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E-Commerce

Tuition and Fee E-Commerce Services (SDePay)

Welcome to the Tuition and Fee E-Commerce web page! As of November 2005, new on-line payment options have been available. It is our intent to provide up to date information concerning the new online tuition and fee payment system. Outlined below are; the purpose, the goals, the transaction decisions and frequently asked questions (FAQ's) of this new system. Also listed are campus resources to assist in answering questions.

Purpose of E-Commerce
Goals of E-Commerce
Transaction Process Decisions
E-Commerce Campus Contacts
Frequently Asked Questions

Purpose

The South Dakota Board of Regents (SDBOR) have implemented system-wide on-line electronic payment and billing services for student tuition and fees. Specifically,

Electronic billing notification to students through e-mail.
On-line tuition and fee payments and account status information through the Internet.

In the future, planned enhancements include student refunds through credit card or bank direct deposits, and electronic payment plans.

Goals

During the 2004-05 academic year, credit card companies charged the South Dakota Public University System approximately $500,000 in fees to process student tuition and fee credit card payments. This expense is covered by student fees and therefore reduces the dollars available for programs and services for all students, regardless of whether or not they use a credit card for tuition payments. Our goal is to reduce or eliminate these bank fees so those funds can be utilized to further support students and faculty in pursuit of academic excellence.

Due to these bank charges and other restrictions with credit card processing rules, many colleges and universities do not accept credit card tuition payments at all. We recognize that many students and their families appreciate the convenience of using a credit card, and we have searched for alternatives. Therefore, we have contracted with infiNET, our e-commerce system vendor, to accept credit cards for student payments.

In an attempt to further reduce costs and to take full advantage of the electronic online payment services, electronic billing was implemented for Spring 2006. This allows for the electronic notification of the student's account status to a designated email address. The cost of paper bills, manual processing and postage is reduced and those savings can be utilized to support academic programs and student services.

Transaction Process Decisions

All credit/debit card payments for tuition and fees are processed on-line through the contracted vendor, Nelnet. The Student Accounts/Cashier Office no longer accepts credit cards or debit cards in person, through the mail or over the phone.

The following payment options allow for payment of tuition and fees without incurring a service fee for the student, parent of third party payer.
1. Electronic check via online from an established bank (not through vendor).
2. Cash, paper personal check, cashier check or money order through the Cashier Office on campus.
3. Paper personal check, cashier check or money order through the mail.
Payment plans are offered through the South Dakota Public Univeristy System via payment options a. through c. Students and authorized payers (e.g. parents) may pay tuition, academic fees and other service charges online with a MasterCard (credit or debit), American Express, or Discover via the contracted vendor, Nelnet, which will assess a service fee to the payer for the convenience of using the credit/debit card.

Students and authorized payers are not able to use a Visa credit/debit card to pay tuition, academic fees and other charges due to current Visa credit card contractual regulations.

Credit and debit cards, including Visa, are accepted by the South Dakota University System for other on campus units such as bookstores, housing deposits and past due collection balances for which the system incurs the fee. Students do not pay a service charge fee for those transactions.