It's that time of year again. With one eye on looming term deadlines, we keep another on our DBA balances. Well, at least I do. I make sure I spend every last cent of the $775 paid to Dartmouth Dining Services and hopefully not a cent more. As an economics major, I find the current dining system deeply offensive to the economics principles I hold dear.
Wait a minute, you might ask, "I thought economics is about choice, and isn't DDS all about choice?" Unfortunately, there is only partial truth in this. Economics is about free choice, but DDS is about enforced choice. Under the DDS system, you can choose to spend your money whichever way you like -- as long as you spend it. In other words, DDS doesn't care how you spend your $775 because you are not getting a single cent back anyway.
The current system is deeply flawed on several grounds. The basic problem is that there is no clear link between student spending and what the DDS system receives. Every time we spend 70 cents on a banana, DDS does not receive a single cent (most of the time). The funds that DDS receives come in two lumps. The first lump comes at the beginning of term when our parents sign those checks for our term bills. Assuming 3000 students on campus, at $775 per person, that's a tidy sum of over $2 million to pay for a couple of tons of the standard cut chicken filet that always finds its way into the list of daily specials. The second lump comes at the end of the term when our parents settle whatever DDS debts we incur.
What this means is that the magic figure we see flashing on the register screen every time we swipe our card is merely an accounting trick to help us keep track of our spending. There is no magic fairy sitting somewhere in Thayer Dining Hall funneling cash around the place. All that money is already sitting nicely in the DDS bank account.
Thus, there is no clear incentive for DDS to improve food quality or service. I'm not saying that current DDS food and service standards are bad, but they could be better. That first lump of payment is guaranteed. DDS could be serving up country fried chicken every day and still get that money. Or, DDS could be having theme dinners every weekend and still see the same amount coming in. Guess which route is easier.
Right now, the only way for DDS to raise revenue is if more students burst their DBA accounts. One theme dinner a term is not going to bring in the big bucks for DDS. The trick is to increase the second lump, but to raise that, DDS needs to be more aggressive and consistent in promoting itself than ever before.
At the same time, by adopting a fixed meal plan the College forces students into consumption patterns that may not be their own choice. By decree, students have to consume $775 worth of food in the dining halls. The fact that our parents are paying for it is moot. If the College does not make them pay for a meal plan, our parents would pass the money to us. If left to manage our own money, how many Dartmouth students would spend what they now spend on DDS?
Looking at the competition, the prospects for DDS looks grim. Most town restaurants offer lunch at prices no higher than DDS. A nice lunch at Jewel of India or Panda House would only set you back $5 or $6. The only reason I am not eating at these places more often is because I have $775 to spend in DDS. To choose a smaller meal plan is folly, since DDS levies a nice little service charge for that. This makes for some rather interesting economic analysis, suggesting that dining at DDS is such an unpleasant experience that students are willing to pay a fee to use less of it. The main benefit to eating at DDS is convenience. I only wish convenience were cheaper.
Finally, a fixed meal plans forces students into irrational spending. The usual way to kill DBA at the end of the term is to head for Topside and grab the first box of Poptarts or cookies you see. You are more willing to spend that sum of money flagrantly because you have no other choice. Consider, however, what would you do if that remaining $15.32 on your DBA account is returned to you in cold hard cash at the end of the term. Strawberry Poptarts or a nice dinner in town? It's your choice.
The College should free students from compulsory meal plans. We, not our parents or DDS, are the best managers of our own money. DDS needs to work harder for our dining dollars and not grow smug on guaranteed payments. We are the consumers here. The current system curtails student choice and artificially suppresses the development of eating establishments in town -- more restaurants would open up in Hanover if that $2 million termly food money is free to circulate. But that's beyond the scope of this column. Like I said: No more Poptarts, I just want my money back.
