At IU Southeast, meal plans are optional for students. However, Lauren Smith, business junior, was used to paying a mandatory meal plan fee during her first two years at the University of Louisville. After transferring to IU Southeast in fall 2010, Smith said it was much nicer going to a campus where the meal plans were not mandatory. “I just liked it because you can load up your card really easily on the IUS account, and then you have the option of eating off-campus,” she said. “At U of L you don’t have that option because they have so many fast food places already there.”