Google Pay adds support for campus IDs, rolling out to 15 colleges

Mobile wallets are consolidating everything from credit/debit cards to tickets, badges, and other passes. Google Pay for Android now supports campus IDs for students and faculty alike.

The new capability was announced earlier this week by Transact, a company that offers management and payment solutions to schools. Transact Mobile Credential now allows campus IDs to be saved to the Google Pay app.

It can be used to access secure facilities like academic buildings and residence halls, while allowing for dining, laundry, vending, and retail payments. NFC-based, all students need to do is tap their Android phone to a compatible reader.

The initial launch will see 15 schools across the US support Google Pay campus IDs:

Arkansas State University, Chowan University, College of Coastal Georgia, Duke University, Georgetown University, Hamilton College, Johns Hopkins University, Marshall University, Mercer University, Roanoke College, St. Edward’s University, South Dakota State University, Temple University, The University of Alabama, and University of New Brunswick.

Schools are already installing and testing Google Pay campus IDs, with one university in Atlanta expecting full availability in the second quarter of 2020. Besides students, staff will also benefit from phone-based access.

Overall, it’s more secure than physical cards in that users are first required to authenticate and unlock their phones before physical access and payments are granted.

“We look forward to working with Transact to bring the speed and simplicity of Google Pay to campuses across the US,” said Ambarish Kenghe, Director of Product Management for Google Pay.

Thanks Alexis