What’s it worth?: Students discuss dining options
Shafer Court Dining Center on the Monroe Park Campus. Students can choose from a variety of meal plans that give them access to multiple restaurants, but many are split on their cost-effectiveness. Photo by Maggie Root.
Harshini Kanala, Contributing Writer
As the 2024-25 school year resumes, students face increased grocery and restaurant prices, alongside meal plans that have previously cost Virginia Commonwealth University students $1 million in total unused value in 2013.
First-year students living in dorms are required to purchase a dining plan. They can cost anywhere from just under $230 for 5 swipes and $150 dining dollars, to over $3,600 for 330 swipes and $225 dining dollars, according to VCU Dining.
Nidhi Rana, a first-year biology student, said swipes can be a good option for new students.
“I recommend getting a meal plan for first-year students for sure, the first-years definitely need it. A second year — maybe if you’re still transitioning,” Rana said.
Ansh Gandhi, a second-year electrical engineering student, said swipes are not worth the money and he prefers not to shop at Ram City Market because of the prices.
“I’m not sure why I have the meal plan. It’s the same if I pay with a card — it isn’t worth the Rambucks either, I can shop at Kroger,” Gandhi said.
He said he is considering skipping the meal plan next semester.
“It’s useful for places like Shafer, but most people aren’t going to Shafer every day, all day. I probably won’t get one,” Gandhi said.
Dining dollars carry over from the fall to spring semester but not over the summer. Swipes are only good for one semester and do not carry over, unlike at other schools like Virginia Tech, which allows students’ fall meal credits to roll over into the following semester. Gandhi wonders why this is not the case at VCU.
“Why don’t they roll over? I had to do a hundred-day ‘Twisted challenge’ because I needed to use them up. Maybe it’s for VCU to make money,” Gandhi said.
Judah Pope, a second-year African American studies student, said it is “annoying” swipes do not roll over, but he has kept a meal plan going into his second year.
“Even though I don’t use them as much as last year, they come in handy. Feels good knowing that it’s there,” Pope said.
VCU Dining stated in an email that unused swipes are recycled to fund meal plans.
“The remaining value of the swipes not utilized by students goes back into the VCU Dining program. These unused student meals provide resources to enhance the student dining experience further,” VCU Dining stated.
VCU Dining also stated that the dining plans they provide come with their own benefits which include consultations from a nutritionist, all-you-can-eat dining halls and tax-free meals.
“Our dining plans are tax-free, meaning no tax is added to the initial purchase, saving 13.5% on each transaction,” they stated. “We have two all-you-care-to-eat facilities, AVO and Market 810. And we also host events that help students connect.”
Abraham Serrano Lopez, an applied mathematics graduate student, said the meal plans were more of an introduction to the campus.
“I think meal plans are only helpful for on-campus residents because it makes navigating less scary. It’s amazing for freshmen. It’s ease of access,” Lopez said.
Other companies unrelated to the university have offered meal plans for students, which they claim are more flexible and at a lower cost.
Elevate is one of these services. Their plans are available at five universities, including the University of Virginia, Rutgers University, St. Clair College and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, according to its website. They employ student testimonials and advertisements on social media, like Instagram, to reach potential takers.
Seth Kramer and Josh Cohen, the co-founders of Elevate, said the plan is a better, more flexible option than campus meal plans. The app features regular offers and credits roll over until graduation, they said.
Cohen and Kramer said Elevate is more convenient as it offers online ordering.
VCU also offers online delivery from Grubhub with zero fees as of August, according to the university.
They also added that it is especially helpful for parents, as they can use a 529 plan to finance it.
“A 529 is a flexible savings plan that works as an investment account that can be used for education savings. These accounts can be opened by almost anyone, there are no income limits and anyone can contribute. A 529 account works much like a Roth IRA by investing after-tax contributions into investment portfolios like a mutual fund,” according to Virginia529.
John Carney, a recent graduate of VCU, said he doubts there is much of a price difference between private plans and VCU meal plans.
“We just heard about Elevate. I can’t imagine it’s any cheaper. We barely know anything about it — the VCU meal plan is better for freshmen if they do not know what’s going on, and it also makes financial aid easier,” Carney said.
