Topics: college stores, gen z trends, Gen Z, gen z characteristics
College store employees know students. Every day, year in and year out, you help the next wave of academic hopefuls with all of their collegiate retail needs. For the past 20 years, the students coming in and out of your bookstore have been predominately millennials — individuals born between 1981 and 1997. As millennial students complete their education, the next generational cohort that college stores must adapt to is Generation Z.
Most of us probably know at least one kid who plays a seemingly endless amount of video games. Maybe you were even that child who couldn’t get enough of your favorite games. If you were, you probably weathered commentary from adults about wasting your time on a silly game. Or, if you are a non-gamer, like me, then chances are that particular speech doesn’t sound wholly unreasonable. After all, what does logging thousands of hours on a video game really contribute to one’s future?
Topics: textbooks, student achievement
Learning is a student’s foremost job on campus, and education doesn’t stop the moment a student steps foot in your store. There is certainly no need to question a student’s choice of logo-wear, snack food, technology or other general merchandise. But you can help students avoid the poor decision to forgo a course material purchase.
Topics: course materials, wholesale textbooks, sourcing
Recently, we sat down with Corporate Marketing Representative Lillian Brooks to discuss SimpleSource, MBS’ new ordering tool that college stores already love. SimpleSource saves time and money by helping bookstores efficiently source wholesale and marketplace inventory.
Topics: spirit wear, bookstore events, collegiate retail
Creating DIY game day fashion is a fast, easy and fun way for students to personalize their outfit for big games. Popular DIY designs can range from simple to elaborate, but they all have one thing in common: They’re an affordable way for students to update their wardrobe. Help students embrace their creativity with a fun, spirit-boosting DIY t-shirt event.
Topics: faculty relations, digital textbooks
Welcome to the first of a four-part series about working with digital texts in the classroom. Our goal is to offer our collegiate retail readers insight that will empower your discussions with faculty and administrators about affordable course material options. We will present the pros and cons of digital texts in a way that allows you to answer questions about how the format affects student engagement and success — and faculty workload.
The evolving nature of the educational landscape has inspired recent course material innovation. From new formats to new delivery mechanisms, each creative solution helps improve student learning, preparedness and affordability. However, it also means that course materials are no longer as simple as they once were.
In a perfect world, college students would be eager to discover what’s inside their required textbooks. They would know that the money they spent on course materials in your store was an investment in themselves — and in their future — with an invaluable pay-off. But this is not the case. Students often express hatred for course materials or any form of required reading. If they didn’t, the popular Best American Nonrequired Reading anthology series would have no audience, and collegiate retailers wouldn’t have to worry as much about textbook sales.
Topics: OER, OER Trends, adaptive courseware
As the demand for college affordability increases so does the need for low-cost course materials. Open Educational Resources (OER) have been around for decades but have been slow to gain widespread usage on college campuses. However, recent campus, state and federal OER initiatives have doubled the number of instructors who report using OER in at least one course.
In today’s digital world, convenience is key. Don’t want to go to the grocery store? No problem. You can order online, and your purchase will be brought to your car or delivered to your home. Don’t feel like running down the road to pick up a new flashlight? No problem. It will be shipped to you in two days. Convenience is the new normal for all consumers, including students.
Contact our editorial team to set up an interview or to contribute a guest post.
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