Students carry valuables in their backpacks every day. But at what price?
In an informal survey at BYU, students were asked to calculate the monetary value of the items in their backpacks. The average amount being carried on their backs was around $1,000.
Between laptops, textbooks and school supplies, the total monetary value on their shoulders often took students by surprise.
“I have a Macbook in here,” Eve Smith, a senior from Provo, said. “That’s worth a lot!”
While some students were taken aback by how much they were carrying, the majority seemed to trust BYU’s reputation as a low-crime campus. Some students claimed to leave their backpacks on chairs “all the time,” trusting the goodness of fellow students to ensure that nothing was stolen. Others were more pragmatic.
“I’m not that worried,” Katie Seastrand, a senior from Salt Lake City, said. “I keep it with me all the time so it’s not a big concern.”
