Kyle Keckler
News Editor
This semester marks the rollout of Idaho State University’s new course-material acquisition model, the ISU Book Bundle. The program aims to ensure students have the materials required for their classes as soon as possible; this is done by automatically ‘bundling’ course materials into one lump-sum fee included as part of general tuition. Resources to be included in a student’s bundle are sourced via their registered classes and the materials listed by the relevant instructors; these collected materials are then packaged together and made available for pickup by students from the bookstore.
As for the costs, the total cost of the bundle is calculated not via the cost of individual materials, but at a fixed rate based on the student’s registered credit hours. This rate is set at $24.75 per credit hour – a student registered for, as an example, five credit hours would be charged a total of $123.75 for all of their course materials ($123.75 being the sum of 5 x 24.75). This is the total cost that will be added to their tuition via the bookstore.
Herein lies the issue with the book bundle: the student will be charged $24.75 multiplied by their total credit hours – no matter the cost of the materials if purchased individually. Because of this, the book bundle may result in students being charged more than they would have had to pay for their course materials, not less. However, this is far from universal; for many students, the book bundle will be instrumental in saving them a considerable amount of money on textbooks and other course-related materials.
For individuals enrolled in courses that include notoriously expensive materials, particularly those pursuing degrees in STEM, the ISU Book Bundle can help said students save significant amounts of money. A student may be enrolled in 15 credit hours for the semester, bringing their total Book Bundle fee to $371.25 for all of their applicable course materials. In programs where it is not unheard of for a single textbook to cost nearly half that if not more, there is serious potential for the program to save students large sums of money.
If students want to take advantage of the ISU Book Bundle smartly, they should investigate their course materials and determine whether the price incurred by participating in the program is higher or lower than purchasing course materials individually. All students attending ISU are automatically enrolled in the program; the fee, labeled ‘Book Bundle,’ can be found appended to the Account Summary, accessible via the Online Fee Payment tile within MyISU.
If the program is working as intended and the student is saving money by participating, then no action should be necessary. However, if the Book Bundle results in an unnecessarily high cost for course materials, these students should immediately opt out of the program and source their course materials elsewhere. This can be done relatively easily by visiting isu.edu/bookbundle and selecting ‘Opt Out.’
The ISU Book Bundle gives students the opportunity to potentially save large sums of money and make acquiring their course materials all the more simple– it is important to stay informed on what your course materials are, what they cost, and if participating in the program is right for you.
Go to isu.edu/bookbundle for more information about the bundle and the specific programs and materials that are applicable.
