Paying Student Accounts
Most common questions about student accounts
Why can't I get information on my student's account when I'm making the payments?
It's because of a little thing called FERPA, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, which is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. Under this law, in Higher Ed. a student's information belongs to the student only, and cannot be shared with anyone else (including a parent) without the student's explicit permission. This is a federal law and not a policy specific to Cornell.
Your student can authorize you to receive information through their Student Information Sharingonline form (this requires Cornell login credentials to access the page).
What payment options do you have and when are payments due?
We offer two payment options each semester. 1-Single Semester Payment where you would pay the full amount due for the semester charges (tuition, 2 required fees, room, & board). This payment is due one week before the start of the semester. 2-Our 5-month payment plan where your account balance will be paid over five months. Each installment is due on the first business day of each month (August 1 - December 1 for fall, and January 3 - May 1 for spring). If not using the single semester payment option for a semester, you would need to set up the 5-month payment plan.
How do I make a payment?
Your student will first need to grant you access to our online payment system, CashNet. It's a quick and easy process for your student. Instructions can be found on our Payment Instructions and Deadlines page.
Once your student has granted you access to their CashNet account, you will receive an automated email with your own login information and the CashNet link for parents.
How do I set up a payment plan?
Once your student has granted you access to their CashNet account and you've received your own login information, you can find details on our 5-month payment plan as well as instructions for setting up the plan on our Payment Instructions and Deadlines page, under Payment Option #2.
Why don't I see all of my student's aid or outside scholarships on the account yet?
If you're not seeing all of your student's financial aid on their account yet, it could be that the Financial Assistance Office has not received all of the required documents or that loans have not yet been submitted to the college. Outside scholarships are applied to a student's account once we receive the funds. So, if you're not seeing these things on your student's account yet, you may want to have your student check on their missing documents or with the scholarship agency to keep things moving along.
Do you still have questions?
If your student has authorized you to have access to their account questions, we will be happy to help. Contact the student accounts team at studentaccounts@cornellcollege.edu or call 319.895.4593 from 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday - Friday.