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Guide 07 · Quick start

Your first day as a bursar

A fast path to collecting fees on day one. Sign in, record a payment at the collections desk, hand over the receipt, see who still owes, and close the day with a cash-up — the whole loop in five steps.

finance.simusim.com Bursar: phone + PIN · Admin: email ~8 min

§ 01Sign in to Finance

Bursars sign in through the Parent or Teacher door with a phone number and PIN; school admins use their email. You land on the Finance dashboard — collection totals for today, this week, and this month, plus alert tiles for what needs attention.

The Finance dashboard: collection totals for today, this week, and this month, an accounts-receivable summary, pending-approval and recent-activity tiles.
Fig.Your home base. The dashboard shows today's takings and the tiles that need attention.

§ 02Find a student & record a payment

A parent arrives at the office with money. Open Collections — the everyday screen — and work through three steps:

  1. Step 1 — Find student. Type a name; pick the student from the results.
  2. Step 2 — Select invoices, then press Continue to payment →. (No outstanding invoices? The button reads Record prepayment and the money sits as credit.)
  3. Step 3 — Record payment. Enter the Amount (GHS) and pick the Payment method — Cash, Bank transfer, Mobile money, or Cheque — then press Record payment.
The collections desk mid-flow: a student picked in Step 1, outstanding invoices ticked in Step 2, and the Step 3 payment panel with an Amount (GHS) field and a Cash/Bank transfer/Mobile money/Cheque method picker.
Fig.Find → select → record. One minute per parent at the desk.

§ 03Hand over the receipt

You see “Payment recorded” and the receipt PDF downloads automatically. Print it or WhatsApp it to the parent, then press Record another payment for the next person in line.

The payment-recorded confirmation showing a numbered receipt and amount, with the receipt PDF downloading and a Record another payment button.
Fig.The receipt downloads itself. Hand it over, then take the next payment.

§ 04Check who owes

Open Debtors to see every outstanding balance, the promises due, and a way to send a reminder SMS to the families who are behind.

The debtors view: a list of students with outstanding balances, promised-payment dates, and a send-reminder-SMS action.
Fig.Outstanding balances and promises due, with a reminder SMS a click away.

§ 05Close the day with a cash-up

Open Cash-up and press Open session. Count the cash into the denomination grid, then press Submit cash-up — it goes to an admin for review. The day's books are reconciled.

The cash-up screen: an open session, a denomination grid for counting notes and coins, the system-expected total, and a Submit cash-up button.
Fig.Count into the grid; submit for the admin to review and close the day.
Go deeper That's the everyday loop. For the full walkthrough — allocation rules, prepayments, mobile-money networks, and the cash-up reconciliation in detail — see Collecting fees & cash-up.

Up nextRelated guides

TutorialCollecting fees & cash-up → ReferenceFinance reference → TutorialChasing arrears →
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