By Tia L.S. Holmes
Prince George’s Community College has begun distributing new student debit cards this semester in order to speed refunds of financial aid money or tuition overpayments, but careless use of the new cards could cause extra fees and charges. The college has partnered with Higher One, Inc. of New Haven, Conn., to disburse refunds to the college’s 14,000 students through FDIC-insured Higher One bank accounts and new PGCC Owl Debit cards.
In order to get the quickest refund, students should first make sure
they have activated their new PGCC Owl Debit Cards as soon as they arrive in the mail, said PGCC Student Accounting Specialist James Devenney. About 3,000 students should have already received their cards and logged on to http://www.pgccowldebitcard.com/ to manage their accounts.
PGCC will experience great savings in time and money by instituting the use of the new banking accounts and debit cards, he said. The previous process for the school was to send paper checks for refunds of class payments and for rebates of student financial aid overages. This process was costing the school thousands of dollars in printing and postage owing to incorrect student addresses to which they would mail checks then re-mail, once returned.
With the new Higher One account, students will now be able to access rebates with their PGCC Owl Debit Card in as little as 24 hours after financial aid becomes available to PGCC. Devenney predicted that refunds will be available as early as February 8th, after the add/drop class period.
If classes were paid for with a credit card, then students should expect to see those charges back on that card, not in the Higher One account, Devenney said. For students who do not wish to use the Owl Debit Card, the Higher One website does provide the option to wire-transfer funds to other personal checking accounts. Choosing not to activate the account will result in the mailing of a check 21 days after Higher One does not receive a request for activation.
Student Jennifer Fair sees the use of the card as a benefit based on her past experiences with waiting for refunds. She also admitted that she did not do research on the card, but that she would before using it.
The Higher One bank accounts operate as any other checking account, minus the minimum balance requirement and monthly checking account fees; however, other banking fees apply, some unexpectedly. Among the most egregious fees are the Abandoned Account Fee ($19.00) and the Lack of Documentation Fee ($50.00).
Higher One ATM machines are already being installed around the campus to dispense cash. Using any non-Higher One ATM will cost $2.00 per transaction, including buying gas, food, clothes shopping or any other transaction that requires a pin number.
The best advice given to avoid fees is to always use the PGCC Owl Debit Card as a credit card; remember to always swipe and sign wherever MasterCard® is accepted. Buying on credit is fee-free with the exception of online bill paying; for free online bill transactions, you must maintain a $1,000 balance or sign up for direct deposit pay.
To ensure benefit from the Easy Refundsm system, verify your address with the college and the U.S. Postal Service and read the fee schedule and account usage information provided on the Web site, before signing up.
More information is available at www.PGCCowldebitcard.com and http://www.higherone.com/.
Prince George’s Community College has begun distributing new student debit cards this semester in order to speed refunds of financial aid money or tuition overpayments, but careless use of the new cards could cause extra fees and charges. The college has partnered with Higher One, Inc. of New Haven, Conn., to disburse refunds to the college’s 14,000 students through FDIC-insured Higher One bank accounts and new PGCC Owl Debit cards.
In order to get the quickest refund, students should first make sure
they have activated their new PGCC Owl Debit Cards as soon as they arrive in the mail, said PGCC Student Accounting Specialist James Devenney. About 3,000 students should have already received their cards and logged on to http://www.pgccowldebitcard.com/ to manage their accounts.PGCC will experience great savings in time and money by instituting the use of the new banking accounts and debit cards, he said. The previous process for the school was to send paper checks for refunds of class payments and for rebates of student financial aid overages. This process was costing the school thousands of dollars in printing and postage owing to incorrect student addresses to which they would mail checks then re-mail, once returned.
With the new Higher One account, students will now be able to access rebates with their PGCC Owl Debit Card in as little as 24 hours after financial aid becomes available to PGCC. Devenney predicted that refunds will be available as early as February 8th, after the add/drop class period.
If classes were paid for with a credit card, then students should expect to see those charges back on that card, not in the Higher One account, Devenney said. For students who do not wish to use the Owl Debit Card, the Higher One website does provide the option to wire-transfer funds to other personal checking accounts. Choosing not to activate the account will result in the mailing of a check 21 days after Higher One does not receive a request for activation.
Student Jennifer Fair sees the use of the card as a benefit based on her past experiences with waiting for refunds. She also admitted that she did not do research on the card, but that she would before using it.
The Higher One bank accounts operate as any other checking account, minus the minimum balance requirement and monthly checking account fees; however, other banking fees apply, some unexpectedly. Among the most egregious fees are the Abandoned Account Fee ($19.00) and the Lack of Documentation Fee ($50.00).
Higher One ATM machines are already being installed around the campus to dispense cash. Using any non-Higher One ATM will cost $2.00 per transaction, including buying gas, food, clothes shopping or any other transaction that requires a pin number.
The best advice given to avoid fees is to always use the PGCC Owl Debit Card as a credit card; remember to always swipe and sign wherever MasterCard® is accepted. Buying on credit is fee-free with the exception of online bill paying; for free online bill transactions, you must maintain a $1,000 balance or sign up for direct deposit pay.
To ensure benefit from the Easy Refundsm system, verify your address with the college and the U.S. Postal Service and read the fee schedule and account usage information provided on the Web site, before signing up.
More information is available at www.PGCCowldebitcard.com and http://www.higherone.com/.
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