Plan Overview: Meal plans are usually grouped into two categories: mandatory
Meal Plans are plans where meals are required, per university policy.
Mandatory meal plans are sometimes assigned to students per their class
year (i.e. all freshman are required to be on a meal plan). Sometimes,
whether a meal plan is mandatory or not depends on a student's residence
hall assignment. As an example students in traditional halls where 2
students share a room might be required to be on a meal plan, whereas
students living in apartments with kitchens are typically not required
to be on a meal plan.
Meal Plans are plans where student voluntarily sign-up to be on a meal
of Meal Plans: A wide variety of meal plans are offered for students.
Meal plans in general typically involve the following:
purchase of a set number of meals per week: These meal plans involve
providing students with a set number of meals per week, for a specified
price, which are eaten in the traditional campus dining center. The
number of meals offered per week varies, but meal plans that provide
19 meals per week, 15 meals per week and 10 meals per week are fairly
common. These meal plans usually provide "all you can eat" dining. In
these meal plans, non-eaten meals at the end of the week are forfeited,
in that they cannot be carried over from week to week.
institution requires a mandatory meal plan involving the purchase
of a set number of meals, as a general rule you should know that students
typically eat fewer meals than you would think. It is probably easier
to purchase fewer meals up front, and add more meals later, than attempt
to have a higher number of meals reduced.
general, students may become frustrated by the perception that they
are not receiving value from their meal plan, because missed meals
are forfeited. As a point of reference, it is important to note that
when meal plans are priced by the campus dining service provider,
they price the cost of a meal plan based on national averages for
missed meals. So in as much as it seems that you are getting less
value because of missed meals, the cost of your meal plan would be
much higher initially if missed meals were not taken into consideration
Balance Plans: Sometimes meal plans come with a declining balance, which
is a specified amount of money that is attached to the meal plan. Declining
balance dollars are monies that are placed on a debit card, that can
be used in food operations at the university, other than and including
the campus dining center. Declining balance dollars generally add flexibility
to a campus dining plan, increasing the dining options that are available
to students, and adding more variety to the campus dining plan.
Meal Plans: Block meal plans provide students with a set number of meals
for an entire semester, which are eaten in the traditional campus dining
center. The student has control over how often they use their meal plan.
These plans usually involve "all you can eat" dining. On these plans,
it is fairly typical that meals are not carried over from one semester
to the next, in that uneaten meals at the end of a semester are forfeited.
In many instances, block meal plans may come with declining balance
Dining: In ala-carte dining plans, students pay for food items as they
go. Students pay established pricing for individual food items, and
these amounts are either paid in cash or debited from declining balance
Equivalency: Cash equivalencies are sometimes offered in ala-carte dining
facilities. A cash equivalency takes a meal from a traditional meal
plan and coverts it to a set dollar amount that can be used towards
the purchase of food items in the ala-carte dining facility.
Released From A Mandatory Meal Plan: It is very unusual for a student
to be released from a mandatory meal plan, and you should know that right
up front. A student with special dietary needs or cultural issues that
impact a meal plan, or a student who simply wishes not to participate,
will most likely be required to submit that request in writing to the
University designee for food service on the campus. The letter will require
formalized documentation as to why the release is required. Making the
request and providing the documentation does not alone get your released
from the meal plan. Campus food service providers have dieticians and
staff who work with them to assess individual student needs and find strategies
for meeting that need through the meal plan. As was stated earlier, typically
releases from a mandatory meal plan are rarely granted.
Needs: Your campus food service provider will work hard to meet your
special dietary needs. Special needs should be brought to the attention
of the University designee responsible for campus dining on your campus.