Campus Bookstore Has Changed
By Lee Ji-woo, Tribune Reporter
Do you remember the long line that stretched from the door of the campus bookstore to front of the Student Union I Building? That ridiculous scene was even uploaded to ‘Daum’, one of the internet’s biggest portal sites. Until the previous semester, Chonnam National University (CNU) students usually had to wait more than an hour to buy textbooks in the bookstore at the beginning of the term. However, the situation is completely different this semester. The long line and disorder have disappeared. Most CNUians can buy their books in five minutes, even during lunch period, one of the busiest times of the day. So what’s behind the change?Chonnam Tribune decided to take a look.
The Campus Bookstore Was Inconvenient
Up until last semester, it was common to hear students complaining about the campus bookstore. Choi You-jin (Freshman, Dept. of Education) said, “Last semester, I wasted so much time waiting in line to buy books. The counters could not accommodate everyone’s orders and as a result they were very crowded and the waiting line was disordered.” Park Seo-ra (Sophomore, Dept. of Ethics Education) also said, “I got angry once because I waited in line a long time only to discover they were sold out of the books I wanted.” Many students have had similar experiences while trying to purchase books in the campus bookstore at the beginning of the semester.
Several factors made the campus bookstore inconvenient. It was too small, some of the staff had not been properly trained, the purchasing system was inefficient and sometimes students made careless mistakes. The bookstore’s limited space prevented it from accommodating many customers which resulted in long wait times. The part-time staff also made mistakes frequently. What made it worse, some students did not check the title of their textbooks, bought the wrong books and then demanded a refund or requested to exchange their books. Furthermore, some books were published by CNU Publishing and were only sold in the campus bookstore. Students could not purchase them anywhere else. Consequently, both CNUians and the campus bookstore had problems in the past, and the CNU Consumer Cooperative Store wrote a public apology on the CNU homepage for the inconvenience.
The Campus Bookstore Has Improved
Fortunately, the campus bookstore has changed a great deal this semester. Most students can buy the books they need in five to ten minutes. Kim Hae-in (Sophomore, Dept. of Korean Language and Literature) said, “It took five minutes to buy all the books I wanted. This was impossible to imagine last year.” According to the result of a brief sticker survey conducted by Chonnam Tribune from Sept. 1st to Sept. 3rd, most respondents said it took them five to ten minutes to buy their books in the campus bookstore.
So how has the bookstore changed? And what was the cause of this major improvement? First, the student lounge on the second floor of the Student Union Building was opened to solve the campus bookstore’s space shortage problem. . The lounge belongs to the General Student Council, but it agreed to offer the room to the campus bookstore during the start of this semester under the supervision of the Office of Student Affairs. This is part of the CNU Administration’s efforts to improve student welfare.
Before the new semester started, Kim Byung-ook, the chief of The Office of Student Affairs said, “First of all, I feel so sorry for the inconvenience the campus bookstore caused during the past semester. I know that the bookstore has limited space and there is not enough space in the Student Union Building to accommodate students at the start of each semester. To provide better service the General Student Council, the campus bookstore, and the Office of Student Affairs will consult and cooperate to solve the problem. This semester, the student lounge will open for all students to purchase books more conveniently. The campus bookstore is going to offer better service to CNUians.”
Next, the campus bookstore started its preparations early for the new semester. It established more counters and trained its sales staff. Students also came better prepared. Many brought lecture plans or notes about the books they needed, and as a result there was a drastic decrease in the number of students who requested a refund or exchange.
Suggestions for Better Future
Is this convenience going to continue? What about at the start of next year’s semester? This semester is the second semester of the year, some classes are offered again and students can buy or copy used textbooks from acquaintances that have already taken the course. Besides, some students do not want to buy books at the campus bookstore because of the inconvenience they experienced in the past. Lee Myung-hoon (Sophomore, Dept. of Economics) said, “I would not buy books in the campus bookstore. I had a terrible experience last time I shopped there. So, I bought a secondhand book I saw advertised on the notice board.”
The campus bookstore offers better service than in the past, but it’s still not perfect. Park Chan-wool (Sophomore, Dept. of Physics) said, “Whenever I visit the bookstore, I find it takes a lot of time; it’s an inconvenient place to shop. I wish it would introduce sales by subscription.” A group purchasing system where student representatives from each department can order textbooks for applicants may be a future improvement. In addition, professors must inform the bookstore about textbook requirements for their classes before the start of each semester. The bookstore requires accurate forecasts for each class so that it can order the appropriate amount of books. The campus bookstore has gotten a new start. Many of the old problems have disappeared. Chonnam Tribune hopes it is even better come next semester.