Blog Post 4 - Transfer Pricing

If the Campus implemented a system where each student got an allocation of Illinibucks, it would definitely change the way the university system worked. If Illinibucks have the sole purpose of moving a student to the head of the line, there are very limited uses of this payment method since it is to create a system of gaining priority but not necessarily spending it for a physical result. This also implies that each student receives a set amount of Illinibucks for their time at the university that they must save and spend as they see best fit for the most optimal results of their time here.

The two ideas that come to my mind when thinking of the potential ways Illinibucks could be put to use are when picking housing and when picking classes. Freshman have to do their prior research and keep track of their time to choose their dorms and make sure they get the one they want before it fills up. That process is very stressful since it ends with where you are going to live for the first year of college. It determines the kinds of friends you will have, the quality of food options you have and the amenities that will be closest to your dorm. It puts a lot of pressure on prospective freshman as they are choosing where to live along with the stress of coming to college.

The idea of having a set amount of Illinibucks for each student for the course of four years or per year would create a sense of fairness in some ways but would be unfair to those who earn the right to move ahead of line. Illinibucks could be a great system for selecting dorm rooms because of all the other factors that matter in where you live. However, when selecting classes, this system has a few flaws. The reason some people have priority in choosing classes before others is because of scholarships, honors awards or age. Having Illinibucks be a standard system set for all students equally would be unfair to those who require priority to select classes. The way to fix this would be to have a set amount of Illinibucks given to all students and those who have academic awards that allow them to have priority now would obtain more Illinibucks. The way to spend this currency would be an online system that requires every student's ID number and name on the existing online system we have for U of I students already. The way to assure no problems arising with having too low or too high prices is setting a limit on how many can be purchased or giving each students a set allocation of Illinibucks. This way financial background would factor into the level of fairness with this system.

Illinibucks could be a great use of transfer pricing within the university but would have to be carefully considered and have strict guidelines to be a fair system and an easy one to adopt. Whether its for picking dorm rooms or selecting classes, there are uses for this system and how it can be implemented.