Buying Your Books, Part 4: Checking Out

It's the big day. "My Payment Plan" is available, and books can now be picked up via Financial Aid for the fall semester. In other words, the store is gonna be packed (thankfully, I'm off today! Yay for blogging!).

If you've read the first three parts in the "Buying Your Books" series, chances are you have just about all the info you need to know to purchase your books successfully. But there's one final step. Let's delve into the checkout process. Some parts that are commonly misinterpreted by students have been outlined in bold for clarity. The bookstore appreciates your making note of these so the checkout process can be as easy and painless as possible for everyone. =)

First and foremost, let us clarify that our in-stock textbooks are available for purchase year-round. However, financial aid is only available during a certain window, so if you're looking to pay with grants or loans, you can only do so during that window. Payments are processed via a service known as My Payment Plan (formerly known as e-Cashier), or "MyPay" for short. With it, you can charge your textbooks to your MyPay account, and the money will be deferred until a later date. Here's the rundown:

When you take your books up to the register for checkout, we'll first ask to see your SmartCard. This is solely so that we can identify you as an OTC student. It has nothing to do with charging your books. If you do not have a SmartCard, you must register for one before you may complete your purchase. If you have lost or forgotten your SmartCard, you will be granted one grace transaction and one only. We will look up your information, which will include the amount of financial aid you have available, when applicable (if you have intention of using financial aid and and your account shows no money in it, you will have to check with the Cashiers Office to see what the situation is, as we have no control over that). After that, it's your basic retail checkout, really. If you're using financial aid, we'll charge your account. If you're using cash, we'll give you back your change. If you're using debit, we'll swipe your card and have you sign the receipt. And if you're using a check, we'll need to see a state-issued photo ID, as well as write down your license number, phone number, and date of birth. Standard stuff.

And, that's it! Not too bad, huh? Now you have all that you need to start the semester. Hopefully this 4-part series has been beneficial in getting a look at how to purchase textbooks at the OTC Bookstore. Don't be afraid, now! Come and down and buy your books today! And as always, if you have any questions, please feel free to talk to any bookstore employee, or leave a blog comment. We'll see to it that you're taken care of.

The bookstore is certainly a hive of activity right now, but that's not the only place we bookstore employees are hard at work. We're currently buzzing about the campus, getting our textbook reservation program ready. And trust me, it's one doozy of a ride. But that's another story...