Three Universities Allow Students to Use Apple Products as Student ID
This week, Alabama, Duke and Oklahoma announced the integration of Apple products on campus which will allow students to use the Wallet app to pay for food and services and access on-campus buildings.
Students at the three universities can now access a variety of campus resources more quickly and efficiently. Student ID cards on a phone or Apple Watch open dorms, dining halls, libraries and fitness centers and pay for purchases anywhere that accepts a student ID. Apple users on campus can also enable Express Mode so that Touch ID or Face ID is not necessary to enter a building.
Apple announced the plan to use the Wallet app in universities in June at WWDC but Alabama, Duke and OU students will be the first to test Apple’s on-campus features.
The integration of Apple products in universities is a part of Jennifer Bailey’s initiative to “replace the physical wallet”. As Apple’s vice president of Internet services, Bailey considers the inclusion of student ID cards in Apple Pay is the next step towards Apple users’ “easy, convenient and secure experiences.”
Educational technology company Blackboard announced its involvement in on-campus contactless payment this summer as a collaboration with Apple to offer NFC-enabled contactless payment to give college students more convenience.
This week, David Marr, President of Blackboard Transact, said that the new payment system will help create “a student-centric environment” to support “the frictionless mobil experience” they come to expect. Blackboard also stated that universities will be able to manage all student mobile credentials to ensure campus security.
Apple and Blackboard partnered with other companies such as ASSA ABLOY which focuses on door-opening solutions and Allegion, a security provider.
Apple, Blackboard and their partners plan to expand contactless features in the next year. According to Apple, Johns Hopkins, Santa Clara and Temple universities will include Wallet capabilities by the end of the school year.
