New Student Info
Why should I shop at the Bookstore?
You have a lot of choices for buying course materials. Shop the only choice that offers the correct materials at competitive prices all in one place, so you’re ready to hit the ground running on the first day of classes. In the process, you’re keeping faith and freedom alive by supporting the College — all Bookstore profits are reinvested into the College, which helps keep the cost of tuition down.
The Bookstore is a non-profit, independently operated business owned by Grove City College, striving to be your one-stop shop for everything you need during your years at Grove City College and beyond. Being an independent store means that we can set our own prices and keep profit margins low, which may be different from other stores at other campuses that you may be familiar with, if those stores are leased by large corporations.
The Bookstore is the one place where you can get all of your course materials at the right time at the right price. We work closely with faculty to make sure we have the exact books that they have chosen for their classes. Our faculty members are concerned with the cost of higher education, so they choose the most affordable course materials that will help students achieve the highest standards.
We will have your books ready for you on the first day of class, whether you choose our pre-ordering option @ bookstore.gcc.edu or purchase your books when you arrive on campus. The Bookstore also offers textbook rental and digital materials programs for added convenience and affordability.
Creating an account
The first time you order online, you will be asked to create an account. This is different from your mygcc login. You can use the same credentials if you choose to, but you will have to enter them yourself. Be sure to use an email that you check frequently, as important things like receipts and rental reminders will be emailed to you. Under the SHIP TO address, enter the STUDENT’S name, even if the books are being picked up at the Bookstore and not shipped. If a parent is paying, you can enter his/her name during the check-out process under the payment info. It is also very important that you correctly enter your student ID, or we may not be able to process your order.
If you plan to pay with Crimson Cash, please deposit funds into your account before placing your order! If the funds aren’t available when we attempt to process the order, it will be cancelled.
What are Course Materials?
Course materials come in many forms: textbooks, workbooks, online access codes and e-books, just to name a few. We’re here to help you make sense of what you need for all of your classes. When looking at the Bookstore website, you will see the various choices for each class. If a class isn’t listed, you will have to ask the professor what is required for that course.
Do I really need to buy this book?
Bookstore staff works closely with faculty to obtain the exact materials that each instructor will use for class. On the Bookstore website, books are listed as “Required”, “Recommended”, “Optional”, or “Choice” between two formats. These decisions are made by faculty, not the Bookstore, so if a book is listed as Required, the professor has expressed to the Bookstore that the book is necessary for the class. If a book is listed as Recommended, Optional, etc., it is best to check with your professor before buying the book to see if it will benefit you in the class.
Committed to Affordability
The Bookstore supports the College’s mission of providing a quality Christian education at an affordable cost. To that end, we use multiple sources to procure course materials, which helps us to be competitive with online retailers and other sellers. Check out our prices – you may be pleasantly surprised at how affordable the Bookstore is!
Along the lines of affordability, the Bookstore introduced a new initiative in 2017. Called Inclusive Access and mandated by the Dept. of Education, it is a program in which the Bookstore negotiates with publishers to get the lowest price available anywhere. For professors who select Inclusive Access as the course materials, the digital material is made available to each student enrolled in the course/section. Once you are enrolled in the course, the cost of the materials is billed as a separate fee to your student account with a description of Online Materials Fee. The cost varies by course/section. Stores across the country have saved students millions of dollars using this program, and we believe it will be a success on our campus, as well.
Textbook Return Policy
Textbooks are returnable only if you drop the class. They must be returned within one week after drop/add, in the same condition in which they were purchased. We will verify all dropped classes with the Registrar. Shrink wrap and access codes must be intact. You must have your Bookstore receipt to receive credit in the original form of payment. Bookstore Management reserves the right to decline any return for any reason. If a change is made by the instructor or College, the Bookstore will exchange your book for the correct one.