Students and their families now have an updated way to manage their college financial accounts due to the integration of a new payment system.
Introduced this past summer, ePay is an online bill-payment system that allows students and their families to pay bills online, receive refunds, manage payment plans and view their accounts and payment history.
Tuition Management System was previously the only online system available to manage payment plans, and while it will still be available as an option to manage tuition, Director of Special Affairs Dirk White said the administration anticipates that many students will choose to use the new ePay system.
Student Accounts Manager Judith Ralph said that in the past, the old system only allowed for students to pay bills online. The improved capabilities of the ePay system not only allows for online payment plans, but also gives the administration the ability to easily process refunds online. This means that instead of writing a check, the administration can simply refund it directly to the student’s account.
Sophomore Nicole Starling, a creative writing and business administration double major, said, “I think it’s a good idea because then students wouldn’t have to go to the financial aid office every time they have a question and their parents could also get the information easily.”
Keenan Wright, a sophomore psychology major also said he liked the new system. “I think it’s an easy way for students and parents to pay their tuition online… so I think it’s pretty easy and I like it.”
White said the new system should benefit both the administration and the students.
“My personal thought is that it benefits the student because it makes things much easier,” he said. “But I also think that it helps our office because it improves the efficiency of our office. When our efficiencies are improved, that gives us more time to help the student,” he said.
The business office has displayed posters around campus to make students aware of the new system.
An example of how this new system might be helpful often occurs a couple weeks into the new semester when students drop classes and need to receive refunds. White said the business office was busy during that time of the year because it was processing refund requests.
“There was a long line of people going out the door when people came in to get their checks,” White said. “It was just a revolving door … the parking lot was full and it took a lot of time. So by using the software and having the student fill out what they need to online, we can (electronically) send them a refund. They don’t have to take the time to come in (to the business office) and do all of that stuff, which helps the student, giving them more time to study.”
Requests from students over the years have also prompted the use of this new system, which has been in development for the past five years, Ralph said. She also said that this particular system, owned by a company called TouchNet, was chosen because of its cost efficiency and user-friendly nature. Although Ralph said that the initial cost of the system was expensive, she said that it will save money for the administration because it allows for a more efficient financial management system.
White said that one reason this particular system was chosen from a list of competitors is because it is particularly secure with industry-standard protection levels to help keep private financial information safe. “We’ve engaged TouchNet because they’re secure and we feel confident that they will protect (the student’s information),” White said.
The new system also has a mobile component that will make it possible for students to view their account information on smartphones, but the business office has not promoted that aspect because it has not yet been tested.
Another benefit of the integration of this new software is that it opens the door for other potential online financial opportunities. An online “marketplace” is currently in the testing stages. White said he hopes that one day, it will be possible for the university to sell tickets for conferences or allow the Athletic Department to sell things like jerseys from previous decades. White also said that next fall, students will be able to buy their parking decals online, and the decals will be mailed to them.
