The student cafes at the University of Oslo will during January set up an electronic card system that ensures that student discounts will not be given without a valid student ID.

– We work for the students and they are our primary target group. We are introducing this system to ensure that the benefits are given to the right people, says the leader of the student cafes, Alain Clerembault.

Shorter lines

Since the new year started The Foundation for Student Life in Oslo (SiO) has enchanced the control of student IDs in the counters in the cafes. The system is to provide that no one will be given a discount without swiping a student IDs at the counter, – Swiping the card through a card reader will register a student discount automatically, and thus the line will move much faster, says Clerembault. The University of Oslo (UiO) is the first user of the system, and Clerembault is sure that the new system can be introduced without complications.
– We have been working on this project for eight months, and we are soon ready to carry out a test. If all goes as planned the system will be working in about a week, he says.

Only user of the system

The number of card readers will be about 50, distributed on the cafeterias at the university, and the cost will be around 150.000 Norwegian kroner. For the time being, the university will be the only user of the system, and a possible expansion to the university colleges will be decided on a later occasion.
The Welfare Council and leader Mari Berdal Djupvik is positive to the action and thinks it will be easier to follow SiO´s initiative.

-This is done under the EEA directive that claims that one should separate the VAT so it will be easier to see where the money goes. The students are the only people with VAT deduction, and therefore the offer of cheaper dinners should exist for them alone, says Djupvik.

– A necessity

Leader of the Student Parliament Mari Helén Varøy however is not as positive to the system, but claims it is a necessity.
– As long as it is instructed by law, we don´t have a choice. I do not necessarily see this system as something positive, but it is important that we get a solution that works as effectively as possible, says Varøy.