About
Founded in 1636, Harvard University is one of the world’s most prestigious institutions, attracting students and professionals from every corner of the globe. Its reputation for academic excellence and global reach makes it a destination for learners seeking the highest standards of education and research.
Within Harvard, the Division of Continuing Education (DCE) serves lifelong learners through the Harvard Extension School and Harvard Summer School. With thousands of international students – many studying online during the academic year and a significant on-campus cohort each summer – DCE needed a payment experience that worked seamlessly for students wherever they are.
The Challenge
Before TransferMate was integrated with TouchNet, Harvard DCE found managing international student payments a complex, manual process. Harvard’s decentralized structure made international payments difficult to track, manually intensive to manage post, and often inaccurate due to wire fees and card costs.
“Trying to keep payments with students is super challenging. With wires, there isn’t a physical check to pass around – it’s just numbers. In a big, decentralized university, that was very hard to sort out,” said Michael Huddy, Director of Student Financial Services & Financial Aid at Harvard University, Division of Continuing Education.
For the finance team, the process was highly manual. International payments were sent directly to Harvard’s bank, and staff had to post each transaction into Banner by hand.
“We would have to post wire payments manually. Students would ask, ‘Did you get my $20,000?’ and until the money arrived and we posted it, there was no visibility for them,” Michael explained.
Fees and exchange-rate shortfalls also caused recurring issues.
“They’d still owe a balance because the wire came in short. The system would keep emailing them about $20 due – bad customer experience and more chasing for staff,” Michael said.
Credit cards weren’t an ideal alternative either. International card fees were expensive, and near payment deadlines, wire transfers were often too slow to meet cut-off dates.
“We’d tell students: you can do a wire, but near a deadline we can’t guarantee we’ll receive it in time. It wasn’t a great option,” Michael added.
International refunds were also complex and time-consuming, often taking days of back-and-forth with students and banks.
“Before TransferMate, international refunds were a huge obstacle. It could take weeks to process a single refund,” said Michael.
The Solution
Harvard DCE implemented the TransferMate integration within TouchNet Bill+Payment, bringing all international payments into one fully embedded, university-branded portal.
“The student goes to one spot – Bill+Payment – sees their balance, chooses TransferMate for international payment, and it posts to Banner just like a card payment,” Michael explained. “The seamless, automated workflow and data integrity were the big selling points.”
Students can now pay in their local currency, using local payment methods such as Alipay, UnionPay, or India-specific rails. Once received by TransferMate, payments are converted to USD and transferred directly to Harvard’s account, with full transparency throughout.
“Students can pay in their local currency. We’ve seen a high degree of accuracy, and when there’s ever a discrepancy, TransferMate support proactively reaches out with the scenario and asks how we want to proceed,” said Michael.
The integration has also improved operational visibility. With initiation data visible in TouchNet, DCE can see when a student has started a payment and avoid dropping them for non-payment while funds are in transit.
“On drop dates, if we see ‘initiated’ but not yet received, we hold the student – we know the payment is coming,” Michael said. “Reporting in TouchNet has improved and gives us the visibility to act.”
Refunds are also significantly easier. DCE currently processes TransferMate refunds through a simple upload file for payments originally made via TransferMate and plans to move to the fully automated TouchNet-integrated refunds soon.
“Once we run our processes, the refund happens quickly – a huge difference compared to before,” Michael noted.
The Results
The TransferMate integration with TouchNet has streamlined Harvard DCE’s international payment process for both students and staff.
For students, the experience is simpler and more transparent. Payments are made through one secure portal, in their local currency, with status updates available throughout the process.
“One or two days from initiation to posting is pretty amazing. It saves staff time and gives students a far better experience,” said Michael.
For staff, automation has removed the need for manual reconciliation, eliminated shortfall mismatches, and improved reporting across the payment cycle.
“Because the systems talk to each other, the student experience is so much better. That integration was the biggest efficiency for us,” Michael added.
The Final Word
“This is the greatest product ever. For us, the integration with TouchNet and Banner is the difference – payments post automatically, we have status visibility, and the student experience is seamless.”
Michael Huddy, Director of Student Financial Services, Harvard Division of Continuing Education
The views and opinions expressed in this case study are those of Michael Huddy in his personal capacity and do not represent the views of Harvard University, the Division of Continuing Education, or any of its officers.
