One of the biggest problems students run into while being independent for the first time is finances.

Iowa State offers multiple resources for students and their parents to use throughout their time at college. Three of these resources include the Student Loan Education Office, the Student Financial Aid Office and the Accounts Receivable Office.

Student Loan Education Office

One of the newest resources offered to students is the Student Loan Education Office, located in 0680 Beardshear Hall.

This office enables students to set up a time to talk to a financial adviser for free. This person offers advice on how to manage money, how much money to put on your loan and other financial issues.

Students who make an appointment are entered into a raffle to win a $2,500 scholarship. This scholarship is given once a semester to some of the students who have used the Student Loan Education Office for advice.

Jennifer Schroeder, program coordinator for the Student Loan Education Office, recommends freshmen plan out their finances.

“I would say for freshman really sitting down and doing a budget, really looking into your tuition, fees, room and board, what you have available because you may not need everything financial aid offers,” Schroeder said. “Remember, you’re a college student for the next four or five years and that it’s OK to be a broke college student. Live like a college student now so that when you graduate, hopefully, you don’t have to move back into mom and dad’s basement.”

Schroeder also offers advice for parents.

“I would say students need to be involved [in their finances] from the get-go, the student needs to be an active participant,” Schroeder said.

Use your resources and don’t be afraid to ask questions, Schroeder said.

Student Financial Aid Office

Another resource available to students is the Student Financial Aid Office, located in 0210 Beardshear Hall.

This office coordinates multiple money-related programs such as the U-Bill, FAFSA, scholarships and work study.

“Students have access to the U-Bill via Access Plus,” said Roberta Johnson, director of financial aid at the Student Financial Aid Office. “It will list for them all of their upcoming charges for the upcoming semester. It will also list for them any of their available financial aid and the status of that financial aid.”

Some students will not have their financial aid cleared and will need to fulfill a task for it to be cleared, Johnson said. This might include financial loan counseling or approving the loan amount for the office, which will be shown on Access Plus.

Students can approve the loan by completing its promissory note, which is an agreement the students will pay the loan after graduation. The office will contact the student after that step is complete and ask for approval to add the loan to the student’s U-Bill.

Johnson went more in depth about how to pay your U-Bill.

“If [students] pay in full they don’t incur any additional charges on top of what they owe to the university,” Johnson said. “However, if they don’t pay in full by the Aug. 20 [deadline] for the fall semester, they’re automatically placed on the deferred billing plan.”

If placed on the deferred billing plan, a $20 charge will be added to their next month’s U-Bill.

Students will have until Sept. 20 to pay the minimum payment and the fall semester must be paid in full by Oct. 20. Even if the bill is paid in full, students will still be charged for any activity that occurs past that date, Johnson said.

These activities include items from the bookstore, library printing past the college’s allotted amount of printing credits, parking tickets and other various fees.

On Access Plus, scholarships will show up in the Financial Aid Award section and on the U-Bill.

“We apply any available financial aid to the student’s U-Bill, and only after the U-Bill has been paid in full will the student receive any excess, if there is any,” Johnson said.

For security reasons, Johnson recommends signing up for direct deposit if scholarship or loan amounts exceed U-Bill fees. 

Keep track of the U-Bill, especially since it doesn’t coincide with the typical first-of-the-month payment plans. Look for scholarships and borrow only what is needed to build a sound financial future, Johnson said.

Accounts Receivable Office

Another resource for students to use is the Accounts Receivables Office, located in 0880 Beardshear Hall.

This office bills all charges to the U-Bill, including Department of Residence fees, parking fees, tuition and other expenses.

Several payment plans are available, one being the monthly payment plan. If students sign up in March, they are eligible for the 12-month payment plan. If they sign up in April, it is an 11-month payment plan. May is a 10-month payment plan, and if students sign up in June, they are eligible for a nine-month payment plan, said Tammy Hansen, assistant director for the Accounts Receivable Office.

When signing up for this payment plan, the amount is automatically deducted from the account that is set up with the plan on the 20th of each month.

A student’s financial information is kept private under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. However, the office created third-party access to certain parts of their financial information, which is available via Access Plus. Students can give their parents or guardians permission to view and pay their U-Bill by signing up for third-party access.

If parents are to call and get information about their student’s finances, the student needs to sign up their parents for account information release. The office cannot allow parents to view the information until the student does so.

Hansen’s largest piece of advice is to communicate. If the student doesn’t respond to the office when given notification, there is no way for the office to send a student in the right direction to get the help he or she needs, Hansen said.