Meal Plan 101

First things first, what is a meal plan? A meal plan is what you purchase while attending a college or university that allows you to eat in the residential dining facilities. These meal plans usually include meal swipes and dining dollars. Meal swipes are what you use to eat in The Food Hall and Dining Dollars are used like cash in all retail dining facilities, including concessions at all home sporting events! Typically, there are different options to choose from so as to be able to pick a plan that works best for your lifestyle. Students can have a difficult time deciding which meal plan is best for them, however, so I’m here to help you out!

What meal plans do we offer?

If you’re a first year student, you have 3 options to choose from. There is the 10 Meal Plan, 14 Meal Plan, and 19 Meal Plan. The number in the meal plan correlates to how many meal swipes you get each week. When deciding which meal plan is best for you, think about how often you plan on staying in your dorm. Do you plan on going back home every weekend or will you be staying on campus? Are you an athlete? Are you a big breakfast eater or do you prefer a small, quick meal in the morning? Do you want to cook meals for yourself in the dorm kitchenette or do you want to avoid cooking at all costs? When thinking about what your semester will look like and your personal lifestyle, this is how we like to break our meal plans down:

10 Meal Plan: 2 meals a day, Monday-Friday

14 Meal Plan: 2 meals a day, Sunday-Saturday or 3 meals a day Monday-Thursday & 2 meals on Friday

19 Meal Plan: 3 meals a day Monday-Friday & 2 meals a day Saturday-Sunday

For those of you who are upperclassmen or commuters, you have a wider variety of options to choose from. Along with the meal plans mentioned above, there is the Super Plus Meal Plan, Mustang 20+, Mustang 50, Mustang 50+, Mustang 75+, and Dining Dollar Only plans. These plans are slightly different than the ones listed above as the numbers on these plans correlate with the number of meal swipes you get each semester rather than each week. The same semester breakdown and lifestyle choices apply as above. The more you think you’ll be on and around campus, the more meals allowed by your meal plan is for the better.

What about dining dollars?

Dining dollars are included in most of the meal plan options available and are a great option to use if you’ve run out of meal swipes or don’t exactly feel like eating in The Food Hall. Dining dollars are used just like cash in all of our retail locations which includes The Food Hall, State Street Subs, The C-Store, The Coffee House, and concessions at all home sporting events! If you’ve run out of meals for the week or semester but are still hungry, use dining dollars to pay for an extra meal. Want a caffeine boost to help stay awake in class, stop by The Coffee House and buy yourself a pick me up. Not feeling any of the options in The Food Hall, run up to State Street Subs and grab yourself a sub or salad. I think you get the point. If you run out of dining dollars, you can always add more in $25 increments. Remember, though, dining dollars roll over from fall semester to spring semester but any unused money remaining at the end of spring semester expires.

Why purchase a meal plan?

Well, if you live on campus it’s required. If you live off campus, it saves you a lot of time and money. Besides that, there are many benefits to having a meal plan! You never have to worry about what you’re going to cook that night since everything is already planned out and prepared for you. There’s no wondering how you’re going to pay for groceries. Since your meal plan can be included in your tuition if you purchase it early enough, you have the ease of mind in knowing you’ll always have an option for a meal. Don’t worry about losing your parking spot. If you have time for a meal between classes, instead of driving to another location to eat, just grab a meal at one of the locations on campus and save yourself gas money and the headache of trying to find a spot to park after your lunch break. One of the best things about going to college is meeting new friends and socializing! When you have a meal plan, it gives you a variety of options for hangout spots! Grab dinner together in The Food Hall or stop in The C-Store and grab snacks for a study session or movie night.

Mustang Dining also hosts specials and events throughout the entire year. By having a meal plan, you can take advantage of these promotions at no extra cost to you! Take part in our teaching kitchens and learn new and exciting recipes. Have fun at our legacy events in The Food Hall like Throwback Thursday where we’ll be serving old time favorites or Travel Across the US where we’ll have foods from all across the country. While you’re enjoying your meal, you may be surprised with a Love, Chartwells table side pop-up where the chef will make you fresh guacamole. In our retail areas, we have Happy Hour at The Coffee House and Limited Time Offer’s at State Street Subs.

Having a meal plan is more than just having an option for food. It’s knowing that Chartwells wants you to succeed in your college career and the first step in that, is being well nourished and always having a place to go. We also know that college is about having fun and trying new things which is why we offer a variety of menu items and create different events for you to enjoy!

What if I’m still not sure?

We know that choosing the right meal plan for you can be a daunting process and that is why we are here to help! Head on over to www.dineoncampus.com/southwest to view the different meal plans in more detail. While you’re there, you’ll also find the contact information for the management team, who are always more than happy to help you out in selecting the right meal plan. In the end, if the meal plan you selected doesn’t seem to be working out for you, there’s always the option to change it. You can change your meal plan for the fall semester within the first 2 weeks of classes. If it’s after that time period, you can change your plan for the new semester the last week of fall semester and the first 2 weeks of spring semester.