OVERVIEW
Target audience: McGill students, faculty, staff, affiliates, and alumni.
Your McGill Username and Short Username are assigned when you enter McGill. You need to create your own McGill password to use with these credentials in order to access systems and websites throughout the university.
NEW: Affiliate usernames have a new format
A sponsor may request a McGill Username of the format firstname.lastname@affliate.mcgill.ca on behalf of visitors and affiliates. For more details, see the article Affiliate accounts.
In this article:
What is my McGill Username?
Your McGill Username, along with your McGill password, is used to access most online services and IT systems at McGill.
Your McGill Username is based on your first and last name with the suffix @mcgill.ca (faculty & staff), @mail.mcgill.ca (students), or @affiliate.mcgill.ca (affiliates) appended to it.
If you did not receive a "Welcome" email containing your McGill Username when you entered McGill, you can locate your Username(s) in Minerva. You will need to sign in with your 9-digit McGill ID number and PIN; then go to Personal menu > Password for McGill Username. Your McGill Username and Short Username are displayed on the screen.
How is my McGill Username assigned?
The firstname.lastname portion of your McGill Username (everything before the @ symbol) is unique.
If the firstname.lastname that normally would have been assigned to you is already being used by someone else with the same name (Example: daniel.lewis), then one of the following will happen:
- If your name entry in Minerva contains your middle name, then you will appear as firstname.middle initial.lastname.
(Example: daniel.d.lewis) - If the same firstname.middle initial.lastname is already being used, then you will appear as firstname.full middlename.lastname.
(Example: daniel.day.lewis) - If your name entry in Minerva has no middle name, then your firstname.lastname will be appended with the next available number.
(Example: daniel.lewis4)
If you prefer not to have a number appended to your firstname.lastname, you can supply your middle name in Minerva and contact the IT Service Desk to request that your middle initial or middle name be reflected in your McGill Username, as in the examples above. You can also create an email alias to reflect your preferred first name by following the instructions in the article Change the name (create an alias) for my McGill Email Address.
What is my Short Username?
The Short Username is usually composed of the first letter of your first name, and then first 5 letters of your last name, often followed by a number to ensure uniqueness. Example: jsmith5
The Short Username is used to sign into a few systems at McGill:
- by employees, to log into their McGill desktop computer (i.e. in the Username field, in combination with the McGill Password) and a few enterprise systems such as Banner INB (in the User Name field, but with a distinct Banner password).
- by students, printing from their laptops or home computers as part of the uPrint service.
- by faculty & staff, to configure a WebDAV connection to access network files from of campus (with the McGill Password).
How do I change or reset my McGill password?
Current students, faculty, staff members and retirees
IMPORTANT: After changing or resetting your McGill Password
Follow steps in the McGill Password Reset Checklist to identify and change any saved passwords on your computer or mobile devices.
If you know your McGill Password you can change it here.
If you do not know your password you have 2 options to reset it:
If you have Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) enabled |
If you do NOT have Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) enabled |
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You can reset your McGill Password using Self-Service Password Reset (SSPR). NOTE: If you prefer, you can still change your password in Minerva. |
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Alumni
Go to Alumni.mcgill.ca/register and click Reset password
IMPORTANT: After changing or resetting your McGill Password
Follow steps in the McGill Password Reset Checklist to identify and change any saved passwords on your computer or mobile devices.
Need help?
If you cannot log into Minerva by answering the security question or by requesting an email PIN reset link, you will need to have your PIN manually reset:
- Students, applicants, and guests (e.g. parents/guardians of students): call Service Point at 514-398-7878, or submit the ServicePoint PIN reset request form.
- Faculty, staff, affiliates, and external service providers: contact the IT Service Desk.
- Alumni: contact University Advancement at community.alumni@mcgill.ca
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES: