The Office of the Bursar Keeps Students in Good Standing
The Office’s multifaceted responsibilities ensure that student tuition accounts are in good standing during their studies.
The Office of the Bursar at New York Medical College (NYMC) holds the central role of reviewing and tracking student tuition accounts at the College while facilitating and collecting payments. The Office’s daily operations are fundamental in allowing students to progress through their studies uninterrupted. Karin Ahyoung, left, NYMC’s bursar, gave an insightful look at the Office’s operations.
What are the responsibilities of the Bursar’s Office?
The Office of the Bursar, comprised of myself and Lisa Collins, student account representative, is responsible for maintaining all student tuition accounts and the College’s receivables. This includes reviewing charges and payments, issuing refunds, collection activities and providing support and guidance to create a seamless experience for our students. These functions are accomplished while servicing the needs of our students within the framework of Touro’s policies and legal guidelines.
How would you describe the day-to-day functions of the Office?
We have many responsibilities and are frequently met with new challenges and questions. On a daily basis, we answer student and internal inquires through phone calls, emails or Zoom. We send out communications to individual students or groups about insurance, due dates, withdrawal policies and direct deposit. We regularly analyze reports and accounts, where debit reports are analyzed frequently to collect current and past due payments while credit reports are analyzed twice per week for refund processing purposes. We post daily payments, discounts and health insurance charges to student’s accounts, monthly. We submit third party bills and work with outside agencies to collect payments. We also provide clearance for processes such as registration, transcripts and loans.
What is the most asked question from students about the office?
The questions vary depending on the time of year and which department is asking. Our most common questions are about the student health insurance, holds, 1098-T forms and payment due dates.
What do you find most interesting or most rewarding about working in the Office?
While the NYMC Office of the Bursar has a staff of two, we are part of a larger community of Bursar’s from California to Israel within the Touro University system. Our community of bursars will often get together for training and upgrading to share knowledge, develop best practices and provide the best customer service experience. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, we would all meet annually in person and hopefully we can do that again one day. It is also rewarding when the students we speak with are satisfied with their experience and thank us.
What is one useful tip you can give about the office?
We are continuously seeking new ways to improve upon our services and welcome all questions and feedback. It’s helpful to us if students know their Touro ID number when contacting the office. For students, satisfying your bill on time is important to avoid late fees and holds.