University Of British Columbia: Using Cashless Vending To Enhance Service Across The Campus

For students, faculty, alumni, supporters, and administrators, there’s no doubt that higher education has evolved into an uber-competitive industry. Students must compete with other highly qualified individuals to secure coveted acceptances. And institutions, for their part, must vie with other schools around the world to attract world-class talent.

While quality of curriculum is certainly at the top of the list in attracting top-tier students and staff, it is by no means the only criteria. One of the biggest aspects for any stakeholder is food service. Where in the past, students and staff had only access to dining halls with defined hours of operation, that model is no longer suitable to satisfy the requirements of a highly mobile, time-challenged constituency.  

On top of that, where accepting just a single mode of payment — be it campus card or cash — was the norm, college campuses face the reality that consumers want to pay with the method most convenient to them.  

This was the dynamic facing the University of British Columbia (UBC). Located in  Vancouver, UBC has evolved into one of the largest and most reputable institutions in Canada. Some 40,000 individuals study at the University, and it has a staff of nearly 20,000.

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