With the contemporary college student and their smart phone attached at the hip, the use of mobile apps to fulfill daily tasks like door access, laundry and vending has become the new trend.

Heartland Campus Solutions is trying to provide solution to match this trend its OneCard Mobile app. The new app represents the consolidation of secure payments, virtual ID and physical access to facilities, events and information into a single point of access for the student.

OneCard Mobile has been piloted at a number of colleges and universities and promises to enhance the student experience as well as facilitate campus card administrators.

“Why not create a mobile app that combines a secure, pre-paid mobile payment system with student ID functionality that provides convenience to students, peace of mind to parents, and a helping hand to administrators looking to streamline operations?” says Melissa Peirano, general manager of Heartland’s OneCard program.

In addition to cutting paperwork and supporting a greener campus, OneCard Mobile also provides more data to administrators, enabling them to automate information to be shared with students and their parents. The app is also configurable with most pre-existing Heartland OneCard platforms, with variable pricing structures based on a university’s desired functionality.

“Campus administrators like the optimization of operations that OneCard Mobile provides,” says Fred Emery, vice president of sales for Heartland Campus Solutions. “They can configure the app to offer as much functionality as they’d like, and add new features as they go. Anything with a URL can be easily added.”

In addition to adding custom functions to the app, campus administrators also have the option to tailor the app’s on-screen appearance with their own school colors and logos.

For the student, OneCard Mobile provides a hub of campus information along with a means to make payments and gain access to campus dorms and academic buildings. Parents can leverage the app as well, with the ability to control how much money is placed on their student’s pre-paid, OneCard account.

Students interested in using the OneCard Mobile app simply register their existing OneCard account and PIN using their smart phone. Alternatively, students can also log in using their network credentials.

To make a payment, students can select any participating point-of-sale terminal from their phone, and swipe their finger across their card image to validate the transaction. Students can also conduct remote payments by selecting a terminal on a map or by entering the terminal’s number in the app.

The app contains the student’s ID card image and bar code, which can be scanned and used for checking out materials from a library or other campus resource centers.

For physical access control, the app is supported by geo-fencing technology, which ensures that a student is in close proximity to the door they intend to enter. This feature automatically sends an on-screen notification to the student as they approach the door, giving them a prompt to unlock the door.

Check out this video to see Heartland’s OneCard Mobile app in action.