Passwords and Accounts
Passwords and Accounts
This page provides important information about the different accounts and passwords you’ll use at GCCCD. You may also find guidance on how to reset passwords and troubleshoot any access issues.
Two Accounts
GCCCD Students and Faculty have two different accounts/passwords to manage. Each one is used to access different campus systems:
You have one primary account that is your @gcccd.edu email. Credentials are sent to students’ personal email address shortly after applying to the school. Faculty credentials are supplied as part of onboarding.
Your primary account is used to access:
- Self-Service
- Computers on campus (PCs and Macs) · District/Grossmont/Cuyamaca email (@gcccd.edu)
- Library Databases (Films on Demand, Kanopy, etc.)
- Microsoft Office and OneDrive (office.com)
- Specific online forms (DynamicForms)
Students are able to reset their password by the following the Microsoft's password recovery tool.
Complexity requirements for Self-Service dictate passwords should be six to nine characters in length (no more, no less) and include both upper and lowercase letters as well as digits. Attempting to use a password that doesn't meet these requirements will fail.
Canvas is the District's Learning Management System of choice. For most courses, students will find course materials and submit their assignments in Canvas.
Your Canvas username is the same as your username for Self-Service: firstname.lastname. The Canvas account password format is listed on the Canvas login page.
Password reset is also available on the Canvas login page. An email will be sent to your personal email address with instructions.
For Canvas-related issues, support channels vary. If you need help with:
- an assignment, due date, or quiz attempt - contact your Instructor. You may utilize the Inbox function within Canvas, or follow contact instructions provided in the course syllabus
- a technical issue like login or browser errors - you may contact the Canvas 24/7 Support Line at 1-844-600-4953. You may also Live Chat with a Support Agent
Username Exceptions
Name Too Long or Name Collisions
As indicated above, for most systems your username is simply your firstname.lastname. However, there are a few notable exceptions:
- if your first name and last name combination is common (e.g., John Smith) it may create a duplicate in our system. In this case, you may have numbers appended to the end of your username -- for example: john.smith47725
- students with very long names or multiple last names may need to truncate, or cut, their username to 20 characters total (including the "."). Leonardo Michelangelo Donatello-Raphael's username, for instance, would be cut to: leonardo.donatellora
- in rare instances, the two conditions may be combined. You may end up with a username with truncated digits at the end -- George Lincoln Washington may have a username of george.washington539
Apple Computers
The campus has a limited selection of Apple Mac computers. These are used in specific courses. When logging in to Apple computers:
- use your main campus account password
- alter your username by adding @students.gcccd.edu -- for instance: george.washington539@students.gcccd.edu
Zoom Accounts
Students do not need a Zoom account to join their instructor's Zoom Session. Instructors should be providing Zoom links for their students to join.
If you encounter difficulties joining or within a meeting, please review the Troubleshooting Zoom Meetings articles on their support site.
For Faculty/Staff: Zoom instance is managed by District Enterprise Computing team. If you are a faculty or staff member and you need a school-linked Zoom account, please reach out to the District IT Help Desk at helpdesk@gcccd.edu.