Editor’s note: A correction has been made. If a person gets his or her license before 21, it will be vertical, not horizontal. 

Students, what’s the first thing you do when you turn 21?

Drink?

No, you get your ass to the BMV, so you can get a grown-up license.

I thought I would enlighten you on an interesting fact:

After you turn 21, licenses are only good for six years. However, licenses are going to be extinct in 2016.

As of 2016, you can no longer use your license as a government ID – you have to have a Secure ID to do the following: enter a government building, go pass security at an airport, and drive your car. 

I mean, you can keep your license… but it’s pretty much useless. Your driver’s license needs to be replaced by a Secure ID.

The only difference between a license and a Secure ID is a star in the top right of your “license” (and supplying a few more documents to prove who you are). By “license,” I mean Secure ID. But it looks exactly like a license… with a star. Dumb, I know. 

Apparently, when you get a new license, the BMV is supposed tell you that you need a Secure ID, but many aren’t advertising this.

I’m here to inform you, so you don’t end up wasting your money for one license and have to get a new one sooner than you thought. We are college students, after all. We need to save money.

First, let me tell you, you can get your license or Secure ID before you turn 21. But then it will be vertical and not horizontal, making you look younger and causing people to constantly double-check that you are 21. Whichever you prefer – it’s up to you.

If you’re going to get a new license, tell the person helping you that you want a Secure ID. Like I said, the only difference is a star in the top right corner (which shows others it’s a Secure ID). And the barcode looking thing on the back will be a little bigger, allowing a police officer to know more about you.

The extra documents that you will need is proof of your name and date of birth, Social Security number (just bring your card), lawful status in the U.S, and Indiana residency.

That’s it.

It will help you save $30 or $40 in the long run, and if you just turned 21, you should spend it on a good night out.