Chapter 2 - 4

04 Service Encounter

Listen to a conversation between a student and a university employee. Fill in the diagram with the information that you hear.

W: Hi, may I help you?

M: Hi, I’m here to ask about meal plans.

W: Sure. What are you looking for?

M: Well, I’m thinking that I should probably change my meal plan.

W: OK, what meal plan are you on right now?

M: The twenty-meals-a-week one. But I’d definitely like to get something smaller, since I’m always missing my meals, and I end up wasting lots of money.

W: Well, we have the fourteen-meals-a-week, and the ten-meals-a-week and the seven-meals-a-week plans available.

M: How much are those compared to the $3,000 that I’m paying for the twenty-meals plan?

W: Let me look this up… OK, so it’s $2,700 per year for the fourteen, $2,500 for the ten, and $2,400 for the seven. I’m sure you can see that the twenty-meal-plan is the best deal.

M: Well, considering that I really only average about ten meals a week with my hectic schedule. I’m going to get that one.

W: OK, so you’d like to downgrade to ten meals a week? I can arrange that for you. Let me put it into the system. Done.

M: That was quick.

W: Yep. Anything else I can do for you today?

M: Well, yeah. Actually, I’m still concerned about the meals that have been wasted and I’m sure will still be wasted−even with the new meal plan−just because of the way my schedule varies and changes unexpectedly.

I mean, what if one week, I only managed to make it to three meals, and the following week, I find that I actually want fourteen?

I just wish that there was another system that was more flexible.

W: OK, I understand your dilemma. You know, you could actually go off of a meal plan entirely, and purchase something called “Meal Points,” which you can use at the various establishments to buy snack foods, and even to buy individual meals at the dining facility.

M: really? I can do that?

W: Sure. And also, when you purchase “Meal Points,” you’ll be buying a dollar for eighty cents.

M: Huh? What does that mean?

W: Let’s say you’d like to buy one hundred dollars worth of meal points−remember, you can use them to buy practically any kind of food you’d like around campus−you’ll get them for eighty dollars.

M: Hmm, so it’s like getting a twenty percent discount. Not bad…

W: This way, you won’t have to feel like you’re wasting any of your meals.

M: That’s a relief.

1) Which of the following is true of the student’s initial meal plan?

2) Why does the student want to change his meal plan?

3) According to the discussion, what are “Meal Points?”