Can someone in short describe how a meal plan works? I've read around but it's kind of confusing .. And do you actually save money with it?

Originally Posted by RomanT

Can someone in short describe how a meal plan works? I've read around but it's kind of confusing .. And do you actually save money with it?

You only save money if you have money on your flex or basic account and you can only have money on your flex account if you live in residence. These accounts are tax free, meaning you don't pay taxes when you buy food.

Basically when you live in residence you have to buy a meal plan. The meal plan you buy has a large portion on basic and the rest on your flex. Everytime you buy something it comes off your basic. Once your basic is done it starts coming off your flex.

You also have a freedom account, this is used when buying things off campus in places that accept the meal plan. You have to call/e-mail hospitality in order to switch money from your flex to freedom. HOWEVER, a lot of people don't switch and the money seems to come off the flex account. It's really strange.

What if you have money left over? What happens to it? And what difference does it make then between the sizes of the meal plan?

Originally Posted by RomanT

What if you have money left over? What happens to it? And what difference does it make then between the sizes of the meal plan?

Oh right, I thought I forgot something. Your basic portion doesn't roll over, but whatever you have in flex and freedom will move on to the next year.

The difference between the meal plans is how much money you want to pay. The basic portions are all the same for all of them, the only difference is the amount of money in the flex portion.

Originally Posted by RomanT

What if you have money left over? What happens to it? And what difference does it make then between the sizes of the meal plan?

Just to add onto what jhan523 said, because the Basic portion doesn't "roll over" to the next year, you lose whatever you don't use. This is why at the end of the year, some people end up buying tons of juice/candy/relatively nonperishable packaged things,etc... that are sold by campus food places in order to use up any unused money.

Also, you not only "save money" by having a meal plan, it's also much more convenient to swipe your student card rather than scramble for cash in your pockets and carry the change around.

Ahh thank you all again

whatever you do, do not do what me and my buddies did this past year. we spent alotttt of $$$ on drinks such as coke, sprite, vitamin water, etc. i advise you bring cases of water and such to your dorm. you will be shocked how much you will save on your meal plan... we ended up having our meal plans almost gone by february so we had a race to see who could finish it first. let me tell you, our parents were not pleased lol

So my energy drink addiction must stop? Lol

Originally Posted by RomanT

So my energy drink addiction must stop? Lol

I highly suggest it! Or at least get them in cases instead of on campus

Originally Posted by pocalyuko

whatever you do, do not do what me and my buddies did this past year. we spent alotttt of $$$ on drinks such as coke, sprite, vitamin water, etc. i advise you bring cases of water and such to your dorm. you will be shocked how much you will save on your meal plan... we ended up having our meal plans almost gone by february so we had a race to see who could finish it first. let me tell you, our parents were not pleased lol

I definitely second this recommendation. Buy drinks at the grocery store and keep them in your room, or take one with you when you go to eat. Buying the occasional drink on campus is fine but buying drinks with every meal will eat away at your meal plan. I had the smallest meal plan and with not buying too many drinks I still had money left over at the end of term.

You get better deals on drinks in bulk and at grocery stores on sale than you do on campus, plus you can get more variety.