The University Store on Fifth — Local services in Pittsburgh

The staff was nice, but so are con men. From textbooks to lip gloss, there is nothing at this store that you cannot easily find elsewhere for much, much cheaper. Literally, nothing. There is no reason to shop here. The business totally relies on taking advantage of people. Seriously, they would go out of business without it. For textbooks, it's not even hard to find, for example, a $130 textbook for $30 at a trustworthy site. Simply type in the ISBN into Google and many will come up. If it doesn't, look for the international edition, they are the same book. You can get a brand new book much cheaper than this store sells used ones. They slap a different cover on and raise the price 400% then sell it to us stupid Americans. Don't get taken advantage of. These people are criminals. They sell you a $30 book for $200, 4 months later buy it back for $30 and sell it again for $150. It is insanity that they even have customers. They should be ashamed of...

It's way over priced for things like pens, notebooks, and other stuff you might need for class. The lines at the beginning of semester atrocious. I waited in line for around an hour in a half at 6pm at night but even longer during the day. If you have any kind of tuition help/scholarship only 1 person at 1 register can help you with that, so people pass as you wait in "another" line. For as big as campus is the store is absurdly small. The textbook section on the bottom floor is cramped and disheveled, especially after the students are done rummaging through it to find the books they need because not all the books are labeled properly for...

This place has come a long way since my day as an undergrad. You can find any kind of Pitt item you want to buy. Great selection of everything. But more than a university store, the on-site IT support staff is extremely handy and convenient. Also, they now have a creative space on the bottom level where students can come and do just about anything: paint, play guitar, and all kinds of other stuff. They have a good selection of clothing too. Check out the clearance section on the bottom level as well. Great deals on many things. I got two new Pitt hats at $7/ each and shirts for my boys...