Mit Cooperative

This place is very easy to find. Like any typical college bookstore that stocks text books and supplies, it is expensive, but that's to be expected. Some things are reasonably priced (umbrellas would be a good example), but the souvenir Boston magnets are not ($12? please!). The staff is also rather impersonal and by no means go out of their way to help you.

I bought two umbrellas one monsooning afternoon in Cambridge, and it saved my day. The umbrellas were pretty fair-priced, but anything looks cheap when you're trying to escape the rain. The books looked to be about average prices. But some of the stuff here is expensive. I mean, 12 bucks for a magnet? The shirts and stuff I saw were equally expensive. But the whole place is full of soveniers (which are always pricey) and MIT merchandise, so if you're a tourist like me, it's a good place to pick up a keepsake, regardless of the price.

The MIT Coop is the source of books for MIT students and also offers a selection of MIT apparel and souvenirs for visitors. Course books are on the lower level of the store, while apparel, souvenirs, and other books are on the main level. The store is conveniently located very near the Kendall Square Red Line T stop on the eastern part of MIT's campus very near the Kendall Square Marriott. A second location is in the basement of the MIT Student Center at 84 Massachusetts Avenue.

PROS: Convenient
CONS:

This bookstore is convenient in that it has every book required for every class, but in the same way, it is annoying because it is the ONLY place that has every book for every class the only way to find out what books are required before classes start is to physically make a trip to this bookstore. Id suggest putting the book list online, which would make it a lot more convenient for a lot of people. The book prices here are on the high end, you could easily find them cheaper online.

The best place to go for textbooks for MIT classes. They also have dorm supplies (e.g. laundry bags, posters, lamps, fans, etc.) available. Very handy and close, but of course they mark up the price. This is also the only place to go for MIT regalia.

The MIT Coop and its counterpart the Harvard Coop are overpriced. Buy your text books on http://amazon.com and your pencils from CVS or an art store. I suppose if you really have to have that Harvard sweatshirt or that MIT coffee mug you could make use of this store. It is conveniently located though and Harvard and MIT students can join to get some cash savings.

I mostly like to sit in the MIT Coop when it is raining while I'm waiting for the free shuttle to the Galleria Mall.

PROS: stock things you need
CONS: everything is too expensive

I wouldn't recommend going to the MIT Coop unless you need something that you cannot pick up anywhere else. School supplies and college novelty items are extremely overpriced. The salespeople are not very helpful or knowledgeable. Most of them seem to be students. The average price of an average binder seems to be around $4, which is ridiculous.

I shop here only when I need MIT stuff, but not for anything else. I think they need to update their MIT sweatshirt selection. It's conveniently located in Kendall square, right next to the T stop, and right on the edge of the MIT