COMMODORE CARD OFFICE
- • Commodore Card Home
- • First-YearStudents
- • Students
- • Faculty/Staff
- • Parents
- • Contact Us
- • Card Terms & Conditions
QUICK LINKS
- • Add Commodore Cash
- • Purchase Meals
- • Account Activity and Balance
- • Card Office Location
- • Student Account Form
- • Vanderbilt Dining
- • Taste of Nashville
Commodore Card Office
184 Sarratt Student Center
Nashville, TN 37240
(615) 322-2273
(800) 632-0998
Thank you for visiting our Parents Section. While this web site is primarily designed for your student’s use, we want to be sure that your debit spending questions are addressed. If you do not find an answer to your question below, or if an answer needs additional clarification, please do not hesitate to contact us. The Commodore Card Office staff looks forward to assisting you.
Most Common Parental Questions:
What is the process for my student to get their Commodore Card?
What debit spending options does Vanderbilt offer?
What are my student’s meal plan options?
How can my student add funds to their Commodore Card?
How and when can my student make a change to their debit spending funds or meal plan?
Can my student remove cash from their Commodore Card?
How can I see my student’s debit spending activity?
What is the process for my student to get their Commodore Card?
The Commodore Card is used for identification, access to residence halls, academic buildings and sporting events, and is used as a debit card for meal plans and other purchases both on and off campus. Commodore Cards for new students are made in advance of fall move-in to minimize inconveniencing students with long lines and delays.
Vanderbilt contracts Magnolia Press Publications to collect first year students’ photos for the Commodore Card in conjunction with the Newcomer project. The Newcomer is the University’s annual publication of photos and biographical information about the new student class.
Each new student will receive a request by mail in May to submit a photo to be used for the Commodore Card and the Newcomer. Click here to submit your photo. The deadline to mail or uploaded online with is June 16, 2009.
Photos should include a clear head & shoulders pose, with no hats or sunglasses. Any size print is acceptable for mail submission. Photos submitted online should be saved as a file size between 64KB to 512KB. Online submission will be active by May 15, 2009 and then closed July 15, 2009.
Your student will pick up their Commodore Card at the Commodore Card Office when they arrive on campus during move-in weekend August 22, 2009. The office will open Saturday at 8:00am. If they are unable to obtain their card during move-in, the Commodore Card Office will be open during its normal business hours, which are: 8:30am to 4:00pm, Monday through Friday. Need directions?
What debit spending options does Vanderbilt offer?
A Vanderbilt debit spending account functions
in much the same way as a bank debit card. Funds are added to a debit spending
account, which can be used at a number of campus
locations to purchase various products and services. When a purchase
is made using the Commodore Card, funds are automatically deducted from the
debit account balance.
Vanderbilt offers students two types of debit spending accounts:
- Commodore Cash can be used anywhere on campus where the Commodore Card is accepted for payment, which includes food and non-food purchases. Commodore Cash balances are carried over from semester-to-semester until your student graduates.
- Meal Money is available only to meal plan participants and is used for food purchases. Meal Money must be depleted by the end of each spring semester as it is a “use it or lose it” plan. If a meal plan is canceled or removed during a semester, Meal Money is forfeited.
Differences between Commodore Cash and Meal Money
Commodore Cash |
Meal Money |
No meal plan required |
Meal plan required |
Can be used for food and non-food purchases |
Can be used for food purchases only |
Can be used on campus only |
Can be used at on and off campus eateries |
Unused balance can be carried over year-to-year |
Unused balance can not be carried over year-to-year (“Use it or lose it”) |
Purchases are taxable |
Purchases are non-taxable except for off-campus purchases |
What are my student’s meal plan options?
Meal Plan options and details can be viewed at the Vanderbilt Dining website.
How can my student add funds to their Commodore Card?
There are three ways in which funds can be added to your student’s Commodore Card:
- Your student may add funds to their Commodore Card online and the amount will be charged to your next Student Account billing statement (A Student Account Agreement form must first be on file with the Office of Student Accounts for funds to be added online). If your student has given you Guest Access, you may also add funds to their account.
- The Commodore Card accepts personal checks made payable to Vanderbilt University. They should be mailed to:
Commodore Card Office
184 Sarratt Student Center
Nashville, TN 37240
Please be sure to include your student’s name, last four digits of their social security number, and the debit spending plan to which funds are to be added (i.e. Commodore Cash or Meal Money).
- Your student may come to the Commodore Card Office to add funds via check or cash (We do not accept cash transactions of more than $20.00 per day).
How and when can my student make a change to their debit spending funds or meal plan?
Your student may make changes to their Commodore Cash and/or meal plan selections online during the housing selection process that begins on February 8, 2009 and ends on July 15, 2009. Selections made during this timeframe will be billed to your student account and appear on your August 1st billing statement.
If a Commodore Cash selection is not made as part of the housing selection process (which will be billed along with tuition and fees), your student will incur a $35.00 deferred payment fee if additions are made between July 16, 2009 and September 15, 2009. You may add by check at any time without incurring a fee.
Can my student remove cash from their Commodore Card?
No. However, funds can be transferred from Commodore Cash to the Office of Student Accounts. No transfers or refunds may be made from Meal Money.
How can I see my student’s debit spending activity?
There are three ways in which to view your student’s spending activity:
- You may access your student’s Commodore Card account through this web site. To gain access to your student’s Commodore Card account, your student simply needs to request "Guest Access" for you by selecting the Give Guest Access to Your Commodore Card link on this site. Once the request has been made, you will receive a password and you will use your email address as a VUNet ID log-on.
Once you receive your access instructions, you may view your student's spending activity and account balance, add funds to their account, and report a lost card.
- You may request a transaction report from your student.
- If you are the account guarantor on the Student Account Agreement form,
the Commodore Card Office will supply you with the desired information. You
may contact the Commodore Card Office at
(800) 632-0998 or commodorecard@vanderbilt.edu.
Card Office
Hours of Operation:
Monday-Friday
8:30 a.m-4:00 p.m.