Kdelaney

In reviewing the information on Meal Plans, among the options, I see these two listed (among other possibilities)

• Gold Plan - $1726 per semester. The Gold Plan features 19 all-you-care-to eat meals a week at the Sadler Center RFoc or the Commons Fresh Food Company; 3 meals a day Monday – Friday and 2 meals on Saturday and Sunday. If you would like to enjoy meal options at the Marketplace you may use one meal per meal zone in lieu of using your meal swipe at the all-you-care-to-eat locations. The Gold 19 Plan meals are set in meal zones and come with $150 Flex Points!
• Gold 14 - $1726 - per semster. The Gold 14 Plan features 14 all-you-care-to eat meals a week at the Sadler Center RFoC or the Commons Fresh Food Company with limited 3 meals per day, when offered, and 1 per meal period. If you would like to enjoy meal options at the Marketplace, you may use one meal per meal zone in lieu of using your meal swipe at the all-you-care-to-eat locations. The Gold 14 Plan meals are set in meal zones and come with $175 Flex Points.

So, these both cost the same amount. Is the amount of flex points listed here ($150 for Gold and $175 for Gold 14 PER SEMESTER AMOUNTS?)

If they are per semester amounts, why would you choose the Gold 14 plan (which I hear is popular). It seems all you get is 25 bucks more flex money per semester and lose 5 meals per week x 15 weeks in a semester = 75 meals lost.

Am I reading this correctly? You get 75 fewer meals with Gold 14 in a semeseter in exchange for $25 more in flex points??

Thanks for helping me understand this.

Here_to_Help

Those Flex amounts seem different than they have been in the past, although I thought along the same lines and got the Gold 19 plan (I did use some of those breakfasts, especially around midterm and exam time).

inchoative

Yeah, those Flex numbers seem higher than usual. I used to think like you do, that since they cost the same amount I might as well go with the Gold 19. Eventually, though, I realized that I just didn't eat enough meals to warrant the 19 plan (Lunch and Dinner M-F, Dinner on Weekends = 12 meals). That gave me 7 extra meals a week that I never needed, so I dropped down to the 14. I figured that as long as I was losing meals, I might as well get the extra Flex.

Datkid

They are per semester amounts. People pick the Gold 14 plan over the Gold 19 plan because after their first semester most people realize that they almost never wake up early enough to eat breakfast before their classes. Thus they end up eating, at the most 2 school meals a day. However, most people average well under 2 school meals a day because you often find your self preferring to use your flex points and eating Quizno's, Chick-fil-A, or Domino's instead, and occasionally (or often depending on where your dorm is) eating food from a place that accepts no meal plan option at all... aka WaWa.

Thus, for most freshmen, who can not pick the block meal plans, the Gold 14 is the better option. Because you're trading away meals that you wouldn't use anyways and get extra flex (though not nearly enough to compensate the price that you are charged per meal) in return.

Overall, if you think you will try to eat breakfast every morning, start with the Gold 19 plan and then if you realize you aren't using a large portion of your meals switch to Gold 14. A LOT of people I knew my freshman year switched from Gold 19 to Gold 14 after first semester. And then for sophomore year most people I knew switched to block meal plans.

javabytes87

Yes, you're reading it correctly. The s*** that Aramark gets away with is almost beyond comprehension.

You're giving up 75 meals for $25 in flex. I got a less than humorous response from the director of Dining Services when I pointed this out to him and asked if I could buy a meal for $.33 in Flex next time I ran one short. Just keep the 19 and go get a snack whenever you want it. You're held captive by the meal plan requirement and Aramark knows it, but it doesn't end there.

When you're an upperclassman, study the block plans closely. In many cases it has been cheaper to buy meals at the door than to buy a block meal plan of the lower amounts (60 or 90).

So basically if you want to eat on campus at all during your time here, Aramark makes it almost impossible/senseless to choose anything but one of their flagship plans.