Orientation season is almost here and things are going to get hectic in the card office. Online photo submission is one of the many ways a campus card office can efficiently print ID cards in time for students’ arrival to campus and Ohio University is one of the latest to join the trend.

According to a report from The Post Athens, Ohio’s One Card Office wanted to save time in the printing process at the university’s upcoming Bobcat Student Orientation events and online photo submission fit the bill.

“Using this system, we can pre-produce the cards the day before and have them ready for pickup at check-in, which makes the process much more efficient for the students,” said Joshua Bodnar, director of Access, Transaction and Video Services, in an email to The Post.

Students going to Ohio’s orientation events, which run from May 24 through June 24, are emailed instructions by the One Card Office. Email reminders will also be sent by the orientation office prior to students’ arrival date. Students then have to submit their ID photo at least one full business day before their scheduled orientation session.

Once on campus at orientation, students can pick up their printed ID card at check-in, as opposed to taking a photo in person and waiting for the card to be printed. As with any online photo deployment, the process at Ohio provides students with the opportunity to capture a photo that they’re guaranteed to be proud of. As with any photo submission protocol, however, certain requirements must be met in order for the photo to be accepted.

At Ohio, this includes a plain, light-colored background, and the photo taken, must be in color and of the student by themselves — a headshot. Card office officials also recommended not using a senior portrait as they usually have an unacceptable backdrop.

Additionally, card office officials request that the photo be cropped slightly above the head to the middle of the chest with the student’s head and shoulders squarely facing the camera. The student’s eyes should also be open and look directly at the camera.

Ohio now joins a large number of campuses to leverage some form of online photo submission. Adoption of the technology has vastly changed the way orientation issuance operates, cutting time and congestion from what was traditionally a challenging period for card offices.