We all love dolling out a couple hundred dollars on textbooks every semester. We can’t wait to go down to the bookstore and pay $30 bucks for that used math book, that hasn’t one page untouched by highlighter. Multiply this experience by six and you have the required textbooks for this semester. Backpack heavier, wallet lighter, ugh.

Fortunately, we have Amazon. That $30 math book at the book store is now $5.23. The $60 hardcover English book is now $6.50. Your total textbook expenses for this semester are under $40.

Amazon is made up of thousands of little sellers, all out to get rid of textbooks at a fraction of the costs you would find anywhere else. Yes, the books are obviously used, but they are often in better condition than that of the local university bookstore. Just make sure to purchase your books from an established seller, one that has sold a couple hundred books. The newer sellers can be sketchy and you might not receive exactly what you asked for. Life is good, screw the bookstore.

Now it’s time to make some money. At the end of this semester, god forbid you passed all your classes, most universities will buy textbooks for cold hard cash. That’s when you bring in your $40 book stash (and whatever other books you’ve bummed from your drunk friends) and sell them to the university. Now last semester I spent about about $40 bucks on textbooks and after selling the books back to the university bookstore I walked out with 80 glorious greens. I successfully screwed the bookstore. Paid for my books. Made $40 to spend on whatever.

Now if we could only figure out a way to get money for the school-made textbooks.

Key points:

Buy cheap on Amazon. Sell to bookstore. Make money. Laugh maniacally. Rinse and repeat.