I Just Saved Myself $707.55!!

So today I received my list of textbooks for first semester, with an whopping estimated expense of $747.45! From experience, I know that I will not be using all the textbooks that I usually buy from the campus bookstore, and so I searched the forums of valuemd to determine which books I thought were absolutely necessary. Turns out just about every upperclassman would agree the most used book is Netter’s Atlas, followed by BRS Anatomy. I read New Clinical Genetics is useful too but most people consider it “optional.” If I bought books from the AUC online bookstore, they would charge regrettable shipping fees, and so I found the best prices on eBay and Amazon marketplace for books.

It’s amazing how many books out there are open source or digitalized, yet are still sold expensively as book form. All the books that could be downloaded for free, I downloaded, and my total turned out to be $39.90, which includes shipping. Although I may not mark or write notes on them, electronic books give me other advantages, such as the ability to search for keywords quickly and its weightlessness. I got more than enough of what I am able to use and saved myself $707.55 at the same time!

BOOK	RETAIL	PAID	SAVED
New Clinical Genetics	49.45	0
Mark’s Medical Biochemistry	67.45	0
VH Dissector Pro	152.1	0
Netter’s Atlas of Human Anatomy	71.95	39.90
Netter’s Clinical Anatomy	40.5	0
Clinically Oriented Anatomy	76.45	0
Histology with Cell and Molec	65.65	0
Basic Histology: Text and Atlas	58.45	0
Langman’s Medical Embryology	56.65	0
Clinical Anatomy: Applied	62.05	0
Histology Virtual Microscope	46.75
	747.45	39.90	707.55

**UPDATE 4/2010**

Now that I have survived first semester, I can say for a fact that the book I used most is Netter’s Atlas of Anatomy, which you’ll take into the anatomy lab as a guide for your cadaver. I’d recommend getting this book before coming down to the island because there may not be enough to buy from upper semester students when you arrive, and there is no ebook version of it as far as I know (and even if there is, iPads and computers are not allowed in the lab).

Dr. McIntosh, who is one of the three professors who teach Molecular Cell Biology I (MCB I), particularly the genetics portion of the class, may also assign some practice problems from the New Clinical Genetics book. The problems are not for a grade, but are worth doing, and Dr. McIntosh will have review sessions over them. Currently, there is no ebook version of the book. Rather than buying the entire book, however, I’d recommend just borrowing the book from the AUC library to do the practice problems that Dr. McIntosh recommends.

As for the rest of the books, you won’t need most of them. The lecture slides, tutor notes, and your own class notes will already be more than enough to read that you probably won’t even have time to read books. Books should only be there for reference in case you need clarification, and you can use the library for that. All the books can be checked out for free from the library for a week at a time.

But if you do want to get the other books, you can find more than enough of copies being sold for really cheap from the First Semester Yard Sale at the beginning of the semester from an upper semester student. You may also see upper semester students selling books on your incoming class’ Facebook group. But remember that most people sell them because they do not use them. As I mentioned above, another option is getting free digital copies of the textbooks floating around in class, and there’s quite a lot of them.

You won’t need to buy VH Dissector Pro because they will already be installed in the computers in dry lab, which you will go to once or twice a week, or anytime after hours in lab. You also won’t need to buy the Histology Virtual Microscope CD-ROM, because you won’t use it.

During orientation, you will also be given a stack of 10 Kaplan books that cover all the subjects and topics that you will cover in med school. You will also be given a subscription to all the online Kaplan Qbank and video lectures. All of this is already included in your tuition and many students use these resources as their “textbooks” as well when they study.

Last, but not least, TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE LIBRARY! All your textbooks and more can be found here, and it’s all free for you to check out. You can renew the books as many times as you want. I know some people who didn’t even buy a Netter’s Atlas of Anatomy or BRS but instead checked all these popular books out from the library!

**UPDATE 12/2010**

After being a TA in the anatomy lab for the last three semesters (and head TA for the last two), I cannot stress enough how important it is to bring a Netter’s Atlas of Anatomy to lab. Just like an explorer, you need a map when exploring the human body to identify the parts on the cadaver when you see it. Too many times I have seen students in front of their cadavers without any atlases, lost. When I ask some people why they don’t bring their atlas, some people say they don’t want it to get dirty. Let me tell you, when you buy a Netters, expect it to get dirty. Really make the best use of it. It will be your greatest tool in lab. Some students also say they do not bring their copy of Netters because they rely on the TA copies of Netters that lie around in the lab. When I first became a TA three semesters ago, the TAs had well over thirty copies of Netters. By the end of last semester, there were only a handful left. Over the past semesters, most of the copies had either been stolen from the lab or fell into poor condition. It’s been a great concern among the TAs, and so please rely on your own copy of the textbook, because there simply won’t be enough books from the TAs for everyone to share. This is med school — prepare yourself with the proper resources.

**UPDATE 5/2011**

Now that I am in my last semester of Basic Sciences, here are 3 books I would recommend getting for your first semester at AUC:

1. Netter’s Atlas of Human Anatomy — This is the road map to your cadaver. It’s easy to read, since it’s a bunch of pictures with things labeled. I would look through the pictures before coming to lab each time to get yourself familiar with what you are going to look for, and obviously, have the book open at all times during the dissection so you know what you are cutting at and know what to expect to find underneath. You might be able to find a cheap, used (and not to mention, dirty) copy of Netters from an upper semester student during the First Semester Sale, but to guarantee that you have a copy of this book, I’d personally recommend just buying a copy before you arrive on the island.
2. BRS Gross Anatomy — This book is a review book for anatomy, and so it cannot replace the details you learn in lecture. But it highlights the most important key points and clinical correlates you need to know for the Anatomy Shelf Exam you take during finals week. Because of this, I would use it concurrently with your studies and use it as a way to summarize the key things you’ve learned that day. As I mentioned above, there is an ebook version of this book floating around campus, so if you’re ok with reading ebooks, you could just get a copy from an upper semester student when you arrive on campus. But for a book that you may be reading a lot, a physical book might be easier, and you can buy a cheap used copy from an upper semester student at the First Semester Yard Sale in the beginning of the semester.
3. First Aid for the USMLE Step 1 2012 (First Aid USMLE) — Almost every fifth semester student here has this book… it’s a review book to study for Step I and so it is only useful after you’ve learned the material. For first semester students, I would integrate the use of First Aid into your studies, so you can build a strong core knowledge of the most important key points in your education. There is also an ebook version of this book going around, but from what I understand, it’s the 2010 version, which is drastically different from the current version. The current 2012 version is in color, has corrections, and has photos integrated into the text, whereas the old 2010 ebook version does not have these, and has quite a few mistakes. Therefore, I recommend getting the actual most-updated book.