Getting the ID Card
How you receive your first KU ID Card depends on how you arrive on campus.
As a Freshmen or Transfer student, once you register for a New Student Orientation (NSO) session, you'll:
1. receive an email from the KU Card Office to your MYKU email 1-2 weeks prior to your register NSO date with a proprietary link to submit your photo (we strongly suggest this option in order to avoid waiting in line at the KU Card office to have your photo taken)
Click HERE to learn more on how to upload your photo.
2. have your picture taken at NSO (if you like waiting in line).
Either way, you will receive your printed ID Card at NSO.
If you don't attend a NSO session you'll need to stop by our office to have one made. You'll need to know your campus ID number, have a valid form of identification such as a driver's license, state-issued identification card, passport or a high school ID card with photo and be registered for classes before your visit.
This photograph will not change during your time at KU. Keep this in mind when planning for the day.
What if I miss or cannot attent Orientation?
If for some reason you are unable to attend Orientation but have paid the $300 Advanced Registration Fee, then your first KU ID is paid for, even if you are unable to come to a NSO session. Just stop by the KU Card Office and tell us that you were supposed to come to Orientation, but you didn't make it. We'll look you up so we know the fee was paid, and then make your ID for you.
What if I can't get to campus during business hours?
If there's just no way you can get to our office during business hours, drop us an email or give us a call. We may be able to accommodate you.
Paying for ID cards
All students who pay a New Student Fee have their ID included for their first ID card. Graduate students who pay an application fee have also paid for their first ID cards. All other students are charged a separate $15 fee on their Office of Student Account bill noted as "ID replacement," even for the first ID. The fee must be paid within two weeks to avoid paying any late fees.
The KU Card Office does not take payment for any IDs, first or replacement, nor does Public Safety. ID charges appear on your bill, payable on MyKU or at the Office of Student Accounts.
Faculty/Staff
Faculty and Staff ID cards are issued free of charge. It may take some time for new hire information to reach our card system, so if possible, please stop by our office the day after completing HR's paperwork. We require a government-issued ID such as driver's license, state ID card, passport, green card, or military ID before we can take a photo and issue a card. It takes about a minute to produce the card once we have verified your identity.
If you lose your card, we must change the card number to protect your privileges. Some doors need to be manually updated when card numbers change, so please notify your area's Authorizing Official if you get a new card.
If your card no longer works, we can test it and re-encode the magnetic strip if necessary. If the card will no longer take an encode, we must replace the card. If you trade in your non-functioning card, we will not change the card number. We cannot do this, however, unless you turn in your old card. No one is allowed to have more than one card with the same number. That's for your safety.
Non-KU employees
Employees of companies with long-term contracts with KU, such as our dining contractor or building management company, receive KU photo IDs with the notation "Non-KU Employee". In addition to a government-issued ID, we require an employee from the department with which the contracting company works to vouch for the non-KU employee's status with the contracting company. It's easiest and best if a KU employee accompanies the new employee to the card office.
Please remember that we produce the card, but privileges must be assigned to it separately. Door privileges must be requested through your area's authorizing official.
Short-term contractors, visiting scholars, and other temporary cardholders
When a KU department contracts with an outside company, they often need the employees of the contractor to have access to doors on campus. In this case, we ask the authorizing department to fill out this form and submit it to us, ahead of time if possible. Contractors such as these are issued KU ID cards with the notation "Contractor," and their cards have expiration dates, though these dates are not printed on the cards. If no expiration date is given on the form, the default is to expire the card in one year.
The same procedure applies to Visiting Scholars and any other KU affiliates who are on campus for a defined period of time. As always, we require government-issued ID from anyone requesting a KU ID card.
Please remember that we produce the card, but privileges must be assigned to it separately. Door privileges must be requested through your area's authorizing official.