Students around campus are having mixed results about receiving their KSU Choice Card. The big question wandering around campus is: What happens if you choose to do nothing with the card once you receive it in the mail?

Every student who is signed up for classes will receive a card in the mail. Whether students lose the card, choose to do nothing with it or throw it away, 21 days after Kent State University issues the refund to students, Higher One has to issue the student a check. Federal regulation says the check has to be issued to students if they have not made a refund selection after 21 days.

Even if students do nothing with their KSU Choice Card, they will still receive their refund check in the mail after 21 days of it being issued.

“(We) can’t just hold onto your money forever and ever; it has to be issued,” said Stina Olafsdottir, manager of Student Accounts Receivable in the Bursar’s Office. Higher One follows federal regulation and very strict guidelines.

One of the main purposes for the KSU Choice Card is to offer students more choices when receiving their refund. Most students had direct deposit or checks, but now students have the option of a refund check, direct deposit into their current bank or students can select the Higher One account, which is free checking. Students who want access to their money faster or do not have a bank account may want to choose the Higher One account.

Another perk of the KSU Choice Card enables students to track their refunds. Now when they login to KSUChoiceCard.com, they can see exactly what step their refund is at.

“It’s like tracking a UPS package,” Olafsdottir said. For students wanting information right away, this card is perfect for that kind of student, she said.

The Higher One account is a free checking account. Olafsdottir said students should make sure they read the terms and conditions because they are signing up for an account. There is no fee to use the account from Higher One because it works like a MasterCard or debit card, but it is not a credit card. Higher One is an online bank; there are no ATMs.

“Students are leery because they want to walk into their bank,” she said.

Forty-four percent of all students who received a card have activated the refund preference. According to Higher One, that is a high percent for a school of our size.

“Anytime you have anything new, you have mixed results,” said Olafsdottir.

Incoming freshmen will have knowledge of the KSU Choice Card because of the marketing that is put into the Destination Kent State PowerPoints.

Students are never stuck with just one refund option. KSUChoiceCard.com is available 24/7 so students always have the option of changing their preferences.

Contact Haley Phillippi at [email protected].