Harper now rents textbooks

The average college student spends $900 on textbooks every academic year, according to U.S. Public Interest Research Groups.

That's why Harper College students are relieved at news the Palatine school has just launched a pilot program offering them an option to rent their textbooks.

Savings could reach 50 percent, school officials say.

The alternative is seen more and more at college campuses, especially since a U.S. Government Accountability Office report that found textbook prices nearly tripled from 1986 to 2004.

The program comes on the heels of the bookstore's launch of e-books, which are textbook titles that can be downloaded to a desktop computer or browsed from the Web.

Beginning this week, Harper's bookstore will offer more than 50 titles for rent, representing nearly 200 sections of the college's courses, said Richard Seiler, manager of retail services.

Students will pay an average of $50 for the rented books, compared with average costs of $110 or more for new purchased texts. No deposit is required; students pay only the book's rental fee.

Students will also still have the option of buying used textbooks and reselling them at the term's end.