By Mark Vincent A. Durano

Tams Bookstore (TBS) cited the increase of Scantron bubble sheets purchased by students as clarification for the recent shortage of its stocks during the Midterm Examination Week in Far Eastern University (FEU).

“Our latest sales data show that there is an increase of students purchasing the sheets. Students from institutes that were not previously buying the sheets have now been buying,” TBS Manager Gwenn Jessica Galvez said in an online interview with FEU Advocate.

She also mentioned that during the last two weeks of September, a week before the midterms, students purchased 20 sheets on average.

The amount doubled from the previous 10 per student according to TBS.

TBS did not have data how much was left during the midterms but their last order was on September 25 with production lead time up to 20 days.

Currently, bubble sheets are now available for purchase in all three TBS branches at the Nicanor Reyes Hall (NRH), Engineering Building, and FEU High School.

According to the manager, their sheet supply is totally dependent on the supplier when it comes to restocking.

“Unfortunately, there is only one authorized printer of the sheets hence our total dependence on this supplier,” Galvez said.

Due to the growing demand, TBS only sold two sheets per student when only 1,000 sheets remained in their stock.

To cope with the shortage, some students asked for extra sheets from other FEU students in the unofficial Facebook group One Piyu Community, while some resorted to asking other students on campus.

Additionally, a few faculty also let their students use the test questionnaires as it is or another blank bond paper to answer examinations.

“Our professor was able to provide sheets of white paper for those among us who were unable to get a hold of scantrons,” first-year Political Science student Jastin Mari Sario stated in a separate interview with FEU Advocate.

He also mentioned how some of his blockmates opted to buy sheets outside the campus.

Additionally, second-year Psychology student Fatima Beltran’s class were allowed to print out ZipGrade sheets, similar to the bubble sheet used by Scantron. 

“My professor lent out an alternative that the printed ZipGrade would be sufficient to use in our departmental exam [for Developmental Psychology],” she shared.

TBS’s regular purchase of sheets also increased by 50,000 compared to 150,000 last 2023.

Meanwhile, the bookstore restocks their Scantron sheet supply when their inventory level is at 50,000 sheets.

Two stalls in the University food courts are then selected as authorized sellers: Sweet Treats in Tayuman canteen and Tasty Brews and Bites in the NRH Food Court.

(Photo by Zedrich Xylak Madrid/FEU Advocate)