Any balance on your bursar account not paid in full by the appropriate due date can cause you a lot of trouble. A financial hold gets placed on your account so you can’t register, and there’s even a pesky late fee of $175. Luckily, I haven’t had the pleasure of that particular experience at RPI.
Unfortunately, I know several people who have. There are always a few problem cases: incomplete financial aid applications, unpaid tuition, etc. Unconfirmed reports, however, indicate that there may have been a somewhat higher number of troublesome holds than usual this semester.
This abnormality, though not confirmed, may be due to a slight change in the enforcement of RPI’s financial policies. While it has long been RPI’s policy that all outstanding balances must be paid in full before students can register for classes for the next semester, it may not have always been strictly enforced in the past.
While this slight change makes a lot of sense for the financial stability of the Institute and therefore benefits the entire RPI community, it may have created some problems this semester—particularly for upperclassmen who may be used to a somewhat less strict enforcement of the policy.
Ultimately, registration is over. Students forced to register late—for whatever reason—should do their best to get into the classes they need and talk to individual professors or advisors if all sections are full. Those who still haven’t been able to register should contact the appropriate office immediately.
In the meantime, the Offices of the Registrar, the Bursar, and Financial Aid are working hard to come up with new and better ways to communicate with students to avoid these types of situations. Nobody enjoys placing a hold on a student’s account and students certainly don’t enjoy not being able to register. So, here are some general tips on how to avoid having a financial hold placed on your account.
March/April (each year)—make sure that you’ve completed your FAFSA for the next academic year. If you receive any New York State awards, don’t forget to complete and submit an express TAP application to finalize your actual award amount.
August (each year)—complete the necessary master promissory notes and entrance counseling sessions for any new Federal Stafford and/or Perkins loans that you may have. Also, don’t forget to log in to the Student Information System and accept the amount you wish to borrow!
In the meantime, make sure to read any mail, e-mail, or other notice from the Offices of the Registrar, the Bursar, and Financial Aid very carefully, especially your bills and registration time ticket. They may contain information alerting you to an outstanding requirement that could prevent or delay your registration if not resolved. Make sure to act on any such alert immediately because many financial processes—such as taking out an additional loan—can take a significant amount of time. Also, try to periodically review your SIS account to check for any outstanding requirements.
