Bursar

A bursar (derived from "", Latin for purse) is a professional financial administrator in a school or university. In the United States, bursars usually exist only at the level of higher education (4-year colleges and universities) or at private secondary schools. In Australia, Great Britain, and other countries, bursars are common at lower levels of education.

The Office of the Bursar is responsible for billing of student tuition accounts. This responsibility involves sending bills and making payment plans; the ultimate goal is to bring all student accounts to a "paid off" status. Bursars are not necessarily involved in the financial aid process. Bursars' duties vary from one institution to another. At many institutions, bursars deal only with student finances. At other institutions, bursars also deal with some faculty finance issues. Elsewhere, they also oversee accounts receivable, or the payments that the university receives from outside organizations for which it performs services. In some institutions, all money held by the institution is the bursar's responsibility. Some Bursars (in the UK for instance) also have responsibility for payroll, investments, facilities, IT, HR, Health and Safety and oversight of admin functions at an institution.

The Bursar Statement is also known as a tuition bill or a student account bill.

The bursar often reports to a comptroller. For example, Barnard College employs an Associate Comptroller–Bursar. In other cases, the bursar has the same level as the comptroller, and both report to the director or vice president of finance. Some universities in the United States still have a Director of Student Financial Services whose role is similar to that of a bursar. The University of Pennsylvania employs an associate vice president who essentially combines the role of a bursar (using the student financial services title) and that of a registrar.

Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels contain a character called "The Bursar". This character, like most other faculty members of Pratchett's Unseen University, is almost always referred to by his job title.

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