George Washington trials dorm room mobile access
Select residence halls on the campus of George Washington University are enabling students the chance to trial a new Mobile ID smartphone application that is linked to students’ GWorld cards and campus email addresses.
According to a report from the GW Hatchet, the app will unlock individual dorm room doors in those residence halls where students currently tap their GWorld cards to enter their rooms. The trial is being applied to six residence halls in total where students will have access to the app during the pilot program.
Each student account will be assigned a four-digit PIN that will be tied to a specific housing assignment and will unlock only that door. Each account can only be linked to one smartphone.
The app won’t open exterior doors, meaning students will still need to have an active GWorld card to enter residence halls. The Mobile ID accounts also expire when residents change housing assignments or move out.
The Mobile ID pilot follows a similar program tested at George Washington in 2014 that sought to enable students to unlock their doors by sending an SMS text message. University officials say that the Mobile ID solution will be both more secure and convenient than the text-based system.
The university also says that should the pilot program prove successful it will be available for free this coming fall to all residents in the current batch of piloted residence halls along with two additional campus housing locations.
