Textbook purchase requirements?

ChaggyC17

ChaggyC17

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Mar 26, 2020
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Question for the non-newb parents.

DD texts me this morning and informs me that they are required to purchase their textbooks. Definitely was not a requirement when I there.

Perhaps this explains the large paycheck she received.

I just don’t remember the appointee handbook mentioning this. Il
It doubting what she told me, I am just looking for more clarity.

1. Is USAFA like other schools where you have to purchase the 73rd edition of a textbook that is 99.9% the same as the previous editions so that the author gets their cut?

2. If not, are there any others who have found the approved books on Amazon or from upper classmen?

Thanks!

Mark
 
We did have to “purchase” them. Funds were debited automatically from our “magic money” account. I also remember selling mine back at the end of the semester and making some good cash. However, it seems they’re required to actually pay from their own bank accounts, hence the $950 cash allowance in the last paycheck.

Physics 215 and 315 used the same textbook when j was there. I sold mine back at the end of 215 for almost $100 and just bought it over again. Still graduated with no debt!
 
Correct, they are required to purchase their own textbooks with money from their personal accounts. It was at this time last year, she realized she needed a bigger credit limit on her credit card. Of course she pays in full each month, and normally is not an issue, but when buying textbooks at one time, it was not high enough.

I'm not exactly sure how it all works out, where they get they actually purchase the textbooks, but DD figured it out and made it work. I think some text books are digital and others she ordered and got delivered. Hopefully, a current cadet can add some more specific insights than this parent.
 
Most books you can find online pretty easily. They're sometimes expensive, but hey, our college is "free," so I can't complain. You can normally find books around the wing, whether that is on the wing excel doc or in your SAR. As far as I know, it is required to have the version in the class syllabus (not always the newest).

Tip: Don't buy the short subscriptions for Cengage; get the two year. You will have to use it for several classes (especially if you are a stem major), and you can find some of your books on there for free too.

Hope this helps, let me know if you have any more questions!
 
@ChaggyC17 - a shift began when I was on staff in ~2005 to begin pushing more financial responsibility onto cadets. The shift really translated into paying cadets more of their monthly paycheck to cover bills they were going to receive so they can get used to receiving and paying bills. USAFA saw an issue with recent graduates struggling to manage budgets and pay bills because they had no experience due to how USAFA simply paid for things behind the scenes during their time there.

The total dollar amount for cadet pay did not change, but the allocation between paycheck take-home and magic money accounts did begin shifting. In 1998, cadets could pay for a phone line in their room. That was really the start of the shift IMO. Things like laundry services and others have moved to elective as I understand it.

We have always purchased books, but it was via the magic money account (aka a loan or forced savings by USAFA by withholding pay or providing a pay advance). Like most cadets, I did not fully understand the magic money system and I literally went on a text book shopping spree as a cadet and still have several unopened books on things like Chinese culture or military strategy. At one point, I was hunted down by some instructors who had only ordered enough books for their registered students and had to return some of them. Needless to say, when we got close to graduation and the excess funds in that account were released back to the cadet.... my check was a lot smaller than other people received. It was at that moment that I realized the error of my Uncle Sam credit card spending...
 
I had to pay for my text books - we were even "ordered" to do so. Cadets will receive two very large paychecks to cover those expenses. You can "purchase" from upper-classmen, but you don't want to get caught. And this is why I didn't bring my textbooks to class =P
 
I remember making it a goal to see how far ino the semester I could go before ripping the cellophane off the textbook. And after that, hearing the spine crack real loud the first time it’s opened. Perhaps that’s why I only had a 2.62 GPA.
 
ChaggyC17 said:
I remember making it a goal to see how far ino the semester I could go before ripping the cellophane off the textbook. And after that, hearing the spine crack real loud the first time it’s opened. Perhaps that’s why I only had a 2.62 GPA.
Click to expand...
A 2.62?

Striver.
 
Peter2025 said:
Is it Navy that has the tradition of chipping in nickels and dimes for the lowest ranked graduate?
Click to expand...
Used to be a dollar per person to the "Anchor Man" so it was like a thousand bucks back in the 70's.

Anchor Man for my class was from my sister company and roomed with a teammate/friend so I did
know him. From what I've heard he has done fairly well in life although not in the Navy as he did 5
and punched out.
 
USAFA had "Tail End Charlie's Silver."

A beautiful silver punch bowl and each member of the class would put a "silver" dollar in it.

The "official reason" was/is: -- "The Class of 1977 was the last class to graduate totally by order of merit. The final graduate, known as “Tail End Charlie,” received a silver dollar from each of his classmates. The incoming superintendent, Lt. Gen. Kenneth Tallman, ended the tradition because he believed it was inappropriate to reward mediocrity."

Unofficially, the reason that was spread around (and was still being told when I was a cadet) was that the "staff" had determined through a quiet investigation that, among the last group of graduates, there was too much competition to be "TEC" back when that was real money.
 
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