ASM hosts textbook swap

Textbook costs burden nearly every college student. UW–Madison’s student government is addressing this difficulty by helping students to sell their used books to each other before the semester begins.

This semester’s textbook swap will entertain a different format than in previous years, condensing the sale period from three days to one.

Students can drop off used books for sale from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 18, at Gordon Commons. Students can purchase the low-priced textbooks from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday, Jan. 19. Money and any unsold books may be retrieved between noon-5 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 20.

The idea of a textbook swap began when academic affairs chair Christopher Tiernan was interning with the Associated Students of Madison (ASM). Students within the governing body recognized the need for an alternative to high bookstore markups. The first “swap” was held during the spring semester of 2008. Because of its success, the organization decided to hold the event as a semiannual sale.

Tiernan says the textbook swap was created to battle a trend in the costs of attending a university such as UW–Madison.

“The tuition was rising, and so was the cost of textbooks. However, the cost of textbooks was rising exponentially,” he says. “We wanted to create a market for students to buy and sell used textbooks and eliminate the profit-generating ‘middle man.’”

For more information, contact Tiernan at 608-265-4276, cptiernan@wisc.edu.