What is my McGill Username and how do I change my McGill Password?


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:

  1. If your name entry in Minerva contains your middle name, then you will appear as firstname.middle initial.lastname.
    (Example: daniel.d.lewis)
  2. If the same firstname.middle initial.lastname is already being used, then you will appear as firstname.full middlename.lastname.
    (Example: daniel.day.lewis)
  3. 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:


How do I change or reset my McGill password?

Current students, faculty, staff members and retirees

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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

You can reset your McGill Password using Self-Service Password Reset (SSPR).

NOTE: If you prefer, you can still change your password in Minerva.

  1. Log into Minerva using your 9-digit McGill ID number and PIN.
    • If you don’t remember your PIN, click the FORGOT PIN? link on the login page; you will be prompted to answer your Minerva Security Question, or request a PIN reset link be emailed to your personal email address on record.
    • If you never set up a PIN, it may be your birth date, in the format YYMMDD (YY are the last 2 digits of your birthdate).
  2. In Minerva, go to Personal menu > Password for McGill Username. Your McGill Username and Short Username are displayed on the screen.
  3. Follow the instructions on screen to choose a new McGill Password.

Alumni

Go to Alumni.mcgill.ca/register and click Reset password

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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:

 

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES: