Textbook Buyback
What
is book buyback?
Book buyback is a service
provided by The Cornell Store to students who wish to sell
back textbooks that they do not want to keep for future reference.
Why
should I sell my books back to The Cornell Store?
It is an opportunity
for you to help other students reduce the cost of their textbooks,
while assisting you to cover the expense of your own textbook
purchases by giving you cash for your unwanted books. Having
a large supply of used books available is the single most
significant way that The Cornell Store can assist you to
reduce the cost of your textbooks. You are our best source
of used books. Our preference is to purchase them from you
rather than from a used book supply dealer.
When is the best time to sell my books
back?
The best time to sell is right after classes have ended and
during finals week each semester. Remember that during this period,
we are buying books for the upcoming term so the prices will
be higher. Once the semester has begun, we have all the books
we need. At this point, none of your books will be purchased
at the 50% price but rather at whatever the used book dealer
has determined their value.
How
much will I get back for my books?
If we have received
a firm order from a professor that your textbooks will be
used again in the upcoming semester, we will pay 50% of the
list price whether the books were purchased new or used.
If we have not yet received an order for a particular title,
it may still have a resale value so all titles should be
brought into buyback for price quotes.
How
much will I get back for books not yet ordered for the
upcoming semester?
If you have a current
edition of a title that has not yet been ordered at Cornell
for the upcoming semester, we check the database of a nationally
recognized used book dealer, Follett Campus Resources, for
demand. If the book is listed, it will be purchased and recycled
into Follett's used book market for purchase by other universities.
The prices paid can range from 0-30% of the retail price determined by copyright,
subject matter and demand. Due to frequent edition changes, used book companies
take a huge calculated risk in purchasing these titles with the potential
of worthless inventory.
Do
I need my receipt to sell my books?
No, a receipt is not
needed. However, the books must be in good condition. The
bindings must be in good shape, with covers and pages intact
and with no heavy highlighting or underlining to make the
text illegible.
Do
you buy packaged texts or books with disks and tapes if
they have been ordered for the following semester?
If your textbook was
sold as part of a package, all components must be intact
when you sell back the book. If any piece is missing then
the book will not be bought back at the 50% price.
However, due to concerns about mishandled disks or tapes and the inability
to check them at buyback, decisions to buy them back is at the discretion
of the buyer.
Do
you buy study guides and workbooks?
Generally, yes if there
are no pages missing and they have not been excessively written
in making the text illegible. Once again, the purchase is
at the discretion of the buyer.
Why
do I see books on the shelves the following semester when
I was told at buyback time that an order had not yet been
received for those books?
There are three different
reasons why this could happen:
(1) Buyback prices are driven by professor's book requests. Unfortunately,
some book orders are received at The Cornell Store after the heavy buyback
period has ended. Therefore, you received less money than you could have
if the information had been known earlier.
(2) We are still receiving textbook orders as buyback is occurring. Prices
change daily as new book orders continue to arrive. A title worth $10.00
today could be worth $30.00 tomorrow but, as stated in reason number 3, the
reverse could also happen.
(3) Purchase quantities are based on the estimated enrollments that professors
supply when they submit their orders. Our standard is to buy back up to 80%
of the number to be ordered because not all students want used books. When
The Cornell Store has reached it's limit of used books needed of a title,
the price will then drop from 50% of the retail price to a lower price.
If
I know that a book is only used in the fall semester should
I try to sell it back in December?
That's a tricky one.
To receive the best price, you should wait until the May
buyback. However, if the book has been around for a couple
of years, you then run into the possibility of the title
going into a newer edition, resulting in the book having
no resale value.
What
can I do with my books that have no resale value?
Either keep them for
your reference library or donate them to the Cornell Tradition
Program. There are drop sites available at all four buyback
locations.
The Cornell Store, 135 Ho Plaza, Ithaca, NY 14853
(607) 255-4111 • (800) 624-4080 (M-F 8:30am-5pm EST)
Fully owned & operated by Cornell University; store revenue
supports university operations, facilities & programming.
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