The card has received a face-lift.

All Vanderbilt students will need to replace their old Commodore Cards with a newly designed and more secure version by Oct. 12.

Rick Wood, director of business service systems, said the card needed a redesign from the look it’s had for the past 12 years. The card office also used this as a chance to use new technologies to make the card more secure.

In the past, Commodore Cards were coded with a student’s social security number. Now, Woods said, the card office is trying to get away from using SSNs and instead creating randomly generated numbers to link students with their identity.

“We’re trying to get as many (old cards) off the street as possible,” Woods said, “just so that we can make sure there’s nothing out there than can be used by scrupulous folks.”

Students can get their new cards at 327 Sarratt Student Center weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. beginning Sept. 21, but each class will be given preference during specific weeks. Seniors will have preference from Sept. 21 to 25, juniors from Sept. 28 to Oct. 1 and sophomores from Oct. 5 to 9. Freshmen received the new version of the card when they moved in.

Getting a new card is free as long as students turn in their old cards. If not, there is a lost card fee of $20.

If undergraduates do not get a new card by Oct. 12, Woods said they will still be able to get into buildings and eat at the dining halls, but their Commodore Cash would be frozen until they get the new version.

Hannah Twillman contributed reporting to this article.