Building Access and Security: Your ID is Your Key

A safe environment is the cornerstone of a high-quality education. In addition to its ongoing campus safety and security initiatives and recommendations outlined in a 2016 Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) study, UT Austin developed a building and facility access policy. Ultimately, successful implementation of restricted building access and security will require a cultural change in the way the entire campus community thinks (and acts). For students, faculty, staff, and university affiliates, it will require carrying your UT ID card at all times: Your ID is your key to enter most campus buildings during restricted access hours.

This policy calls for restricting hours of building access in the interest of safety and for creating celebrated (main) entrances for general-purpose classroom (GPC) and non-GPC buildings. These entrances may only be accessible during restricted hours by students, faculty, and staff with university ID cards or traditional keys. Celebrated entrances are defined in the policy as one or more obvious, inviting, entrances to buildings, one of which must be ADA compliant. Other building entrances are locked during restricted hours.

As of April 2017, all buildings with GPCs were part of the university’s initial phase to install and implement building access control systems (BACS) at each respective buildings’ celebrated entrances. Over the next couple of years, all buildings will eventually have at least one entrance that is equipped with proximity card readers and video cameras. This is being done in phases:

  • Phase 1: General purpose classroom (GPC) buildings (See list of buildings with BACS already installed)
  • Phase 2: Academic buildings
  • Phase 3: General operations/ancillary buildings

After-hours Building Access

After regular operating hours, all general-purpose classroom (GPC) buildings have the ability to lock down and/or allow entry with a UT ID that has an embedded proximity access chip (applies to most UT IDs issued to students, faculty, and staff). If you need to access a classroom or lab after hours, your UT ID is your key for entry. For example,

  • GPC buildings are required to be accessible from 6 a.m. to 11:45 pm, seven days a week and during university holidays
  • GPC buildings and facilities are opened at 6 a.m., Monday-Friday and remain open until 7 p.m. At 7 p.m., GPC buildings and facilities then transition to restricted access hours and all students, faculty, staff, and university personnel are required to enter through the buildings’ entrances controlled by BACS.

Your ID is Your Key

It is recommended that you carry your UT ID at all times. If there are special requirements for building access, arrangements may be requested through the building manager of the facility you will need to access. (For instance, please visit the Facilities Services Building information site where each respective building manager’s contact info may be found.)

NOTE: To determine if your card has a proximity chip, hover your card over a door reader. It will “beep” if a chip is detected. If it does not have a proximity chip, a new UT ID card is needed. To obtain a replacement card, visit the UT ID Center located on the first floor at the Peter Flawn Academic Center (FAC).