<p>My son will be a freshman and I was curious how much money should we be putting on the Commodore Card? What kind of things are bought through the card? Do students buy books on this account? The lowest amount appears to be $500 per semester. Is that enough? Any thoughts or comments are appreciated. :)</p>
<p>the card can be used for books, anything in the bookstore, food purchases (including some off campus restuarants/pizza delivery), photocopying, laundry room, even taxis i think. I’ve put $1000 on the card…it rolls over to the next semester if anything is left unlike “meal money” which does not.</p>
<p>My kids always started with $1000 per semester as well.</p>
<p>yep- $1000 a semester here as well- and always the lowest meal plan required as my daughter has food allergies. We leave for graduation tomorrow- didn’t realize how excited I would be!!</p>
<p>I put 1K per semester on the card when my son was a freshman, but it didn’t get used up and much of it is still there at the end of his sophomore year. One reason is because he buys many of his books used, or through on-line vendors, where he thinks he gets a better deal.</p>
<p>As another poster said, it rolls over, so don’t worry too much about putting too much on the card.</p>
<p>how much do you guys usually spend in general for personal expenses? It says 2k something on the total cost of attendance; does it really cost that much?</p>
<p>My D was just asking me this and I am glad that someone pointed out that the money put in will rollover.
Many places in Nashville that are not linked to the Card will still give Vanderbilt students and employees some kind of discount (not just restaurants) so remind your kids to always ask about this and keep their card with them.</p>
<p>We started our freshman out with $500 on the Commodore Card. He also had 2 credit cards and a checking account. We put first semester books on credit card, to help him build credit. He found that between the freshman 4 meals per day plan, meal money and the extra flex meals freshmen get, he barely used the commodore card cash, except on laundry and places that didn’t take meal money. He tried to use up meal money first as that doesn’t roll over from semester to semester. We did not have to put more money on the card for the spring, and he still didn’t use the entire $500 we originally put on it (and there’s not much he denies himself!)</p>
<p>Is the cost of the money put on the card figured into the estimated cost of attendance? Because if its not, that could make a big difference for me </p>
<p>schrute,</p>
<p>Someone correct me if I am wrong, but I believe the COA includes some living expenses, that is, the type of expenses that you can (if you wish to) use the card for. There is no requirement to put money on the card, so there is no reason for you to think that the Commodore Card will cause your estimated total costs to be any higher than the number you are already working with.</p>
<p>The card is a matter of convenience, not an additional cost to you.</p>
<p>Hope that did not just create additional confusion!</p>
<p>On the “estimated costs for academic year” it says that books & supplies are $1280. Does it cost that much, and if not how much have you brought it down by, by using online vendors and getting used books?</p>
<p>What is the advantage of the Commodore Card over a standard debit or credit card?</p>
<p>For the most part, it’s not much different than having a debit card or credit card, except you can use Commodore Cash in laundry machines, vending machines on campus or to print on campus. My son had a printer, but his stuff went into storage before his last paper was due, so he printed it in the library or in the Commons.</p>
<p>Gosh, my D must be downright frugal! We put $100 on the first semester & $100 the second semester. She still had $30 left at the end of the year (it rolls over). She doesn’t use it for much more than washer/dryer & the occasional bookstore purchase.</p>
<p>She had tons of rollover meal money & was able to get snacks with that & eat off-campus with meal money. She bought her books used on Amazon. She did buy a couple new books in the bookstore (maybe $125-150 tops) - she charged those (airline points).</p>
<p>I just asked my D about this … she said if you are like the girl in her English class who bought a new umbrella at the bookstore every time it rained, you might need more money than D had on the card! :)</p>
<p>Kelsman: My son, also didn’t spend a lot - he came home with about 1/2 of what he started with. Also had a lot of left over meal money - he bought gift certificates with it at one of the local restaurants, that he can use at home, as that wouldn’t have rolled over to next year. The leftover flex meals went towards lots of candy during finals week</p>
<p>There is no minimum for the commodore card. How much you put on it depends upon how much you trust your kid to spend money responsibly. As a previous poster said – they can use it at the bookstore for all kinds of unnecessary luxuries, and there is the sense that “it’s there to spend” and some kids do just that! Mine did. She has clothing from the bookstore that I never would have agreed to pay for. So I guess it all depends on the kid.</p>
<p>actually, for freshmen at least, there is a minimum amount you can put on the commodore card. i believe it is none, 500, 1000, and 1500. i was thinking about not putting any money on the card and just using a debit card (then i can use it anywhere in nashville) but i figured its a little safer to have the commodore cash so i went with 500.</p>
<p>While the form may lead you to believe you can only put those amounts on your Commodore Card, you can actually put whatever amount you want on it. I just wrote in $100. Then when second semester rolled around, I just put another $100 on it online.</p>
<p>if you pre-order your books in the summer, then i’d say start with $250, maybe $500. all you’ll use this cash for is 12351879815 vandy tshirts, possibly school supplies, concert tix (we have ticketmaster on campus), and eating out (when your meal money runs out). if you don’t pre-order your books, i’d say go with $750 because books can be quite expensive.</p>