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Overview
Welcome to the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA)! We are excited to have you join us. This guide is intended to help new employees with common tasks that are necessary to get familiarized with technology resources available to individuals affiliated with the University of Alaska Anchorage. Read on to learn more about, and take advantage of the great resources and tools available to UAA employees.
UAA's Information Technology Services (IT Services) department is your primary contact for assistance with technology, telephone, and account issues. If you do not find what you need in this guide please contact the Technical Support Center (TSC). Please note our hours may vary over breaks, and university holidays, so please refer to the IT Services website for updates.
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In this article
Your Account
Please follow the instructions on how to Claim Your UA Username and Set up Multi-Factor Authentication with Duo. If you've forgotten your UA Identity password you can reset your password. If you've forgotten your answers to your security questions, please contact the TSC for assistance.
Your University of Alaska identity will provide you access to many resources at the university. Once activated, you will use your UA username and password to:
Your Email
The University of Alaska (UA) provides all students, staff, and faculty with an email account. The primary mail service is G Suite for Education. You can access your UA email through the UA Gmail portal. Get help with setting up email using our Email Knowledge Base articles.
Your office phone
Many staff and faculty are assigned a university telephone number for their office. It is recommended that you verify that the phone number has been assigned to you, and is not still associated with someone else. If it has not been assigned to you, please notify your supervisor and they will need to contact us on your behalf.
Check your directory listing
You should visit the UAA Online Directory, and search for your name, or UA username. If an entry for you is not displayed in the Online Directory, or the information displayed is incorrect. Please see the Knowledge Base article Update my Employee Listing in the Online Directory.
Your first week
The following are things you should check, read, and verify are working as soon as possible. This will ensure you are aware of policies, where to find important information, and how to get help when needed.
Acceptable Use Policy
Please take a few minutes to read UAA's Acceptable Use Policy. This document explains what constitutes acceptable, and inappropriate, use of campus computing and network resources.
Electronic Mail Policy
Please take a few minutes to read UAA's Electronic Mail Policy. This document explains what constitutes acceptable, and inappropriate, use of the university email system. Additionally, you'll want to review the University of Alaska Administrative Guidelines: Use of Email.
Options for storing files at UAA.
At UAA, you have a variety of options to store all your important stuff ranging from OneDrive for Business, Google Drive, and more. We encourage you to review our Where Should I Save Files article for details on the options available to help you make your selection.
Employee Services
Tasks such as submitting your timesheets, checking your pay stubs, benefits, time-off/leave, job history, tax statements, etc. are easier when you know where to start. Visit UA Online to access many employee services.
myUA Employee Training
Your Department and the University of Alaska Human Resources (UA HR) require the completion of several training courses that are accessed through the myUA portal, such as FERPA, Data Security, and Learning Library. It is important to note that new employees typically don't have access to this portal on their first day. If you continue to have issues logging in (but every other UA web service works), you should contact UA HR.
WolfCard
UAA's campus identity card is the WolfCard. The WolfCard provides access to many university services, such as access to the Consortium Library, Seawolf Sports Center, and Campus activities. You can also deposit funds on your WolfCard and use it as payment on campus and participating local retailers.
- Pick up your UAA ID (WolfCard). You can get your Wolfcard at one of the following locations:
- Anchorage Campus:
- University Center (UC) - At the cashier windows
- Consortium Library (LIB) - At the Circulation Desk
- Homer Campus:
- Bayview Hall Learning Resource Center(LRC)/Library- Application forms are available from the Learning Resource Center (LRC)/Library Manager
- Kenai River Campus:
- Enid S McLane (EMB) - In the KRC Bookstore
- Kodiak Campus:
- Campus Center - In the Student Services office (room 103)
- MatSu Campus:
- Fred & Sara Machetanz (FSM) - In the Student Services office (room 101)
- Valdez Campus (Wolfcard also known as Buoy Card)
Security
Keep it secret. Keep it safe.
There's a long-standing debate between the use of passwords vs passphrases and their relative merits concerning both security and usability.
Examples (by xkcd):
- Password: Tr0ub4dor&3
- Passphrase: correctHorsebatteryStaple
Without diving into the complexities of information theory, randomness, etc. The short summary is that both passwords and passphrases can be secure, and if you're using a password manager, the security and usability differences between passwords and passphrases are usually insignificant. However, UAA recommends the use of unique passphrases for each account. While passphrases usually contain more characters than passwords, the use of a mnemonic device usually makes the passphrase easier to remember. Thus reducing the likelihood of people using simpler passwords, writing them down, or reusing them on multiple accounts.
When using passphrases keep the following in mind:
- Four words are usually sufficient, however, five are better.
- Don't use the most common words, and don't choose quotes or sayings. The words should be as random as possible. Pull out an online dictionary and expand your vocabulary by selecting a few less common words (e.g. GelasticSubarmaleOnProemptosis).
- Each account should have a unique passphrase of its own. This way if any one passphrase is compromised, the other accounts remain secure.
If you need to use a password it should be composed of at least 15 random characters; however, we only recommend this approach if you're using them with a password manager. This will help you securely store them without having to write them down or remember them.
Secure Your Mobile Device
Many people elect to configure their mobile phone, and/or tablet to check their university email for ease of access. If you elect to do this we strongly recommend that you use a passcode on your device. Set the device to auto-lock after a period of inactivity (we suggest 2 minutes).
Departmental Security Groups
Many departments use a variety of security groups to manage access to shared services available to employees of the department. Please speak with your supervisor, or department chair to ensure you have been added to the appropriate groups to access resources within G Suite @ UA, Office 365 @ UA, local file shares, etc.
Other Services
There are many resources available to the university community.
Campus WiFi
UAA provides wireless Internet connectivity from anywhere on campus.
Office 365 @ UA
All students, staff, and faculty are provided with a Office 365 account. This account provides access to online storage and various online applications (e.g. Word Online, Excel Online, etc.), all conveniently accessed from a single interface, available wherever and whenever you need it. You also have access to Microsoft 365 apps for Enterprise, providing you a software license to install the latest version of Microsoft Office on your personal computer, and mobile device. You can learn more about available services in Office 365 @ UA.
G Suite for Education @ UA
All students, staff, and faculty of the university are provided with a free G Suite for Education account. This is your primary university email account, with access to online storage and various online applications (e.g. Docs, Sheets, etc.), all conveniently accessed from a single interface, available wherever and whenever you need it. You can learn more about available services in G Suite @ UA.
Learning Management System (Blackboard)
UAA's official Learning Management System (LMS) is the Blackboard Learn platform.
PDF Reader and Editor
A PDF Reader will allow you to view, annotate, and fill out form-fill PDF documents. To fully edit and modify (in addition to view and annotate) PDF documents you will need a PDF Editor. The Foxit PDF Editor is UA's recommended alternative to Adobe Acrobat Pro. The software has comparable features to the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Pro DC and is compatible with current macOS and Windows operations systems. The FoxitPDF software is licensed through a centrally managed University of Alaska system license agreement and is available at no cost to university staff, faculty, and students.
Need additional help or have issues
For additional assistance, contact the Technical Support Center via phone at (907) 786-4646, toll-free at (877) 633-3888, text "SUPPORT" to 844-705-0262, email us at uaa.techsupport@alaska.edu, or you can use the Seawolf Tech Portal to submit a support ticket.
Please note our hours may vary over breaks, and university holidays, so please refer to the IT Services website for updates.