Total up the value of your student ID. Besides being the key to your dorm, the currency for meal plans and the source of many discounts, UK student ID’s also have another useful feature. UK offers a debit program which essentially turns students ID’s into a debit card. The Plus Account is open to UK students, BCTC students and UK Faculty.

The Plus Account can be convenient for students who carry their ID’s all the time but rarely their credit card or wallets. For example, if a group of students is at a nail-biter football game and they want to celebrate a big win by going to Tolly Ho, they can use their ID’s to purchase food even if they didn’t bring their credit card. The program can also be a great tool for students on tight budgets because the money on their account can be used for essentials such as medicine and books, but can also be used for more recreational activities such as Collin’s Bowling Center.

Some benefits of the Plus Account include allowing students to purchase anything from food to prescriptions to books at the over 100 locations around Lexington that participate in the program. Other things students can purchase using their Plus Account include football tickets, a massage and drinks from the Coke machines across campus. Also, the Plus Account is the only way students can use campus printing.

Furthermore, unlike Flex, the money in a student’s account will roll over each year. While the items students can purchase are virtually endless, one thing they can’t buy with the account is alcohol and tobacco.

The minimum deposit for the Plus Accounts is 20 dollars online with a two dollar convenience fee and 20 dollars at the Student Account Services and Plus Account Office with no service fee. However, students can also use the DART machines located in the William T. Young Library, Little Library or Med Center Library which only take cash but there is no minimum deposit. Students can check the balance of their Plus Account through their myUK account under the Financials Tab.

New locations are constantly being added to the program and some of the newest participating restaurants include Qdoba on Euclid, DV8 Kitchen on S. Broadway and Columbia Steakhouse on N. Limestone. Every restaurant on campus accepts the Plus Account and many restaurants close to north campus also participate in the program. Signs with “UK Plus Account Accepted Here” are posted around Lexington to let students know which restaurants and realtors are a part of the program. A full list of participating locations can be found at http://www.uky.edu/plusaccount/participating-locations.

Plus Accounts give an additional value to student’s ID’s by allowing them the versatility to eat and purchase a variety of items around Lexington. By using their Plus Account, students will not only get more out of their ID’s but also their entire college experience.