Office of Student Financial Services

Authorized users

One of the most common ways to satisfy your account is to go online and pay by credit card/ACH through your myMCLA Portal. However, if someone besides you wants to pay your student bill online, they will need to be added as an authorized user. By adding them as an authorized user, the individual gets their own account to log in and make payments with.

Please know that adding someone as an authorized user is not the same as completing our Student Financial Services FERPA form. The Student Financial Services FERPA form allows us to discuss information on your account with someone besides you. The authorized user form allows partial access to make payments and/or view account history.

If someone is going to pay your bill AND may want to call us to ask questions about it, it is recommended that you add them on your FERPA form AND add them as an authorized user.

Authorized users can log in with their credentials below.

Authorized User: Pay Online


How To Add or Remove An authorized User

  1. While logged into the myMCLA Portal, you must go to the Bill Payment Page. (The Bill Payment Page can also be accessed while on the myMCLA Portal under the Student Academics drop down menu and by clicking Pay Your Bill.)
  2. When on the Bill Payment page, navigate to the right side of the page and look for the My Profile Setup section. In this section, click the link that says Authorized Users.
    A screenshot of the "My Profile Setup" section is shown. The top link, "Authorized Users" is highlighted in gray. The remaining links, which include "Personal Profile," "Payment Profile," and "Security Settings" are listed below it.
  3. Once in the Authorized Users section, it will show you any currently authorized users you may have. Click the Add Authorized User link.The screenshot shows the "Authorized Users" section with two tabs: "Authorized Users" and "Add Authorized Users." A red circle is drawn around the "Add Authorized Users" section to draw attention to it. The "Authorized User" tab is greyed out as it is the current tab the page loaded on. Below, a yellow box reads "No authorized user has access to your account information."
  4. Enter the valid email address of your new authorized user you would like to add, then select "Yes" or "No" to the question about payment history and account activity.  (Payment history and account history includes tuition and fee charges, room and board, fines, financial aid, deposits, and payments toward the account. By selecting "Yes," the authorized user would be able to see all of this. By selecting "No," the authorized user would only be able to see the remaining balance owed to MCLA.)A screenshot of the "Add Authorized User" tab is shown. A yellow shaded box states, "You can give others (parents, employers, etc.) the ability to access your account information. In compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), your student financial records may not be shared with a third party without your written consent. Adding an authorized user is your written consent that an individual may view your account information and make payments on your behalf. Please note that authorized users DO NOT have access to your stored payment methods, academic records, or other personal information." Below the yellow shaded box, the form asks for two things. The first thing is, "email address of the authorized user," which can be entered to the right. The second thing is a question, which states, "Would you like to allow this person to view your payment history and account activity?" To the right, you can answer "yes" or "no", but "yes" is prefilled.
  5. Submit the agreement to add the authorized user by reviewing the information, selecting "I Agree," then hitting "Continue". You have successfully added someone as an authorized user.A screenshot of the Agreement to Add Authorized User is shown. The example screenshot which uses the Student Accounts email as an example reads, "I hereby authorize Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts to grant StudentAccounts@mcla.edu partial access to my accounts, including ability to view my payment history and/or make payments accordingly. My payment methods, billing statements, and credit card and/or checking account information will remain confidential and hidden from all other users. I understand that I am still primarily responsible for ensuring that all my accounts are paid on time and in full. This agreement is dated 17-Nov-2020 4:22:55 PM EST. For fraud detection purposes, your internet address has been logged: 76.191.57.254 at 17-Nov-2020 4:22:55 PM EST Any false information entered hereon constitutes as fraud and subjects the party entering same to felony prosecution under both Federal and State laws of the United States. Violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Please check the box below to agree to the terms and continue." Below this text, there is a box that says "I Agree" which the user would need to check. Below that are three buttons which read "Cancel," "Print Agreement" and "Continue."
  6. Tell your new authorized user to check their email. They will receive two emails from us, one of which includes a temporary password they must use. They will select a new password upon first login and will complete their profile. Once they complete their profile, you will see their name listed next to the email address in the Authorized User tab. This authorized user can log in as long as you continue to grant them access. The authorized user can log in with their information here.

  7. To remove or change access of an authorized user, you can access the Authorized User section and click the button under the Action section next to their email address. From here, you can edit access to account/payment history, delete them as an authorized user, or show the authorized user agreement.A screenshot of the authorized user page is shown. It shows an example email address an authorized user. Under the action section next to that email address, there is a button which is clicked and circled in red to draw attention to it. Three links rest inside, which include, "edit," "delete," and "show agreement."

Questions? Contact us!

If you are having any difficulty adding someone as an authorized user, contact us at StudentAccounts@mcla.edu or 413.662.5230.