Blockbuster books: textbook rental programs are producing big savings for students.

Thanks to the estimated 25 schools nationwide that have recently adopted textbook rental programs, campus bookstores are starting to operate a lot like Blockbuster. Rend Lake College (NC) has already begun to save students hundreds of dollars with its textbook rental service. The college charges $42 per book, $20 of which is a deposit fee that is refunded to the student when the book is returned. Within a two-year period, a student who rents five books a semester pays $440 each semester, a savings of more than 50 percent, school officials say.

UCLA might soon also jump on the textbook rental trend. A new bill encouraging the state's public colleges to implement a rental program just passed the California State Assembly and will now move to the State senate. The California rental program, which is intended to reduce the total cost of higher education, would cap textbook rental fees at 50 percent of a book's purchase price. The rental program would also give students the option to purchase books after renting them. Other schools offering this service include Appalachian State University (NC) and Eastern Illinois University.