The Hidden Institutional Cost Traditional account-recovery methods, manual letters, outreach by student workers, spreadsheets, may feel familiar, but they come with real costs: • Staff exhaustion: chasing balances consumes time better spent on proactive retention. • Risk exposure from student-led outreach: some institutions have turned to student workers to manage balance calls and emails. While well-intentioned, this approach introduces serious risks including confidentiality breaches, inconsistent messaging, and compliance liabilities. What may seem like a cost-saving measure can inadvertently create privacy violations and reputational harm.
The Administrative Cost of Compassion Delayed
Behind every overdue balance is a staff stretched thin by manual work and missing connections.
52%
of instituations report
growing past due A/R
86%
rely on
• Data inaccuracies: multiple systems and spreadsheets invite errors.
manual pre-collections
• Damaged relationships: punitive tactics such as class drops or third- party collections can permanently alienate students.
74%
staff spend up to half their time on
When unpaid balances become disciplinary rather than educational moments, institutions lose trust, reputation, and future tuition streams.
past due recovery
5
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