Can I bring a guest into the dining hall?

Students and employees with meal plans may bring guests into The Commons. All you have to do is swipe your ID card for each of the people you are bringing with you.

Students and employees may NOT bring guests in on a 5-Day or 7-Day Unlimited plan.

Can financial aid pay for my meal plan?

Certain types of financial aid may be applied to board expenses (this is how meal plans are classified). Students are urged to be proactive in working with the Office of Student Financial Aid to secure aid that can be used for board expenses.

Can I be exempted from the meal plan requirements?

Meal plan exemption request forms are accepted on the basis of pre-existing financial and medical circumstances only. Please note: Students who submit an exemption request for financial reasons MUST have a FAFSA on file with Kennesaw State University. Contact the Office of Financial Aid for more information about your FAFSA. Exemption Request forms can be found on the Meal Plans page. Note that applying for an exemption is not a guarantee that it will be approved.

Why is a required meal plan necessary?

Meal plans are required for a few different reasons. First, as stated by the Student Government Association (SGA) in their meal plan recommendations, we believe the addition of a meal plan and dining hall at KSU will enhance the quality of campus life and increase student involvement on campus. Second, based on funding restrictions, the State of Georgia does not provide funding for auxiliary enterprises, which includes the construction of The Commons. The combination of these factors led the Cabinet to approve the existing meal plan requirements, which became effective in Fall 2009.

What if I am in a program where I take little or no courses on campus?

We are aware there are a number of students at KSU who are engaged in experiential learning (a few examples: TOSS, student teaching, full-time internships, study abroad, and designated Web Learners). Designated Web Learners, students in study abroad courses, and students in TOSS and student teaching will be automatically exempted from their meal plan requirement. Students in internship programs must notify Culinary Services of their internship and, in order to be exempted, the student must be a full-time intern (at least 12 credit hours). Part-time internships are not exempted.

How do I know which plan I'm required to purhcase?

All requirements can be found on the Meal Plans page. All students with fewer than 30 earned credit hours are considered first-year students.

What are the unlimited plans and how do they work?

Culinary Services offers two unlimited plans as upgrade options, a 5-Day and a 7-Day Unlimited. The 5-Day allows the user an unlimited amount of entries for any combination of five days during each week of the semester. These days can change week to week. The 7-Day plan allows the user an unlimited number of entries seven days a week during the entire semester.

Are JEHP students required to purchase a meal plan?

Full-time JEHP (Joint Enrollment Honors Program) students who commute to classes at KSU are not required to purchase a meal plan. Any JEHP students residing in on-campus housing will be required to participate at the first-year student level. JEHP students who are not required to participate are welcome to do so on a voluntary basis.

I have a food allergy or dietary preference. Can you accommodate me?

We are able to accommodate for a variety of food-related allergies and preferences. We do realize, however, that there are some students with severe medical restrictions that we cannot accommodate for. For this reason, we have the Exemption Request process in place.

What is the "Food Restricted" account?

The Food Restricted account is a special account available only to KSU Students, and is accessed with the KSU ID card. Funds in this account can be used to purchase food at any of the retail venues operated by Culinary Services (see our Retail page for more information). Students using the Food Restricted account are exempt from sales tax on the food they purchase on campus, saving them 6%. Funds can be loaded to this account via the K-Cash Manager website.

I am a faculty/staff member or guest. Can I use Food Restricted dollars?

The Food Restricted account is reserved only for KSU Student use and is not accessible to faculty, staff, or guests of KSU.

How do I purchase my meal plan?

The minimum required meal plan will automatically be added to the students' Owl Express account when they register for courses. Payment is due with tuition and fees and students should NOT attempt to purchase their required meal plan on the K-Cash Manager website, as this will not update your Owl Express account to reflect payment.

How do I upgrade to a larger meal plan?

Students wishing to upgrade to a larger plan should fill out the Meal Plan Change Request form. It is extremely important that all ugrade requests be received in the Meal Plan Office (TC 1025) by 5:00pm on the last day of Add/Drop each semester, or they WILL NOT be posted to your student account. After Add/Drop is over, students may purchase additional blocks of meals via the K-Cash Manager (this may be done at any point during the semester).

Will my meal plan carry over to the next semester?

Meal plans are valid for only one semester and will not carry to the following semester. Any unused meals will expire at the end of each semester.

How do I apply for a job with Culinary Services?

All employment with Culinary Services is done through Sodexo, our food service management company. We are currently not hiring, but will be sporadically throughout each semester. We have a staff of over 200 people on KSU's campus, which vary from working in our retail venues to working in The Commons.