5.1% of the total undergraduate student budget
  • Private four-year institutions: Declined 13.79% since 2000-2001 school year and now accounts for only 2.5% of the total undergraduate student budget
  • Public two-year institutions: Declined 3.53% since 2000-2001 school year and now accounts for only 8.2% of the total undergraduate student budget

Source: Trends in College Pricing
© 2016 The College Board.
www.collegeboard.org


About The National Association of College Stores
The National Association of College Stores (NACS), headquartered in Oberlin, Ohio, is the professional trade association of the $10 billion campus store industry. NACS provides education and other resources that help its member stores support student success, the campus experience, and the academic missions of higher education institutions. The association represents all campus stores, which include nearly 4,000 campuses in the U.S. and Canada, and approximately 1,000 industry-related companies that supply course materials and other merchandise and services to campus stores.


About the Student Watch™ Survey
Student Watch™ is conducted online twice a year, in the fall and spring terms. It is designed to proportionately match the most recent figures of U.S. higher education published in The Chronicle of Higher Education: 2014/2015 Almanac. Fifty-six institutions were selected to participate based on the following factors: public vs. private schools, two-year vs. four-year degree programs, enrollment size, and geographic location.

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