Collecting funds on behalf of the Institute is a complex task with many moving parts. In addition to billing and collecting, the Accounts Receivable team tracks the inflow of payments from many sources, creates invoices and bills in foreign currencies, and sends out dunning letters for overdue payments. The team closes out receivables for the Institute and ensures MIT’s compliance with Massachusetts collection laws.
While the Accounts Receivable team does not manage the actual billing for tuition, it does close the books each year on tuition as a receivable. The team handles billing for a diverse portfolio of entities including Endicott House, MIT Libraries Document Services, the Office of Major Agreements, the Deshpande Center, the Broad Institute, and many others.
AR works directly with Bank of America—MIT’s primary bank—and sets up individual groups who handle cash or checks to make deposits at local branches in the Stratton Student Center (W20), or at 92 Ames Street in Kendall Square.
This team is also responsible for handling domestic and foreign wire transfers, Automated Clearing House (ACH), and Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) payments sent to MIT. They are sometimes called upon to perform a certain amount of detective work, tracking down unidentified payments—checks or wire transfers that arrive at MIT without sufficient documentation—and crediting the correct cost object.
The Accounts Receivable team is charged with knowing—at any given moment—exactly how much is owed to the Institute as a whole. Timely payments and accurate information help VPF’s Treasury and Planning team to effectively manage cash flow, which in turn supports MIT’s overall financial strength.