Students had the opportunity to travel to the Student Center to apply or renew their U.S. passports. During the workshop, hosted by the Hartford Public Library, individuals learned the multiple uses of a passport and their importance.

Although traveling abroad is a well-known use for an American passport, it can also be a versatile tool for identification. Some stores allow them to be used when applying for store credit cards, such as the company TJX. If a person is interested in voting and does not have their driver’s license, they may also use their passport to take its place.

“It’s a good form of identification” Kristine Clark, a passport coordinator for Hartford Public Library, said.

In many ways, passports are better forms of identification than driver’s license or state identification cards because of the rigorous background check one must go through prior to receive a passport. Due to this, many organizations value them more. Most institutions will require a passport on its own, while a birth certificate and social security card may be required with a driver’s license.

Of the 195 nations recognized by the United Nations, an American citizen with a valid passport can travel to 166 countries with or without a visa being issued on arrival, according to Business Insider.

Many people are not very aware of what a visa is or their purpose. When traveling to certain countries one will need an official document granting temporary entrance for a specific reason, hence a visa.

Visas in the United States fall into two categories: non-immigrant and immigrant. For the non-immigrant category, there are many sub-types of visas ranging from worker visas to visas for students and educators to visas for athletes. Immigrant visas are less diverse with Visas for relatives and family sponsored visas and employer sponsored visas. In many cases a passport may be required to apply for a visa.

For those who missed the opportunity to apply for a passport in the Student Center, they may apply at any passport acceptable facility, such as municipal post offices and libraries, such as the surrounding towns such as Hartford, Farmington, New Britain and Newington Post Office, as well as the town libraries. The State Travel Department website provides a location finder for acceptance facilities.