The University implemented using college-wide identifications in place of social security numbers for student security on Oct. 28.The college-wide ID is an eight-digit number that begins with an eight and is randomly generated, according to Kelly Rodrigue, director of records and registration. Grade sheets used to go out with socials on them, which, according to Rodrigue, should not be an issue because grade sheets should not be out of instructors’ hands. Class rosters also contained students’ socials.

“There’s no other reason behind it whatsoever,” Rodrigue said. “Anything that the offices will be putting on the computers that will be going out campus-wide should now, for the most part, be having the eight-digit college-wide ID instead of the actual social on there.”

According to Rodrigue, a few students expressed concerns with identity theft. To prevent this from happening, the University opted to use the college-wide ID.

“I’m concerned with my social as well, but I don’t have my social floating around papers on campus, either,” Rodrigue said. “The more papers you have without your social, the safer you are.”

Students can obtain their eight-digit number from their advisor or from records and registration. Other means of obtaining the ID were not known as of press time.

The University had a few options concerning social security numbers. The options were either using strictly the social, like the University previously used, using strictly the college-wide ID, or using both the social and college-wide ID which is what the University is currently using, according to Rodrigue.

Students are still able to use their social security numbers if they choose to or if they do not know their college-wide ID, according to Rodrigue. As far as ICAN, students can sign in using either their social security number or college-wide ID. PIN numbers remain the same, Rodrigue said.

“You don’t have to use your college-wide ID,” Rodrigue said.

All students, faculty, staff and graduate assistants have college-wide IDs. These IDs are strictly for the internal use of this University. It does not identify anyone outside of the University, according to Rodrigue.

“If you send that number on your transcript to another school, it wouldn’t make sense,” Rodrigue said.

Since this eight-digit number is for Nicholls’ use only, it is a factor in preventing identity theft, according to Rodrigue. Students can still get information using their social security numbers, so they do not have to learn their college-wide ID.

“If anybody else knows the college-wide ID or has it, they can’t do too much,” Rodrigue said. “They could possibly log on to the system if they know your PIN and drop and add a bunch of courses, but they couldn’t create a credit card.”

Rodrigue said that the University has been looking towards doing this for quite some time.

“(University President) Dr. Hulbert said we need to get something done, and we need to get it done soon,” Rodrigue said.

At one time the University was going to convert to using strictly the college-wide ID, but some students did not want to learn a new number while they were content with using their social, according to Rodrigue.

“You don’t want to change everything for these maybe 30 people that are complaining when there are still about five or six thousand more,” Rodrigue said. “Admissions was getting a bunch of phone calls from students saying, ‘What the heck is this? I don’t want to learn a new number.'”

There are still some things “behind the scenes” that the University still uses social security numbers for, Rodrigue said.

“We have no choice,” Rodrigue said. “That kind of information is still being used for federal financial aid, etc. There are certain people who use that social because it’s linked to a refund or something else.”

Although students may use their college-wide ID’s to get personal information, their socials are still not visible on anything. Everything now has the converted number, according to Rodrigue.

Rodrigue said that this is something that needed to be done and that it was “absolutely a good idea.”

“Your social security number is one of your most critical pieces of information that you will have in your entire lifetime,” Rodrigue said. “Simply not having that on as many pages or on any pages that are being circulated can make a difference.”

LSU is also planning on converting to using a college-wide ID, according to LSUReveille.com, in a “long-awaited plan to remove social security numbers as primary identifiers.