eduroam in Your Community: Free, Secure, Seamless Wi-Fi Access for Local and Visiting Students, Researchers, and Faculty

What is eduroam?

eduroam (education roaming) is the secure, global, Wi-Fi roaming service developed for the international research and education community, available in more than 100 countries and 36,000 locations worldwide.

eduroam allows seamless Wi-Fi connectivity for students, researchers, and staff from participating post-secondary institutions – whether they are on their campus or visiting other participating institutions and sites.

Who operates eduroam?

In Canada, the eduroam service is managed and operated by CANARIE, a member of the global eduroam Wi-Fi Federation. The eduroam Federation consists of an operating organization in each member country that authenticates and authorizes access on behalf of that country’s post-secondary institutions. CANARIE currently supports between 17 and 36 million eduroam logins per month.

The eduroam network is broadcast where students and researchers gather, learn, and study, including university and college campuses, libraries, research hospitals, museums, and sports arenas. In many parts of the world, eduroam is also broadcast on public transit and at coffee shops and airports.

In Canada, the City of Mississauga was the first Canadian municipality to roll out the service throughout its public spaces, including parks, transit stations, and city facilities. Recently, the Edmonton Public Library became the first public institution in Alberta to offer eduroam, broadcasting the network at its 21 library locations.

For students, research, and staff of educational and research institutions:

eduroam provides seamless connectivity on a trusted wireless network at hundreds of participating sites around the world. If they can access their home institution’s eduroam network, they can access the global eduroam network.

For municipalities and other hosts:

eduroam helps create a virtual campus where local and visiting students and researchers can continue their research and studies anytime, anywhere. And because the eduroam network is only accessible to students and researchers with valid credentials from their home institutions, the security risks of open Wi-Fi networks are mitigated.

“Leveraging a trusted authentication system for access adds value for the City of Edmonton, it enables us to offer more service to more people for minimal investment. Definitely a win-win-win.”
– John Middleton, Team Lead, Network Services, City of Edmonton

“eduroam not only offers a seamless and secure internet connection but also empowers our academic travellers, allowing them to stay productive on the go.”
– Megan Gupton, Chief Information Officer, The Calgary Airport Authority

“It’s yet another way to provide lift for youth so they can become successful and another step in our master plan to create a vibrant, socially responsible city through accelerated innovation and collaboration.”
– Shawn Slack, Director of Information Technology and Chief Information Officer, City of Mississauga