By Amanda Lowe
Buying items online is now even easier for college students. Nick Opderbeck, an alumnus of Virginia Tech and current graduate student at Babson College, created a Web site where college students can sell and buy items from other college students.
CampusX (campusx.com) has been up and running for about three months.
“Our goal is to improve the ability of every college student to interact with one another on campuses throughout the world,” the Web site states.
Opderbeck’s inspiration came from personal experience. During college, Opderbeck realized that text books and other items needed for classes cost students a lot of money that they do not have. He said that he created this site in order to help students locate items they need for class for cheaper prices.
“There are plenty of online options for locating textbooks at a discount online. If you walk around campus, any campus, you still see flyers posted to every wall,” Opderbeck said. “Students are trying to locate other students for all kinds of things or to sell furniture, books, appliances. To rent a room or find a roommate. Why in the age of the Internet do we still see students using this conventional form of communication? Because a better alternative is still not available.”
CampusX allows students to select their state and it then gives you a list of all the colleges and universities in that state. You can select one and see all of the items being sold from students at that college. You can choose to browse items for sale in categories such as furniture, hardware, motor vehicles, movies, music, textbooks and tickets. Besides the ability to purchase items, CampusX also allows students to search for jobs, rooms, roommates and tutors. It also has a personals section where students can look for other singles in their area or post a personal ad.
In a recent edition of the Boston College Heights Opderbeck explained how a typical CampusX transaction would run.
“Let’s say Johnny BC is looking to buy and appliance for his room. He could either go on CampusX and write a wanted ad for the appliance he’s looking for, or he could do a search on his campus for the appliance” Opderbeck said. “Once he finds the item he is looking for, he would directly contact that seller without your typical classified-ad fees. Johnny BC and the seller would then meet up in order to complete their transaction.”
There are currently 55 Massachusetts colleges and universities listed in the database and CampusX has over 5,000 users.
“CampusX will become the single online destination for anything and everything a student could need. By January we will unveil a redesigned site which will add similar search features to help identify single men and women on campus. Later in the spring we will help students locate available housing. The opportunities are endless,” Opderdeck said. “If a student needs it, we will provide it. The CampusX idea has evolved into much more than a place where student can exchange goods. It’s an exciting time for us. Who better to create a service for students, than students themselves?”
Many students do not know about all the things CampusX can do for them.
“I have heard about CampusX in passing, but I don’t know what it’s all about,” said Mike Castellanos, a sophomore political science major.
With more and more students becoming aware of CampusX each day, the Web site is gradually expanding. There are some items for sale in the Boston area. There are five items for sale at Boston University. There is also a Boston University student who placed a personal ad on the site.
“A friend e-mailed me a link to [CampusX.com] and I posted my personal and some items to sell. I’m like the only one using the page, but surprisingly I have got a few e-mails. No dates yet. I have heard from 10 or so people,” said Sarah Jamison, a student at Boston University.
With the expansion of CampusX and with more users joining everyday, students will have a chance to find necessary purchases all in one place.
“I’ve sold several DVDs through CampusX. There seems to be a few students that know about this site,” said Brian Barker, a student at Boston University. “It’s a great idea, it’s just not full of stuff yet.”
Opderbeck realizes that it this system is not perfect yet and is said to be working hard at getting more users. He hopes that soon everything a student needs will be just one click away.
“Over time, CampusX will become the eBay for college students. With a single click you can choose to view only items available on your campus,” Opderbeck said. “Consider it a personal eBay for every school.”
