<p>Hi,
I will be joining Penn State- University Park this fall 2013. I am trying to choose a campus meal plan but i need help ! My budget is very very tight ( I am an international already paying a huge amount of money) so I would like to save every penny. Now, What do you suggest me for a meal plan? </p>
<p>Check these out :
Meal</a> Plans
Campus</a> Meal Plan</p>
<p>I am confused how this works? Say for example if I choose Level 1 meal plan will I get some free meals per week for which I won't be needing to spend the $650 from my id+ Card ? Or I would have to pay for each and every meal I buy from this $650? </p>
<p>Further, What would prove to be a cheaper option for me, buying the least expensive meal plan and spending extra money or going with an expensive one ? </p>
<p>In both the cases, how much minimum money would i be needing for food per semester apart from the meal plan? </p>
<p>Is there something called meal points ?</p>
<p>Well, though I have written a BIG para above.. What I want is that I can have say 21 meals per week (breakfast, lunch and dinner) in the lowest possible cost..LOWEST!</p>
<p>The meal plan is pretty straightforward. The money is deducted from your plan everytime you eat in a dining hall. There’s a little calculator you can use to say how many times you’ll eat in a dh each week — let’s say you never eat breakfast, or you always skip lunch, or you eat dinner twice a week at a restaurant downtown. It’s generally best to pick the lowest meal plan that makes sense for you, because you can always ADD to it if you are running low. Fall meal plan carries over to spring, but spring is use-it-or-lose-it. (So right now, students with extra plan funds are buying their friends who ran out lunch, in order to use up the funds before spring semester is over because otherwise it’s wasted money) Meal plans can also cover purchases at campus convenience stores like Blue Spoon, and the Creamery.</p>
<p>ID+ money is an entirely separate plan. This is basically a debit card that you can use in most businesses in town, and on campus. There is often a slight discount for using ID+ instead of cash or credit. S1 and S2 have spending/essentials/eating out money on their ID+ card; S2 has a Level 3 meal plan because he only eats on campus, S1 doesn’t have a meal plan at all because he lives off campus.</p>
<p>People who live in campus housing are required to have a meal plan. There are no waivers or exceptions. Meal plan rates per meal are much lower than paying cash.</p>
<p>Thank you for the reply 
Since you have your sons studying in Penn State… What has been the cheapest option between taking a meal plan and not opting for any at all ?</p>
<p>Cooking for yourself, in a budget, is cheaper. That’s only an option if you are not in campus housing (except for Nittany Apartments, which have kitchens and don’t have to have a meal plan). If you aren’t going to do the cooking, then the meal plan is still much cheaper than eating out all the time, or paying full-price at oncampus dining locations.</p>
<p>Again, if you are in campus housing, you HAVE to have a meal plan. It’s not a choice. You can try the very cheapest meal plan and see how far it gets you. I don’t know any students who have the high end ones, they are far too much and it’s too hard to eat all that!!! Most students are a 2 or a 3.</p>