University of New Hampshire
Student ID Replacement Project
Student FAQs
Updated:  June 1, 2009

Over the summer of 2009, in preparation for the fall 2009 semester, the University of New Hampshire will convert all current and new student identifiers to a random number generated scheme issued by the student identification system. This website is designed to keep you current on the changes and to provide comments and feedback as the project progresses.  For most UNH campus community members, this change will be minimal.  Recognizing that not every community member will view these changes in the same way, some changes may require special services.  If this website is missing the answer to your question, please ask the question so all may learn the answers.  Assistance and support can be provided by sending email to Scott Valcourt, CIS Director of Project Management & Consulting Services at Scott.Valcourt@unh.edu, faxing your question to (603) 862-3710 or calling (603) 862-4489.

Q: How do I get my new UNH ID number?

A: Login to Blackboard and use the new UNH ID number module to discover your new UNH ID number.

Q: Why is UNH making this change to student identifiers (IDs)?

A: UNH is converting student ID numbers to further protect the privacy of students.  Using a random ID number reduces the possibility that identity theft and privacy could affect students.  In addition, federal statutes and regulations, professional organizations and auditors are requiring changes in the kinds and types of data that institutions of higher education use.

Q: Whose IDs will be changed?

A: All records in the BANNER student information system with a student ID number will be replaced.  This includes all applicants, new and continuing students, and any faculty and staff that have records in the BANNER system.

Q: How do students use their new ID?

A: Students use their new UNH ID in the same manner as before the conversion.  Self service applications that require a student ID number will ask for the nine-digit number that is uniquely assigned to each student.  UNH staff will use the student ID number to retrieve the student's records in BANNER.  Students who access services via the UNH ID Card or from student-serving departments that require a student ID will be expecting the new student ID number sometime this summer by the start of the fall semester.

Student ID numbers are to be protected in the same manner as any personal identification.  As a result, listings of new student ID numbers and other student data will not be posted, as is the practice today.

Q: What will be the format of the new ID number?

A: The new generated student ID number will consist of a nine-digit number starting with a '9' (nine) in the first digit field.  Current students already having a generated student ID number starting with '930' will receive a new student ID number as the '930' series is being excluded from the initial conversion set.

Q: So all students will have to remember their new ID number?

A: Yes, but there will be online tools to recall your assigned student ID number.  Since this number will be important to students on a daily basis in most cases, this new number should either be memorized or written down to reference when needed around campus.

Q: I already have a non-SSN student ID number. May I keep it?

A: Unfortunately, no. Your existing non-SSN student ID will be replaced with a new Student ID number in the new scheme. The method of issuing non-SSN student ID numbers in the past has not been according to the standards that going into effect, so it became necessary to replace all of the 850,000 Student ID numbers in the Student Information System.

Q: Will UNH issue new UNH ID cards?

A: Yes. New student ID cards will be used to access various student services using the new student ID number, which will be encoded on the magnetic stripe on the UNH ID card.  New UNH ID cards will begin being issued sometime in mid-July.  All students will need the new UNH ID card by the time they arrive on campus in the fall.

Q: When I get my new UNH ID card, will I have a new Library ID barcode on the back of my UNH ID card?

A: No, the barcode on the back of your UNH ID card will remain the same as the barcode you have today.

Q: What if I forget my UNH ID number?

A: UNH will offer a web page module, accessible from Blackboard, where a person can acquire the student ID number that is tied to the UNH IT ID.

Q: How will people be notified of their new student ID numbers?

A: New students will get notification in their admission letters and as part of Orientation. All locations where the UNH student ID number is currently printed in a masked form will continue to offer the new student ID number in a full display.

Q: Don't you need a SSN on a student transcript to avoid mix-ups?

A: UNH will continue to use the Social Security Number where we are legally obligated to do so.  While the SSN is useful for finding student transcripts of the recent past, there are various other data elements that are used to find an official student transcript and avoid confusion, and those practices are currently in use. The SSN will also be used where it is required by external agencies for example, in reporting to the state and federal government.  BANNER reports, such as IRS Form 1098-T, are already programmed to use the SSN and not the student ID as required by the Internal Revenue Service.

Q: By the time this conversion takes place in May, I will have already graduated from UNH. Do I need to care?

A: You should. Students graduating in May will need to know their new Student ID number to access summer courses and make future transcript requests easier.

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