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UniSA Student Printing Allowance

This page has detailed information on the UniSA student printing allowance system which is used to manage printing from the centrally managed student printers in computer pools and computer barns.  An overview of the differences between your UniSA student printing allowance and your MONITOR print/photocopy account is available at Student Printing Facilities - Overview

Printing Allowance Increased for 2011

For 2011 student printing allowances are being increased from $78 to $100 for full-time students (i.e. study periods 2 and 5) while page charges are unchanged allowing you to print 28% more (up to 1428 printed sides if printed double-sided).

Printing Allowance Levels

For students with the same course load the UniSA printing allowance is the same for all undergraduate and postgraduate coursework students, regardless of School or mode of teaching (internal or external).  International students who are studying on-shore may receive an additional allowance because analysis has shown they have additional printing requirements relating to the fact they are away from their home country.

The amount of printing allowance you receive in each year is related to the number of Course Units for which you are enrolled in that year. You will receive a University funded initial base allowance of $12 plus an additional $11 for each 4.5 Course Units you enrol in for the year.  The base allowance will be credited to your printing allowance balance the day after you enrol or the first time you print (whichever comes first).  The Course Unit related amounts will be added each time you enrol in additional courses and will be credited to your balance within 1 week of your course load increasing. 

If you enrol in all your study period 5 courses at the beginning of the year you will not receive the study period 5 portion of your printing allowance until mid-April (170 days before the start of the study period).

A student enrolled full-time in study period 2 and study period 5 would receive a total of $100 for the year ($12 base allowance + $44 for courses in study period 2 + $44 for courses in study period 5). Students enrolled in additional courses (including those in other study periods) receive additional printing allowance up to a maximum of $144 for the year.

Those who need to print more are able to do so by paying to top up their printing allowance.

Page Charges

See Student Printing Facilities - Overview for page charges.

If you are a full time student (study periods 2 and 5) and print only on the General Purpose pools and Computer Barn printers your yearly printing allowance of $100 allows you to print up to 1428 page impressions (printed sides) if you print A4 monochrome double-sided. We estimate that over 85% of students will be able to complete the year without using all their University-funded printing allowance.

See the sections below on how Schools May Fund An Increase to Your Printing Allowance and How To Increase Your Own Printing Allowance to find out what you can do if your printing allowance runs out.

Who Does The Printing Allowance Apply To?

The printing allowance levels described on this page apply to all undergraduate and postgraduate coursework students.

PhD students and Masters by Research students will operate under the same conditions for printing as staff.  Their printing will not be limited by the printing allowance system but will be logged and billed to their school or unit.

What Happens If You Use All Your Printing Allowance?

If your printing balance is reduced to zero, you will not be able to use printers managed by the UniSA printing allowance system until you top up your printing allowance. 

See the section below to find out how to obtain or pay for additional printer access.

Schools May Fund An Increase To Your Printing Allowance

You can ask a staff member in your School about the possibility of your School funding extra printing allowance for you. Procedures have been put in place to permit Schools to fund printing allowance top-ups for individual students, students in specific courses and students in specific programs. An authorised manager from the School needs to fill out the form "School Funded Student Internet OR Printing Allowance".

How To Increase Your Printing Allowance

Log in to your personal account in myUniSA in the usual way (http://www.unisa.edu.au/myunisa/default.asp)...

Alternatively you can pay for additional printing allowance by visiting the Campus Central office on your campus. You will need to fill out the form "Application for Increased Student Internet OR Printing Allowance". If you pay by credit card you can fax the form to your nearest Campus Central office.

You should monitor your printing balance through myUniSA regularly.  If you allow your printing balance to fall to zero, you will not have access to printing again until your payment is registered in myUniSA.  This will often happen within an hour of payment but can take up to one working day under some circumstances.

Please note that UniSA partner institution (e.g. CELUSA, SAIBT and Le Cordon Bleu) students are not able to top up their printing allowance online and need to visit Campus Central to top up their allowance.

What Happens to Unused Printing Allowance?

Your university-funded printing allowance is provided for your printing in the same year (up to mid-December). Your printing allowance can not be transferred to your Internet allowance or to another student and unused University-funded allowance amounts are not carried over to the next year (you get a new printing allowance amount for the next year when you re-enrol).

If you increased your printing allowance from your own funds any unused student-funded printing allowance left at the end of the year will be carried over to your next year's printing allowance if you are still at UniSA.  However, if your are approaching the end of your studies at UniSA, be aware that printing allowance top-up amounts are not refundable so avoid paying in too much more than you expect to use.

Also note that the printing allowance "year" actually finishes in mid to late December (not December 31) after the completion of Study Periods 5 and 6.  A new base printing allowance of $12 is available at this time and Study Period 7 printing allowance amounts are re-applied by the first week of the following January.

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