Ah Summer!
Let us recount all the joys that Summer brings......
warm days
picnics and outdoor gatherings
life just seems to slow down
pooltime
grilling out fun foods
vacations and traveling
College bills are due
Yes, if you have kids in college(or are about to), Summer brings those dreaded College Tuition Bills too.
Daughter's bill arrived the end of last week which seemed a bit early, even to me!
And even better, even though she doesn't start classes until after Labor Day, the bill is due in full by July 27th.
So I sat down last weekend to go over the bill....you know, to make sure the charges were correct and all.....because I have a thing about giving away our money when we don't have to. lol
She had a charge for something I didn't recognize so I hopped onto the school's website and found it and what it was for.
Everything looked good except.......except there was no credit for the $50 Deposit we had paid back in March when she applied, which was suppose to be refunded if/when she enrolled/paid for her 1st semester.
So I told the Daughter to call the school and take care of it since it is HER life, HER education and SHE is now an adult. ;-)
She called the school and told me that the person she spoke to said that the deposit had already been applied to her bill.
I showed her the bill and asked her to show me where on it, the credit had been applied.....which she couldn't do.
I then asked her whom had she talked to at the college......she said, "some one in Admissions".
I then explained to her that "some one in Admissions" was NOT who you talk to about a BILLING problem and that they are probably told to just say "your deposit is already taken off your bill" to anyone who calls them, thinking it will satisfy them and they will just go away.lol
So Daughter rolls her eyes(meaning "why are you making such a big deal out of $50?!"...though if it was HER $50 it would suddenly become a VERY BIG DEAL!lol)and walks away and gives up dealing with the problem. It is too much trouble for her to get to the bottom of this issue.
I then call the College and speak to the Billing Dept. clerk. She as well tries to tell me that the credit is already applied as her initial response......this is even before she knows which student's bill I am referring to.
*face palm*
So I insist she bring up the specific bill(I can wait)on her screen and we can compare the one I am holding with her copy and she can show me exactly where my $50 deposit shows up(or doesn't).
I am given a big old exasperated *sigh* and then she asks for the student ID# and puts the receiver down and clicks some keys.
After more key clicking suddenly Daughter's bill drops....$50?!
How can that be, when her bill was correct and that $50 had been applied already?
Oh, I know how it can be......
I tell the Clerk that I am writing the new total on the bill with a note why I am not paying the full amount.
She says that is fine, that the new lower amount is showing in their records now, so send the original invoice in with the lower payment.
Having gone through this little charade, it makes me think that NOBODY who puts a Deposit down and ends up attending this college has their Deposit applied against their Tuition charges.....nobody unless they NOTICE and ASK FOR IT BACK!
By operating in this manner, the school assures themselves that a percentage of students(and I am thinking it's a substantial percentage of students)will forget about that $50 Deposit and never get it back.
Most students are 18-20 years old and NOT very concerned with taking care of paperwork anyway, so between having to actually proactively DO something to get the money back, and many of them are utilizing financial aids(loans/grants) and/or having parents pay the bills....so letting others "take care" of the money parts and not worrying about the finances, this College is filling their coffers unethically by keeping all these Deposit checks.
Figuring they admit 3,000 new students a year, if 50% of them don't get their Deposit checks back, that's a bonus of $75,000 a year for the College!
Crazy like a fox this school is.....
Since Daughter couldn't be bothered to take care of this? I am taking that $50 out of her College Fund and putting it into my "Mom's Mad Money" Fund. I get a bonus and she pays stupid tax.....
Moral of the Story--Watch the accuracy of those College invoices and talk to the correct department if there is a problem.
Sluggy
Let us recount all the joys that Summer brings......
warm days
picnics and outdoor gatherings
life just seems to slow down
pooltime
grilling out fun foods
vacations and traveling
College bills are due
Yes, if you have kids in college(or are about to), Summer brings those dreaded College Tuition Bills too.
Daughter's bill arrived the end of last week which seemed a bit early, even to me!
And even better, even though she doesn't start classes until after Labor Day, the bill is due in full by July 27th.
So I sat down last weekend to go over the bill....you know, to make sure the charges were correct and all.....because I have a thing about giving away our money when we don't have to. lol
She had a charge for something I didn't recognize so I hopped onto the school's website and found it and what it was for.
Everything looked good except.......except there was no credit for the $50 Deposit we had paid back in March when she applied, which was suppose to be refunded if/when she enrolled/paid for her 1st semester.
So I told the Daughter to call the school and take care of it since it is HER life, HER education and SHE is now an adult. ;-)
She called the school and told me that the person she spoke to said that the deposit had already been applied to her bill.
I showed her the bill and asked her to show me where on it, the credit had been applied.....which she couldn't do.
I then asked her whom had she talked to at the college......she said, "some one in Admissions".
I then explained to her that "some one in Admissions" was NOT who you talk to about a BILLING problem and that they are probably told to just say "your deposit is already taken off your bill" to anyone who calls them, thinking it will satisfy them and they will just go away.lol
So Daughter rolls her eyes(meaning "why are you making such a big deal out of $50?!"...though if it was HER $50 it would suddenly become a VERY BIG DEAL!lol)and walks away and gives up dealing with the problem. It is too much trouble for her to get to the bottom of this issue.
I then call the College and speak to the Billing Dept. clerk. She as well tries to tell me that the credit is already applied as her initial response......this is even before she knows which student's bill I am referring to.
*face palm*
So I insist she bring up the specific bill(I can wait)on her screen and we can compare the one I am holding with her copy and she can show me exactly where my $50 deposit shows up(or doesn't).
I am given a big old exasperated *sigh* and then she asks for the student ID# and puts the receiver down and clicks some keys.
After more key clicking suddenly Daughter's bill drops....$50?!
How can that be, when her bill was correct and that $50 had been applied already?
Oh, I know how it can be......
I tell the Clerk that I am writing the new total on the bill with a note why I am not paying the full amount.
She says that is fine, that the new lower amount is showing in their records now, so send the original invoice in with the lower payment.
Having gone through this little charade, it makes me think that NOBODY who puts a Deposit down and ends up attending this college has their Deposit applied against their Tuition charges.....nobody unless they NOTICE and ASK FOR IT BACK!
By operating in this manner, the school assures themselves that a percentage of students(and I am thinking it's a substantial percentage of students)will forget about that $50 Deposit and never get it back.
Most students are 18-20 years old and NOT very concerned with taking care of paperwork anyway, so between having to actually proactively DO something to get the money back, and many of them are utilizing financial aids(loans/grants) and/or having parents pay the bills....so letting others "take care" of the money parts and not worrying about the finances, this College is filling their coffers unethically by keeping all these Deposit checks.
Figuring they admit 3,000 new students a year, if 50% of them don't get their Deposit checks back, that's a bonus of $75,000 a year for the College!
Crazy like a fox this school is.....
Since Daughter couldn't be bothered to take care of this? I am taking that $50 out of her College Fund and putting it into my "Mom's Mad Money" Fund. I get a bonus and she pays stupid tax.....
Moral of the Story--Watch the accuracy of those College invoices and talk to the correct department if there is a problem.
Sluggy
