K
ktq22
Guest
I was recently hired at a university and told that I would be able to enroll in classes under a certain program and have my tuition covered. I applied for and was accepted into a course that required a $500 deposit. I provided my credit card thinking that the university benefits office would eventually reimburse me (as my coworkers/the benefits website told me). However, after I had been accepted into the program and began filing my paperwork with the benefits office, I was told that the program I was attempting to get my tuition covered by had been discontinued as of yesterday (there is no information on their website indicating this policy change.) The Director of Benefits tells me that I cannot enroll in the course and have my tuition covered.
Because of this, I decided to withdraw my enrollment, only to be told that the $500 deposit is nonrefundable. I tell them that it does not state anywhere on their application/payment page that the deposit is nonrefundable. I ask them to point out to me where the policy is stated and realize that the portion that refers to the deposit is entirely illegible on my computer. I forward the office a screenshot of my computer and argue that there is no way I could have known about the policy, which therefore invalidates my agreement. (There is no WAY I would have offered my credit card for a nonrefundable deposit before I had heard back from Benefits, however, I had to provide payment information because the application was due before I heard back from them). The office sent back an e-mail stating that they agree that the information is illegible, but that I should have called their office to verify that information before submitting my application and that cannot give me "special treatment."
Is there anything I can do? IMO, this isn't really a case of "special treatment," it's the fact that I proved (and they agreed!) that I did NOT know about the nonrefundable deposit or that the illegible paragraph had anything to do with the deposit policy, which in my mind, invalidates the agreement. Not only that, but I had a reasonable beleif that the Benefits Office would cover the charge under the program that was just recently discontinued with no prior warning to me. The charge is on my credit card and I plan to open a dispute with the credit card company, but would really prefer to resolve this with the university. Any suggestions?
Because of this, I decided to withdraw my enrollment, only to be told that the $500 deposit is nonrefundable. I tell them that it does not state anywhere on their application/payment page that the deposit is nonrefundable. I ask them to point out to me where the policy is stated and realize that the portion that refers to the deposit is entirely illegible on my computer. I forward the office a screenshot of my computer and argue that there is no way I could have known about the policy, which therefore invalidates my agreement. (There is no WAY I would have offered my credit card for a nonrefundable deposit before I had heard back from Benefits, however, I had to provide payment information because the application was due before I heard back from them). The office sent back an e-mail stating that they agree that the information is illegible, but that I should have called their office to verify that information before submitting my application and that cannot give me "special treatment."
Is there anything I can do? IMO, this isn't really a case of "special treatment," it's the fact that I proved (and they agreed!) that I did NOT know about the nonrefundable deposit or that the illegible paragraph had anything to do with the deposit policy, which in my mind, invalidates the agreement. Not only that, but I had a reasonable beleif that the Benefits Office would cover the charge under the program that was just recently discontinued with no prior warning to me. The charge is on my credit card and I plan to open a dispute with the credit card company, but would really prefer to resolve this with the university. Any suggestions?