Doing well in science prereqs without the textbook?

[ALLNuclear]

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I'm signed up for General Biology I. The workbook is $80 and the textbook is $200. I really need an A in this class, but I feel like biology does come easily to me and I understand the concepts well. Has anyone gotten an A in Bio or any other science prereq without buying the textbook? Am I just being cheap? 😕 I was thinking about using the lecture materials, checking the outline of the textbook from fellow students, using older editions from the library, and possibly going to the professor to explain my financial situation in hopes of seeing if he has a copy I could borrow before the tests. It's really not that I'd have to take a loan out for this book, but I would be reduced to eating rice for a while. Is it worth it?

 

[Prepharm1214]

I'm signed up for General Biology I. The workbook is $80 and the textbook is $200. I really need an A in this class, but I feel like biology does come easily to me and I understand the concepts well. Has anyone gotten an A in Bio or any other science prereq without buying the textbook? Am I just being cheap? 😕 I was thinking about using the lecture materials, checking the outline of the textbook from fellow students, using older editions from the library, and possibly going to the professor to explain my financial situation in hopes of seeing if he has a copy I could borrow before the tests. It's really not that I'd have to take a loan out for this book, but I would be reduced to eating rice for a while. Is it worth it?

It depends on the teacher and the tests. For my biology class the textbook was useless because all of his test questions were from lectures where he made the powerpoint presentations he used freely available, rendering the book useless. Maybe try it without the book for the first test or pair up with someone who's book you can borrow.

 

[tootoo30]

I'm signed up for General Biology I. The workbook is $80 and the textbook is $200. I really need an A in this class, but I feel like biology does come easily to me and I understand the concepts well. Has anyone gotten an A in Bio or any other science prereq without buying the textbook? Am I just being cheap? 😕 I was thinking about using the lecture materials, checking the outline of the textbook from fellow students, using older editions from the library, and possibly going to the professor to explain my financial situation in hopes of seeing if he has a copy I could borrow before the tests. It's really not that I'd have to take a loan out for this book, but I would be reduced to eating rice for a while. Is it worth it?

Go online and see if you can find the book cheaper. Try www.amazon.com, www.half.com, www.valorebooks.com. I'm sure there are others. I buy my books online every year and save a ton of money. What is the name of your Biology book?

 

[jackal head]

Sure you could get through biology without ever reading the textbook however it could make things a little harder.

I had a good understanding of Bio I as well and had to open my book now and then when I couldn't find an answer on the internet.

Best thing to do would be to use the book they have at the library, if you already understand most of the stuff you will usually just need to skim through the book and fill in the gaps.

I did end up buying the book though, don't regret since it will probably be helpful around PCAT time.

 

[jmcfa002]

First 2 bio classes, I read religously. The last intro bio class, I never opened the book. It depends on the professor.

 

[161927]

You need the book.

 

[sanfranalaska]

Use gettextbooks.com to find the cheapest price. There's also this new webstie, chegg.com that lets you rent the book for the semester for pretty cheap or find a torrent and download it for free.

 

[AngelaCL]

I wouldn't do it. Even if you were a great bio student in high school, it's going to be harder in college. What you can do, is either get books through ebay or some other online vendor (this can save you $100 or more), split the cost with another student and share it, or use the library copies. Actually, maybe you could try to use the library copies for the first couple weeks, and if it works out don't buy anything, but if you have to you can still go out and buy the book.

Some professors might have really great lecture notes that are available online and they mostly test over these - then you wouldn't need a book. But others might assign homework from the text or expect you to read it thoroughly on your own time. If you are going to need the book, just borrowing a copy from the prof a couple days before the test is probably not enough.

 

[TTUMike]

Alright I will give away my secret to saving money on textbooks. Don't go to amazon.com but instead go to amazon.com/uk. Go ahead and try it out. Type in the name of the book that you want to purchase and you will find that it is about 50% cheaper than buying it in the states. You might find that some books are only black and white but it will save you tons of money.

 

[jmcfa002]

/\ Watch out for international versions though! I don't know if they are different though

 

[CrazyFox]

/\ Watch out for international versions though! I don't know if they are different though

One of my anatomy study buddies had international version of the book and it was completely the same.But you have to make sure just in case...

 

[fenixtnlfan]

PubMed has some textbooks online for free.

 

[TTUMike]

every book has been exact same except for color and some pictures.

 

[Farmercyst]

Most of the classes it depends entirely on teaching method. Most of my science instructors tested on lecture, not on reading. The only reason I needed most of my books was to complete assigned homework. If you've got a friend in class, or a textbook on reserve in the library you might be able to get by without it, but again, it depends entirely on how the tests are structured. (lecture-based vs book-based.)

 

[38ctk]

most professors test from the lecture notes. I would go to office hours if you needed clarification on something (beats buying and reading out of a book). professors that say they also test out of the book/reading material often ask only a few questions from the required readings (often times not enough points to waste your time doing those misc. readings). Gauge the class....if they say they test from lecture...DO NOT buy the book (waste of time and money) and talk to the professor if you have questions (sets up a good relationship if you need a letter of recommendation).

If they say "we may ask quesstions out of the book". if anything...photocopy sections you need.