Users simply have to tap their Android phone to an NFC reader to, say, access a building or specific locations that usually call for tighter security, such as residential areas or labs. It will also allow them to pay for dining, laundry and vending machine purchases on campus.

The 15 institutions that will introduce the feature are Arkansas State University, Chowan University, College of Coastal Georgia, Duke University, Georgetown University, Hamilton College, Johns Hopkins University, Marshall University, Mercer University, Roanoke College, St. Edward's University, South Dakota State University, Temple University, The University of Alabama and University of New Brunswick. As 9to5Google notes, Mercer University has already started testing it and expects to roll it out fully in the second quarter of the year.