Bobcat Families
The Georgia College Parent and Family Newsletter
July 27-31
- Textbooks
- Taking Care of Business: Bobcat Card and Parking Permit
- New Parent Drop-Ins
To-Do: Textbooks
On the Barnes & Noble at GC website, your student can input their class schedule and retrieve a list of all needed textbooks. Students can then pick up their textbooks during move-in weekend or the first week of classes.
You may have heard that some students wait until the first week of classes -- affectionately called "syllabus week" -- to buy their textbooks. Sometimes a professor makes changes to the required textbooks, or a student changes their schedule during drop/add (the period during the first week of classes when a student can make changes freely). That is a common tactic that many professors have come to expect, but some professors will give reading assignments in the first week.
What should you look for when buying textbooks online?
- Digital access codes: If a class requires online workbooks or tests, a digital access code may be required. Be careful when buying used books -- you may end up having to buy a new access code that could cost more than the book itself.
- Digital vs. hard copy: The advantage of a digital textbook is that it arrives instantly. If you wait to buy until the first day of class, a digital textbook is no problem. But if your student likes to highlight and take notes in the margins, a hard copy might serve them better.
- Taking notes: If you rent a hard copy textbook, pay special attention to the guidelines for writing in the book. Some companies won't accept a heavily annotated or highlighted book for return.
- ISBN numbers: Make sure you're getting the right edition. Online booksellers may use outdated cover art, so use the ISBN 11 or 13-digit number to make sure you're getting exactly the right book. And don't try to save by buying an old edition -- there may be major changes in the content.
Taking Care of Business
For the smoothest move-in process, please encourage your student to submit their photo for their Bobcat Card this week so it is ready for them on move-in day. Students who do not submit their Bobcat Card photos will have to complete that process before they can move in.
To submit a Bobcat Card photo:
- Sign-in or register for a Bobcat Card Account
- Select "Profile"
- Click "Submit a New Photo"
Bobcat Card photos should follow these specifications. (Essentially, it should look like an ID photo -- but you get as many 'takes' as you want!)
- Headshot cropped from middle of the chest to just above the head
- Against a plain, light-colored background
- In color, but without a filter
Parking permits can be ordered at https://georgiacollege.aimsparking.com/. Students with a Resident parking permit may park in any of the Resident lots on campus.
Students who request their parking permits this week will have them in their check-in packet at move-in.
Bobcat Parent Drop-Ins
Register for a Thursday morning drop-in here.
Contact
Email: emily.jarvis@gcsu.edu
Website: gcsu.edu/parent
Location: Parks Hall 206
Phone: (478) 445-8566
Facebook: facebook.com/bobcatfamilies