Aid increased to reflect rising book, Pequod costs

With the school year now in full swing, almost all University students have made the semiannual trip to the U-Store to shell out their hard-earned cash for expensive books and Pequod packets. This fall, though, many students are getting some help.

The University's Financial Aid Office has increased the personal expense allowance by five percent to account for the rising cost of textbooks.

During this academic year, a student on full financial aid receives $38,297 for tuition, room and board, and $3,083 for textbooks and personal expenses. Before the five percent increase took effect, he would have only received $2,936 — $147 less.

The issue of costly textbooks and course packets was first addressed last year by USG president Matt Margolin '05 and U-Councilor Brandon Parry '06 during their campaigns.

Margolin and Parry initially looked for alternatives to purchasing packets from Pequod, such as having the University Press print the material.

Due to copyright laws, the price of printing under the University would be equivalent to the prices Pequod offers.

Unable to reduce the prices of books for every student, Margolin and Parry focused on assisting those receiving financial aid.

"The kids who can afford to pay would keep paying," while "the kids who can't get assistance," Parry said.

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Margolin and Parry went before the Priorities Committee, which consists of students and faculty from various departments, and argued for raising the financial aid allowance for books and personal expenses.

The committee approved the recommendation and the Financial Aid Office affected a five percent increase for the 2004-2005 school year.

"It was a success; we did what we could," Margolin said.

Student reaction

Many students expressed happiness about the financial aid they are receiving this year.

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"As an international student, I think the financial aid here is awesome. It's the thing I respect most about this school," Itamar Bar-Zakay '08 said.

While financial aid has increased this year, some students wonder if it is enough to keep up with the ever increasing price of books.

"For me it is enough, but I can see for a lot of people it not being enough," said Graham Gottlieb '07.

While Princeton's aid states that it is 100 percent need-based, some students feel there is inequality in the system.

"I think there are a lot of people here who fall through the cracks. There are so many people here taking huge loans while others are here on grants," Brett Nitchke '08 said.