UC Davis Bookstore

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bookstore.jpg

Location
Inside the Memorial Union
Mailing Address
2828 Cowell Boulevard
Hours
Monday - Friday, 8:30am - 6pm (5pm during the summer)
Saturdays, 12pm - 5pm
Closed on Sundays (open during Fall rush though)
Contact
Main: (530) 752-6846
Warehouse: (530) 757-3071
Computer Shop: (530)752-1945
<bookstore AT ucdavis DOT edu>
Website
[WWW]http://bookstore.ucdavis.edu

See also Bookstores; other bookstores may also sell UC Davis textbooks.

The UC Davis Bookstore sells textbooks, school supplies, art supplies and Apple products in the computer shop. Located on the first floor and basement of the UC Davis Memorial Union, you can enter the UC Davis bookstore from the hallway bisecting the MU or from the square framed by Freeborn Hall and the northern edge of the MU.

The UC Davis Bookstore also operates at other fine locations:

Cost

The UCD Bookstore is fairly expensive, but not unreasonably so. Most of its books sell at list. Art supplies sell slightly below list and a bit above street. The convenience of buying class supplies from a centralized, well-stocked location outweighs the price premium for most people. ASUCD Book Exchange allows students to obtain textbooks more cheaply by purchasing directly from each other. Also, a winter-2006 list of all textbooks for courses can be found [WWW]here for those who want to purchase textbooks online. See also Cheap Textbook Guide. Or you could take some classes without books.

The bookstore will also allow you to buy on credit, charging your student account. There's a small fee for this service. It should be noted that transactions on the student account never reveal the actual items purchased — only the bookstore charge is noted. This is especially important when attempting to buy frivolous items with your parent's money.

Unpopular [WWW]O'Reilly books get aggressive discounts, sometimes dropping to 15% of list price.

Anti-theft technology

The UCD Bookstore works hard to combat shoplifting, which is apparently endemic. Even an ASUCD senator has been caught stealing from the bookstore. They pretty much treat everyone like a thief, even doing pointless things like checking your receipt at the door right after you leave the register! Place bags in the lockers at the front of the store to keep from being admonished by an employee. Both men and women may carry in purse-sized bags. Nobody seems to care about taking backpacks into the Bookstore as of Winter 2009. The cameras mounted at the end of each aisle are not cheap plastic imitations — they feed to a rather nice setup located in 154 MU and are actually watched. Also, spotters occasionally roam the store, dressed like normal shoppers. They're pretty easy to recognize, displaying patterns of browsing not dissimilar to the shoplifters themselves.

Two men (including one UC Davis student) were allegedly [WWW]caught shoplifting and subsequently arrested on Tuesday, December 9, 2008. A security guard was injured during the scuffle that ensued.

History

bookstoreroad.jpgBookstore seen from outside the Memorial Union.

I've heard that the Bookstore used to be owned and operated by ASUCD, but was handed over to the University proper some years ago. If you know anything about this, please add it!

Actually, I've been meaning to do some research on this for quite some time. Mark Champagne said that they owned it before he started working for the University. I'm not sure exactly when they sold it to the University, but it occurred sometime between 1967 and 1974 — when ASUCD was more worried about stopping [wikipedia]the war than running businesses. He also mentioned that ASUCD was considering selling the Coffee House a little later on, but he successfully argued against it, proving that moronity did exist before the slate system but not in such large quantities. A friend of mine, a re-entry grad student, suggested that there were some terms of the sale of the Bookstore when he was on ASUCD Legislative Assembly. Possibly ASUCD retains some control over the bookstore, though no one knows what that would be. -The Labster

ASUCD did own and manage the Bookstore until the 1966.

Over the following years, the administration strengthened its hold on the Bookstore. By 1982, when ASUCD-Administration relations were at what may have been their all-time low, ASUCD under President Jim Kjol sued the UC Regents for one million dollars in lost profits and for control of the Bookstore. The Regents and the Administration applied great pressure to ASUCD, including Vice Chancellor Dutton's threat to kick ASUCD off campus and revoke Unitrans' insurance. The Administration also refused to allow ASUCD to pay its lawyer, Thomas Frankel (who still practices in Davis).

Because of this pressure, ASUCD not only dropped this suit after Kjol's term ended, but the new ASUCD President signed a Memorandum of Understanding stating that ASUCD would relinquish all claims to the Bookstore; in return, ASUCD receives about $20,000 a year from Bookstore revenue (note: less than $1 per student), to be used exclusively for repairs and equipment upgrades within the Memorial Union. This money is allocated yearly by ASUCD Business Manager Mark Champagne.

Many other Associated Students own their campus bookstores; notably, ASUC at Berkeley and ASUCLA give over $1 Million in Bookstore profits to clubs.

In 2006, ASUCD Senator Rob Roy asked Assistant Vice Chancellor Janet Gong via email if it would be possible for ASUCD to buy the Bookstore back from the Administration. The answer was no.

Brief aside

bookstore_computer.jpg

The computer shop at the rear of the store provides a few de facto public internet access machines.

Comments:

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Best place in town for art supplies - they only ever run out at the beginning of a quarter because of the required supplies list from whatever classes the students are taking. Cheaper than the The Paint Chip, with a waaay bigger selection. — EmmaCoats

The computer store prices have a general over-priced curve to other places. I can usually Ebay for much cheaper, but also get supplies from Best Buy or Costco that sometimes are as much as $20 - $40 less than at the Computer Store. The only advantage of going there is using my student account. —SS

I am definitely not thrilled by the service or selection at the UCD Bookstore Computer Shop. They have no way to special order items with any reasonable shipping date (besides "whever we get it"), and the student employees are usually inattentive if the management is not around. Also the computer store appears to have no reasonable stock management control, often not having items in stock for weeks at a time as they wait for shipments to finally arrive. The only upside to the computer store is that they are there is you absolutely have to put an item on your student account even though their prices are usually higher than other stores. So if you can afford otherwise go to Fry's or eBay as you will save yourself time, money and frustration. —IanMcKinnon

2007-09-03 18:11:51   The UC Davis Bookstore is a far nicer place to shop compared to the bookstore at UC Santa Barbara. A TV news show actually showed undercover security grabbing and forcibly detaining shoplifters for stealing even the smallest items such as pens. UCSB security wait until the shoplifters exit the store where they then ambush them and arrest them. There are no second chances. Those students now have permanent criminal records and were forced to pay fines that rivaled yearly school fees. No matter how bad you think it is here, there's somewhere else where things are far worse. —Jedron

2007-09-04 11:21:32   But Jedron! If we use that sort of logic, we'll have to perpetually raise our tolerance levels. We can't control the limit that way. Just because the situation is worse Somewhere Else doesn't mean it can't improve here.

I wasn't going to complain about the Bookstore, but as long as I'm here... Argh, special order shipping! I was supposed to get the solutions guide for organic chemistry before my midterm, but they kept extending the shipping date. "Check back tomorrow," they kept telling me, even though someone else who ordered a solutions guide after me received it before me. Grr. That was probably mine. :-( —NumiaCairaguas

2007-09-04 19:37:06   Reply. I was simply commenting that receipt checking is a good idea at the UCD Bookstore. It is best to make people know that shoplifting is not tolerated and that receipts will be checked. Some people here complain that receipt checking at our bookstore is useless, however I believe that it is a good idea. What I do not approve of is "police brutality" or "security brutality" at UCSB's Bookstore. Which is a very uncomfortable place to shop at for even law abiding citizens. That is why I prefer the UCD Bookstore. —Jedron

2007-10-02 23:01:40   no more notebooks and binders allowed in the bookstore!! apparently they think we all will try to steal scantrons...

i also paid for my books in cash the other day, and the cashier decided that they had to make sure all the $10 and $20 bills were real..i could understand if they did it to $50 and $100 bills, but $10s and $20s, come on now. —DonaldJaye

2008-01-27 20:36:35   Bookstore security doesn't actually check receipts that's usually the job of rush cashiers that get hired on at the beginning of the quarter. Most people in the store aren't treated like thieves, just those people acting shady or you know actually stealing. You'd be surprised just how many thefts occur in a day let alone a quarter. —ArmyDecoy

2008-03-28 09:06:58   Just another place that seeks to rip you off although recently their new textbooks prices have begun to reflect actual market prices due in part to their learning how to use the internet and checking their prices against websites such as Amazon. As if anyone would even want to buy a new book…since in most cases it’s only used for a single quarter or not at all…Art supply prices seem to be fairly decent but avoid buying office supplies there at all costs. Freshman take note: Come well stocked Costco style before coming to Davis.

How is the bookstore a scam? I once needed batteries for my graphing calculator as it was running low on power for a calculus midterm and dropped by the bookstore right before where to my surprise…a 5 pack of Duracell’s for $8?? Turned out I didn’t need them as my calculator died at the end of the test…RIP you brave Duracell’s, longer lasting than those Energizers…I went to return them and they wouldn’t accept them, turns out they believe if you make a battery return, you have already skillfully cut open the package and removed the fresh batteries while replacing them with used ones and proceeded to reseal the package. What the f_?

Shoplifting is apparently rampant…at those prices is it all that surprising? What we have here is a localized monopoly with the only alternative: an Office Depot far from campus for your typical I-need-to-bike-my-arse-to-school student.
Need a pen/pencil? Don’t go to the UCD Bookstore; just grab one off of a fellow student (only for test-taking emergencies) student organization or club. They’ll usually be more than happy to offer one.

-Davis: Get in, get out, but leave your money.

2008-05-21 22:06:03   Not only does the bookstore seek to rip you off with RIDICULOUS prices and irritating package deals, they seem to be succeeding in their desire to win the title of WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE IN ALL OF DAVIS. It is sad that a store representing such a prestigious institution is probably an example of its worst qualities. The cashiers are completely robotic and inane in their response to a service or return question, simply repeating what they are PROGRAMMED to repeat regardless of an individual situation. Moreover, apparently a student ID with my picture on it is not enough proof that it is actually mine. Don't even get me started on return policy there. Actually I'm going to rant anyway whether you like it or not. I tried to make a return of a CD I had never opened because I dropped the class. Somehow I was told I should have remembered the exact cash register at which the item was purchased...when the numbers have actually CHANGED SINCE THEN..but I'm supposed to figure that out anyway. And I have to submit some sort of proof I dropped the class....ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME???????????? The lack of respect for customers and idiotic staff have given me good reason to stay as far away from this store as possible. HELLO AMAZON.com. —triscuitqueen

  Don't be lazy and waste your (or your parents) money at this place. It is a shame that there isn't even a reliable online source to look up the textbooks you need. My brother started at UCSC this year and I was surprised to see that their campus bookstore actually lets you look up the books you need on their website without forcing you to physically go to the store. What happened to that awesome davis wiki textbook look up page? The book exchange list is outdated/incomplete. Davistext.com is different from what was posted for a few of my classes this fall. Anyway until there is a reliable way to get this info elsewhere I encourage all you to do this:
1. go to bookstore & write down the books required for each class on a note card (or wait for class to start & get your syllabus, I've found that often times the bookstore lists books as required that are optional or not needed at all)
2. visit amazon.com or half.com or the site of your choice and save yourself serious cash

If for some reason you have to buy a new book at the bookstore I heard from a former employee that they will actually price match lower prices from websites. Maybe someone can confirm/deny this who has tried?
—BenJohnson

2008-09-24 10:37:57   I used to enjoy the bookstore, but now that I'm at UCLA I'm floored - it's much bigger here, has way cooler and nicer stuff, and most amazingly: isn't so obnoxious as to force everyone to check their bags in. —EdWins

2008-12-03 12:45:59   Pretty poor customer service - but not from the student workers, but someone who I think was a manager... she was an older woman, and when I asked if she could help me find a book from the warehouse (after having been given the call number from a student) she brushed me off, belittled me and treated me as if I was completely ruining her day. —SamanthaA

*Nice to know that nothing much has changed since my time as a UCD undergrad. Good ol' UCD Bookstore. Now when I go there for anything (which isn't that often these days), I just expect poor customer service. In fact I'm thrown off if anyone even acknowledges that I exist while checking me out. I just don't expect any interaction, or even a modicum of customer service. And I definitely think there is a "jerk-shift". Why are the students downright hostile? I could understand if you are someone who's been working that crappy job for gig for 10+ years. But why the young students? And by the way, it's not like that is the only student job available. If you hate it so much, work in another department.
The prices for textbooks are unconsionable. Is that the convenience cost? Why they can get away with it? But I think that is the case at most universities. It's most certainly true at McGeorge. It's definitly worth checking the used bookstore, your friends, and amazon.com.
During my time at UCD, I figured out ways to save money. Money was tight. Especially if they are required texts, but you don't really need your own copy. I stopped buying textbooks completely. Shields has copies of most texts on reserve. And when they didn't, I asked the professor to request that it be placed on reserve. And they always did. I don't think you can take reserve items out of the library, but I would just study at the library when I needed to complete assignments that required the text (I got more done that way, anyway). Some professors even loaned me books for the quarter. And a few even gave me my own copy.
Save your money. Don't give it to The Man! :D —CurlyGirl26

2009-01-12 23:20:23   I hate the place so much now, found a book that was selling at Barnes and Noble for ~$20 cheaper and has free 3 day delivery. ARGH I WANT TO BURN IT DOWN!! I have been a fool for being swindle into going there just because it was closer. Tip for all freshies out there, avoid the bookstore like you are avoiding your ex. Just search for your books online and most websites offer free shipping. Even the next day shippings + cost is cheaper than what bookstore deals out. Only get books that are made by the school and to check for book titles, other than that you can always try half.com. I guess yeah down with the BOOKSTORE!! —AHL

2009-03-02 00:50:20   The TechHUB has the best Logic Studio 8 price I've ever seen. It's ridiculously cheap. Get it. —btronclassix

2009-05-30 23:18:57   I love that the bookstore claims to have "guaranteed low prices!" I bought a 150-page novel for a class the other day whose $7.95 was covered by a little white sticker, presumably so I would not question being charged $13 at the register. At the register, I asked, "So, the low-price guarantee thing—that doesn't apply to prices hidden underneath white stickers, does it?" Naturally, the cashier told me that it did not. Heh. Of course.

The idea of having to ask to match the list price seems rather absurd to me. Oh well. Campus bookstores are expensive—what else is new?

FWIW, the UCD bookstore doesn't seem to screw you over nearly as badly as the Utah-based chain that was operated at my old community college, Shasta College, in Redding. Now *that* store really knew how to rape their customers. —RobertM525

2009-09-29 21:17:21   As of 09/21 they're charging 10% restocking for returns. You can do what I did with the not-exactly-a-lie "My teacher said we didn't need (program/book)" to keep your 10%. —HarrisonM

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