Comprehensive BYOD Management at SDSU

With 34,000 students, 9,600 faculty and staff, and guests on its 300-acre campus, California’s San Diego State University (SDSU), a nationally ranked research university renowned for academic excellence, must accommodate tens of thousands of wireless and mobile devices accessing its network each day, many of these personal devices. Given that volume of devices, SDSU needed a comprehensive access and policy management solution that could easily scale while improving the security of the wireless network.

SDSU 

San Diego State University’s deployment of the ClearPass Access Management System will provide robust, reliable and secure network access for all of their users — students, faculty, staff and guests.

SDSU selected to deploy the Aruba ClearPass Access Management System, a new solution that will allow it to manage network policies, securely onboard and manage devices and admit guest users — all from one platform.

Combined with SDSU’s existing Aruba Networks Wireless LAN (WLAN), ClearPass will allow the university to address the challenges associated with the exponential growth in wireless and mobile devices resulting from the growing bring-your-own-device (BYOD) trend on campus. The new solution will give SDSU’s IT department visibility into exactly which users and devices are registering onto the network, enabling SDSU to better manage, track and give appropriate access to the devices accessing the network, which will ensure a more secure, consistent network experience for all of the university’s users.

“With our old access management system, we weren’t able to access the necessary information from devices to properly prioritize and manage traffic,” says Kent McKelvey, director, Telecomm and Network Services, SDSU. “With ClearPass, we will be able to view and manage all of that detailed information, and restrict or block access if necessary. ClearPass will provide us with the flexibility to manage a user base comprised of known and unknown users and will allow us to quickly and easily adjust how we determine levels of access.”

Aruba Networks
www.arubanetworks.com

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management August 2013 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Campus Safety Requires Using Every Resource Available

    Across the U.S., school and campus leaders are facing a security landscape that has changed dramatically over the past decade. Incidents on school property have increased in recent years, with several consecutive years setting record totals. According to analysis of data by CNN, dozens of shootings now occur on school grounds annually across K-12 and higher education environments.

  • Can AI Help Build Stronger Communities in Student Housing?

    Student housing success is shifting from operational performance to student experience, with belonging now at the center. A recent 2025 report underscores a growing emphasis on student well-being, community, and engagement, signaling that expectations now extend beyond logistics to ensure students feel supported in their living environments. AI is enabling that shift by reducing administrative workload and giving teams more time to focus on meaningful student engagement.

  • Embry-Riddle Completes Construction on Research, Lab Facility

    Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) in Daytona Beach, Fla., recently announced the end of construction on a new research and lab facility on campus. The Center for Aerospace Engineering II (CAT II) will support aerospace research and technology development and broke ground last summer.

  • AAADM Announces Building Safety Month Initiatives

    The American Association of Automatic Door Manufacturers (AAADM) recently announced its support of Building Safety Month as declared by the International Code Council (ICC), according to a news release.