Although the debit account function of the UCard may be a useful tool for learning the ropes of personal finance, its usability is still fairly limited.
The UCard serves as personal identification for students and is necessary for several functions such as checking out library items and purchasing a parking pass. Students living in the dorms must use their U Card to gain entry.
“It’s been kind of a challenge getting students to understand why to get their card,” Melissa Hill, Project Campus Card Manager, said.
However, the UCard also includes a debit account function for students and full-time faculty that is similar to a traditional debit card but for a couple of notable exceptions.
Money added to the card must be used at accepted locations on campus and is not available for use elsewhere. Also, cash cannot be withdrawn from the account at an ATM like a standard credit or debit card.
“You can’t get cash out of there?” Kennethia Taylor, psychology freshman and Library Coffee Shop employee said. “They should tell people that.”
Kelly Newton, Music Technology junior and University Center Coffee Shop employee, said approximately one out of every 10 students uses the U Card to pay for their purchases at the coffee shop, although Newton herself doesn’t.
“I don’t use it,” Newton said. “I just stick with my debit card.”
Despite its limitations, professor of business administration Alan Wong said the UCard provides a good basis for incoming students to learn to budget.
“It [the Ucard] helps to control the spending,” Wong said. “With the debit card, you don’t have to worry about finance charges. It’s pay as you go.”
Hill said the limitations of the U Card has been a selling point to parents who want to make sure their children are spending their money on essentials.
“I’m pretty happy with it so far,” Hill said.
Hill said she is working on wider available usage for the UCard such as local stores and more departments on campus. The UCard system at IU Southeast is modeled off that of IUPUI.
“Right now they’re [IUPUI] working out the bugs,” Hill said. “Bloomington’s system is entirely different.”
Another concern of UCard usage is a $15 service charge incurred when closing the account. Students who graduate are also subject to this charge and any money left in their account could be lost if proper procedure is not followed.
After a year of inactivity, the former UCard user is notified. The user then has 30 days to respond, after which any money left in the account will be remitted to the IU Southeast. Terms of service of the U Card are available at http://www.ius.edu/ucard/
Full-time faculty are able to deduct from payroll directly into the UCard debit account, but adjunct faculty and hourly employees are unable to do so.
To date, 387 students and 160 staff have used the financial part of the UCard at least once since January. Total sales have been more than $40,000.
“I don’t use it myself and I’m not aware of faculty members using it,” Wong said. “I don’t really see the point of me having one in terms of using it frequently.”
Wong said another issue is the lack of education in budgeting at the high school level.
“I think there should be more personal finance education in high school,” Wong said.
“Because, in a way, it’s going to affect their education. It affects the amount of time they have for studying. They need to know the principles of personal finance.”
By MATTHEW LEE MILLER
Staff Writer
mlm5@ius.edu
