Mobile Payment in the Campus App: The Smartphone as a Digital Campus Card

On campus, payments happen constantly: in the cafeteria, at vending machines, for printing and copying, library fees, sports activities or events. Cash, plastic cards and various portals are still widely used – creating high organizational effort for universities and student services organizations and an experience that no longer feels up to date for students. A campus app with integrated mobile payment brings all of these processes together and turns the smartphone into a digital campus card.

Why mobile payment in the campus app?

For students, the smartphone is the central gateway to both their studies and everyday life. A campus app that combines timetable, messages, learning platforms and services is therefore the ideal place to also integrate payment processes.

For universities and student services organizations, this means:

• less handling of cash and plastic cards
• fewer isolated solutions and parallel portals
• faster, standardized payment processes
• a better basis for accounting and reporting

Control over processes and pricing remains with the institutions, while the technical payment processing is handled by specialized payment providers.

Key use cases on campus

• Cafeteria & dining
  Students pay via QR code or NFC directly with the campus app. Their status (student, staff, guest) is stored in the account, so the correct price category is applied automatically. Preloaded credit or linked payment methods are managed in the app, and transactions are visible at any time.
• Library, printing & copying
  Fees, printing and copying costs can be paid directly in the app. Separate machines, portals or manual cash handling can be significantly reduced.
• Events & campus life
  Tickets for conferences, parties, cultural and sports events can be booked, paid and stored digitally in the campus app. Additional registration steps and paper tickets become largely unnecessary.
• Mobility
  Digital semester tickets, campus shuttles or external sharing services (e.g. bike or e-scooter sharing) can be integrated and used and billed directly through the app.

Technical & organizational building blocks

For a sustainable solution, mobile payment functions should be closely embedded in the existing infrastructure.

Typical components include:

• Campus wallet combined with external payment methods
  An internal wallet for everyday expenses (cafeteria, printing, etc.), complemented by SEPA direct debit, credit card or Apple Pay / Google Pay for larger or less frequent payments.
• Single sign-on and role model
  Integration with existing university logins (e.g. SAML, OpenID Connect). Roles such as “student”, “staff” or “guest” are adopted and automatically control prices, permissions and access rights.
• Integration of existing systems
  Connection of POS and cafeteria systems, library and fee management, printing and copying, booking and event systems via APIs. The campus app acts as a central, user-friendly front end – not as a replacement for expert systems.

Security and data protection

Payment functions require a high level of security and data protection. Key aspects include:

• secure authentication (university login, biometric confirmation, device binding)
• fast blocking options in case of device loss
• processing via certified payment providers (e.g. PCI DSS compliant, tokenization of payment data)
• GDPR-compliant implementation with data minimization and clear transparency for users

The most sensitive payment data stays outside the university IT environment, while universities and student services still benefit from digital payment processes.

Added value for universities and student services

Mobile payment in the campus app creates measurable benefits:

• Operational efficiency:
  Faster payment processes, less cash handling, fewer cards to manage, fewer manual steps.
• Better planning:
  Anonymized analytics support staff planning, menu and product mix decisions, and the optimization of opening hours.
• Stronger positioning:
  A fully digital, convenient campus experience strengthens the institution’s profile and student satisfaction.

For students, this results in a consistent user experience: one device, one app, all relevant campus services including payment – transparent, simple and always available.

Conclusion: The campus app as a central ecosystem

On campus, mobile payment is more than just contactless payment. Integrated into a campus app, it becomes the connecting element between cafeteria, library, administration, events and mobility.

For universities and student services organizations, this opens up the opportunity to intelligently link existing systems, standardize processes and shape the campus as a digital ecosystem – with the smartphone as the central digital campus card.