New Student Email - FAQs
- Initial Questions
- Accessing Gmail for the First Time
- Forwarding Email
- Accessing Your Old Webmail Account
- IMAP/POP
- Mobile Access
- Security and Confidentiality
- Other
- Support
Accounts for Student Clubs and Organizations
Students
Initial Questions
Q. Who is affected by the change to Gmail?
A. The transition to Gmail affects only CSUN students and members of the Alumni Association.
Q: I already have a personal Gmail account. Do I still need the new CSUN student email?
A: Yes. Your new Gmail account serves as your official email account with the university which means the university will use it for official university communications. You are responsible for monitoring your Gmail account and the information sent to the account by the university.
Q: Did my CSUN email address change?
A: Yes. Your student email address now includes "@my.csun.edu" For example, if your previous email address was "jane.doe.99@csun.edu", your updated email address is "jane.doe.99@my.csun.edu."
Q: I don't know my new CSUN student email address. Where can I get it?
A: If you don't know your CSUN email address, you can locate it by following these steps:
- Log in to the myNorthridge Portal.
- Locate the "My Path to Graduation" pagelet.
- Click on the Student Center (SOLAR) link.
- Your Campus Email Address is listed under "Personal Information."
Q: Can I log in to the myNorthridge Portal with my updated "@my.csun.edu" email address?
A: Yes. You can log in to the Portal with either "@csun.edu" or "@my.csun.edu," or you can simply log in with your CSUN email prefix (jane.doe.99).
Q: What will happen to my existing Webmail account and the "jane.doe.99@csun.edu" email address?
A: Mail that is sent to your old "jane.doe.99@csun.edu" email will be automatically forwarded to your updated "jane.doe.99@my.csun.edu" address. Senders will receive an auto-reply notifying them of your new email address. This auto-reply will be disabled at the end of the Fall semester.
Q: Will my email continue to be forwarded if I previously turned on the auto-forward feature in Webmail?
A: No. If you previously turned on the auto-forward feature in Webmail, these settings will not be automatically transferred to your new email account. You will need to establish any desired email forwarding options within the "Settings" option of Gmail.
Q: Do I have to provide my new CSUN email address to faculty?
A: No. Faculty who currently email you from their class roster in SOLAR will not have to make any manual updates. Your email address was automatically updated in the SOLAR system.
Q: Can I access the other Google Apps with my new Gmail account?
A: Google provides access to other Google Apps along with Gmail but these Apps are not supported by the university.
Accessing Gmail for the First Time
Q: How do I access my new Gmail account on September 28th?
A: Prior to accessing your new Gmail account for the first time, you are required to change your main CSUN password that is used to access the portal. You can complete this step starting on September 28th. Once you make this change, your Google password will be set to your new CSUN password. You will be able to access your student Gmail account from the CSUN homepage by clicking on the Gmail button next to the "myNorthridge Portal Login." For detailed instructions, visit: http://www.csun.edu/it/services/studentemail.html#access.
Q: I am being prompted for my CSUN email address. I don't know my CSUN email address, where can I get it?
A: Follow these steps to locate your CSUN email address:
- Log in to the myNorthridge Portal.
- Locate the "My Path to Graduation" pagelet.
- Click on the Student Center (SOLAR) link.
- Your Campus Email Address is listed under "Personal Information."
Forwarding Email
Q: Will my email continue to be forwarded if I previously turned on the auto-forward feature in Webmail?
A: No. If you previously turned on the auto-forward feature in Webmail, these settings will not be automatically transferred to your new email account. You will need to establish any desired email forwarding options within the "Settings" option of Gmail.
Q: I am a faculty or staff member. Can I auto–forward emails from my student Gmail to my Webmail or Exchange account?
A: Yes. You can establish any desired email forwarding options within the "Settings" option of Gmail.
Accessing Your Old Webmail Account
Q: How can I access my old Webmail account?
A: Contact the IT Help Center at (818) 677-1400.
Transferring Webmail to Gmail
Q: What will happen to the emails in my existing Webmail account?
A: Students had the option of transferring contents from Webmail to your new Gmail account. This tool was available through October 30th.
Q: I am a student and a faculty member. Should I have transferred contents from Webmail to Gmail?
A: Faculty retained their "@csun.edu" Webmail account as their primary email account. All future "@csun.edu" emails will now go to Exchange. For this reason, we did not recommend faculty transfer contents from Webmail to Gmail.
IMAP/POP
Q: How do I access my Gmail account from other email clients using IMAP/POP?
A: To access Gmail using POP, click here. To access Gmail using IMAP click here. To read about the differences between IMAP & POP, click here. You can also use Google Apps Sync for Microsoft Outlook to connect to your Gmail account.
Please note that you must use your full "@my.csun.edu" email address when you are prompted for your username.
Mobile Access
Q: How do I access my Gmail account from a mobile device?
A: Visit Google Mobile for a complete list of mobile devices and configuration instructions. Please note that you must use your full "@my.csun.edu" email address when you are prompted for your username.
Security & Confidentiality
Q: What is Google's privacy policy for this email service?
A: For Google's privacy policy and Gmail specific privacy policy, visit: http://www.google.com/intl/en/privacy.html.
Q: How can I set up a spam filter?
A: Inside Gmail, the filtering instructions are located on the menu bar under Settings > Filters > Create a New Filter.
Q: Can I use ad blocker or script blocker with Gmail?
A: No. You must not use ad blockers or script blockers, "e.g. Adblock and NoScript" with CSUN student email. Be sure to disable these features before you log in to your new email.
Other
Q: Which browsers work with my new Gmail account?
A: The browser minimum requirements are Internet Explorer 5.5, Firefox 1.5, and Netscape Navigator 8.0.
Q: Will there be advertising inside my new Gmail account?
A: No. Per Google's current policy, students will not receive advertisements inside their inbox. You may select to receive RSS news feeds along the top bar of the message window, or choose to turn off this feature. Upon graduating from the university, students will begin to see Google's advertising.
Support
Q: Where can I learn more about using Gmail?
A: Visit Gmail Help to learn how to add contacts, send email, and manage you inbox. Once you begin using your new account, review "Switching Guide" inside the new email system for more information on getting started with Gmail.
Q: Where can I get help if I have more questions?
A: You can also receive support by contacting the IT Help Center by phone (818-677-1400), online (http://support.csun.edu) or in person (Oviatt Library, room 33).
Faculty/Staff
Q: I email my students from my class roster in SOLAR. Is there anything I have to change in the SOLAR system?
A: Student email addresses were automatically updated in SOLAR, university emergency notification system, WebCT, Moodle and Majordomo.
Q. If I previously created personal class lists to email students, were these lists updated?
A. All personal contact lists have to be manually updated. Student email address now end in the following format:
"@my.csun.edu."
Q: I am a staff member and a student. Did I also receive a new Gmail account?
A: All enrolled students received a new Gmail account which includes staff members who are also students. However, Exchange remains your primary email address as it is today for all university communications.
Q: I am a staff member and a student. Will faculty send email to my "@csun.edu" (Exchange) account or to my updated "@my.csun.edu" (Gmail) account?
A: If a faculty member emails their students from class lists in SOLAR or Majordomo, those lists were automatically updated to reflect new student Gmail accounts. If a faculty member previously created any personal class lists, they have to update them manually to end in the following format: "@my.csun.edu."
Q: I am an employee and a student. I changed my password to activate my student Gmail account, did my employee email password also change?
A: When you changed your CSUN password, this same password applies to your Exchange and Gmail accounts and your portal login.
Q: I am a student and a faculty member. Should I have transferred contents from Webmail to Gmail?
A: Faculty retained their "@csun.edu" Webmail account as their primary email account. All future "@csun.edu" emails will still go to Exchange. For this reason, we did not recommend faculty transfer contents from Webmail to Gmail.
Q: I am a faculty or staff member. Can I auto–forward emails from my student Gmail to my Exchange account?
A: Yes. You can establish any desired email forwarding options within the "Settings" option of Gmail.
Accounts for Student Clubs and Organizations
Q: I am currently a part of a club/organization that uses a shared email account in Webmail (shared user ID and password). Did the "@csun.edu" email address for this account also change to "@my.csun.edu?"
A: Yes, but this change did not take place on the weekend of September 25th. Group/shared accounts were migrated to Gmail at a later time. The official owner or sponsor of the account was contacted.
CSUN Alumni
Q: I am a member of the CSUN Alumni Association and previously had a Webmail account. Did I also get a Gmail account? Was my email address also updated to "@my.csun.edu?"
A: Yes. All members of the CSUN Alumni Association obtained a Gmail account. Your "@csun.edu" email address has been updated to "@my.csun.edu."