AggiePass

Inspiration

The inspiration for AggiePass came from our own experiences with losing our student ID. We wanted to fix this issue since we personally have faced the negative effects of losing student IDs.

Texas A&M replaces over 12,000 ID cards annually, incurring an operating cost of approximately $588,000. With replacement revenue totaling $390,000, the university faces an average net loss of $198,000 each year. Furthermore, the current ID card system has received increasing criticism from students, who find it inconvenient and outdated, underscoring the need for a more efficient and user-friendly solution.

What it does

AggiePass prioritizes the needs and experience of students by providing a convenient alternative in the form of an app to the physical student ID. By installing NFC readers across campus, this will ensure that this system is accessible to all students. Since there are already existing card readers around campus, replacing them with NFC readers is realistic. Each reader will require around $200 each, but will allow the university to make money back on investment in 2 years. This solution not only tackles the issue of students losing their ID cards, but it also has the potential to save around $200,000 a year.

How we built it

We built the prototype using Figma.

Challenges we ran into

We ran into challenges while trying to connect some of the pages. Some of the buttons got confused with all the flows we had, but we were able to eventually solve the issue and make all the buttons connect to the right pages.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We're proud of each page we made since each one was unique and required us to learn how to use different features.

What we learned

We learned how to use Figma and all the features in it.

What's next for AggiePass

This app addresses key market needs from the perspective of the student and the university. Many students lose their ID cards on a yearly basis, and through digitizing the student ID, we eliminate this problem. Texas A&M University incurs a nearly $200,000 loss each year from lost student IDs, so the app addresses a financial concern for the university as well. There are no direct competitors to this app currently since no app at Texas A&M digitizes the student ID. However, there are popular A&M apps such as Maroonbase and Howdy who can integrate the Student ID once they notice our app, so we must be diligent while testing to ensure our app doesn’t get overtaken by these established competitors.

This solution will require a sophisticated implementation plan, which can be carried out over the span of a few months. Since the app requires the card to be scanned through NFC readers, these readers will need to be installed across the campus in areas such as dining halls, recreation centers, and outside dorm halls. Also, this app will require valuable student data to be stored in the backend, such as students’ UIN, email address, and headshot. Once the data is integrated into the app, and the NFC readers are installed around campus, the app’s testing can begin.

The testing plan is down below.

Months 1–4: Pilot launch with incoming freshmen Months 5–8: Open voluntary enrollment Months 9–11: Full campus-wide adoption Month 12 onward: Ongoing monitoring and optimization

Through each round of testing, we will track KPIs to ensure the app is being implemented as smoothly as possible. Our main KPIs will include the number of downloads and time spent on the app. Since this app is meant to serve all Texas A&M students, we intend on the number of downloads to inch closer to the total number of students with each round of testing. In order to measure the true effectiveness of the app, we will also need to measure how long each user spends on the app to see if they are truly deriving value from the main features of the app. We also plan on releasing a survey during implementation, and tracking survey responses as a way of gaining feedback from the user. Based on each round of feedback, we will enhance the app accordingly.

The app is not only incredibly useful, but it is also extremely intuitive and usable. AggiePass is designed in a way which covers key UX design principles, with the main focus being on enhancing cognitive fit. The app provides many affordances such as buttons and icons which make it easier for the user to navigate through the app. AggiePass also contains signals, such as button labels, which explain to the user exactly how to use each affordance. Other cognitive fit principles, such as discoverability and mapping are highlighted through the app’s clear structure and clean design.

Overall, AggiePass will benefit all stakeholders involved with Student IDs, including students and the university. Through digitizing the student ID and adding additional important features, students will more easily be able to access key features and perform everyday activities.

Built With

• figma