Apple Adds 12 Colleges To Contactless ID/Payment Program

Apple has added 12 new universities to its contactless student ID program, which allows students to pay for things and gain entry to locked doors, as well as act as an alternative to a physical ID card.

More than 100,000 college students across the country will be able to keep their ID on an iPhone or Apple Watch, according to a report in TechCrunch. 

Schools that already use the program are Johns Hopkins University, Marshall University, Mercer University, Duke University, University of Oklahoma, University of Alabama and Temple University. The new schools are University of San Francisco, University of Vermont, Arkansas State University, South Dakota State University, Norfolk State University, Louisburg College, University of North Alabama, Chowan University, Clemson University, Georgetown University, University of Tennessee and the University of Kentucky.

The program was announced at Apple’s big conference, WWDC, in 2018, and then introduced in October. The students can store money on the digital cards and use it at places like the cafeteria or the college bookstore to buy supplies.

Apple keeps introducing more and more ways to pay with the iPhone as it tries to replace a wallet that gets carried around with cash in it. Apple lets users add debit and credit cards, transit cards, loyalty cards and even actual money with Apple Pay Cash. Apple is also going to debut its own credit card, the Apple Card, which is already in the testing stages and will be rolled out very soon.

“We’re happy to add to the growing number of schools that are making getting around campus easier than ever with iPhone and Apple Watch,” Jennifer Bailey, Apple’s vice president of Internet Services, said in an announcement on the company’s website. “We know students love this feature. Our university partners tell us that since launch, students across the country have purchased 1.25 million meals and opened more than 4 million doors across campuses by just tapping their iPhone and Apple Watch.”