Limit the stress of buying textbooks

By Cherry Kang, Special to the On-Line Forty-Niner

Monday, January 25, 1999

Stand in line. Search off campus.

Those are the options Cal State Long Beach students face as they scramble for this semester's books. Neither option seems attractive, but there are ways students' can minimize the stress of investing time and money.

Fred Neely, University Bookstore director, suggests the best times to visit the Bookstore are 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. or after 8 p.m. The busiest times are from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

When buying books there are two lines to stand in: checks, charges or cash and Beach Club. The lines should take no longer than thirty minutes, according to Neely.

"The lines look more discouraging to students than they really are," Neely said.

Neely suggests for students to pay cash or with a Beach Club card to make the lines move faster and transactions less complicated.

On occasion, the Bookstore can run out of books and stock, but the store will have the books in stock the next day or the day after, Neely said.

Neely suggests students go to class first before buying books to avoid buying the wrong texts. Students should check to see if a class was canceled, see if the professor has changed and see what books are specifically required.

The Bookstore offers a low price guarantee on books. For example, if a book is purchased at University Text for $2 less, the Bookstore will guarantee the same amount on the same book and change the price on the remaining books on the shelf, Neely said.

He said that some advantages to buying books at the Bookstore are that it is located on campus, the low price guarantee and they have all the books needed in stock - University Text might not.

In March, the Bookstore will conduct a new customer satisfaction project. The National Association of College Stores will conduct the survey, Neely said. The Bookstore is one of 2,800 college stores that belong to the Association.

"The employees at the store want to make it easier for the students," Neely said. "We want the students to be satisfied with our service."

Depending on what books, University Text can be up to 10 percent less expensive, said Greg Reardon, the store manager.

"There's no guarantee that all the books cost less than the Bookstore, but we try to have our books at a low price in the beginning," Reardon said.

University Text tries to monitor the Bookstore's web site to compare the prices, Reardon said.

University Text stocks its shelves with relevant material and tries to have extra supplies the Bookstore might not have. When stock runs out, depending upon the publisher of the book, University Text can reorder the book and will have it in within two to seven working days, according to Reardon.

Reardon said Univeristy Text's lines are not very long. The best times to come in are Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and also between 9 and 10:30 p.m.

Extended Bookstore hours for the first week of the spring semester are 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.