ClassTablet vs cash fees, receipt books and chasing dues by phone
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A receipt book is enough when you have few students, everyone pays cash and you collect it yourself. ClassTablet is the better fit with many batches, several teachers or fees paid at an office: monthly bills and due reminders go out on their own, and students can pay by bKash, Nagad or card through SSLCommerz.
In coaching centres and many schools the monthly fee still arrives in cash. A receipt book at the office, a register of who has paid, and from mid-month a round of phone calls to parents. It works, but it eats time, and if the receipt book goes missing so does the record.
ClassTablet and manual fee collection compared, job by job
| Job | ClassTablet | manual fee collection |
|---|---|---|
| Raise the monthly bills | YesEach classroom's students are billed on the 1st of every month. | PartlyRule a new month's columns in the register by hand. |
| Chase unpaid fees | YesStudents unpaid on the 15th, or still unpaid on the 5th of the next month, get a message in their inbox and by push. | NoSomeone at the office phones down the list. |
| Take fees online | YesWith online payment on, students pay the month's fee by bKash, Nagad, Rocket or card through SSLCommerz. The same month cannot be paid twice through the gateway. | NoMoney arrives in hand or on a personal bKash number and is matched up later. |
| Match payments sent to your own bKash number | YesShow your institution's payment numbers and QR codes. Students submit a payment with a receipt photo; teachers approve, reject or flag it. | PartlyScreenshots arrive on Messenger and are matched against the register by hand. |
| See who owes what at a glance | YesA due list per classroom, and every payment across the institution on one page. | PartlyTurn the pages and count, harder still with several registers. |
| Let students check their own dues | YesStudents see which months are unpaid in their own account. | NoThey have to come to the office or phone to ask. |
| Take cash | PartlyFor cash, a teacher or admin marks the payment by hand. ClassTablet never touches the money. | YesTaking cash and writing a receipt is what this method does. |
What ClassTablet does automatically
Automation
Monthly bills
On the morning of the 1st, ClassTablet creates the month's bill for the students of every active classroom, using the fee set for that classroom.
Automation
Due and overdue messages
A student with an unpaid bill on the 15th gets a reminder, and if it is still unpaid on the 5th of the next month an overdue notice, in their inbox and as a push notification.
Automation
Online payments reconciled
When SSLCommerz confirms a payment, that month is marked paid on its own, and stuck transactions are rechecked regularly. Nobody matches screenshots.
When manual fee collection is enough
A receipt book and cash are enough when:
- You have few students and they all pay in person at the start of the month.
- You collect the money yourself and account to nobody else.
- Unpaid fees are rare, so there is almost no chasing.
- Parents prefer not to pay online.
How to move over
- 1
Set each classroom's fee
Enter the monthly fee for every classroom. Bills are created automatically from the 1st of the next month, and a teacher can also raise them by hand.
- 2
Choose how you take money
The admin decides whether the online gateway is on, or whether money goes to the institution's own bKash or bank number with receipts checked. Classrooms can follow their own rule.
- 3
Carry over this month
From the receipt book, mark this month's payers as paid by hand, many at once. Everyone else gets reminders on their own.
Frequently asked questions
Can students pay by bKash or Nagad?
With online payment on, students go to the SSLCommerz payment page and choose bKash, Nagad, Rocket or a card. If you prefer, take money on your own number and check receipts instead.
Is there a charge for online payments?
There is a gateway fee. Depending on the institution's setting, it is either added to the student's payment or absorbed by the institution. Talk to us for the current rate.
Do due-fee reminders reach parents by SMS?
The automatic reminders go to the student's ClassTablet inbox and as push notifications. An admin can send parents an SMS themselves; SMS credits are separate.
What do I do when someone pays cash?
After taking the cash, a teacher or admin marks that student's payment as paid. The due list stays correct and the student stops getting reminders.