Technology Guides

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.

Single Sign-On

GCCCD has deployed single sign-on (SSO). This means that a single @gcccd.edu account grants access to Self-Service, Canvas, GCCCD email, and more. This is your primary account with the District, and passwords for this account must be at least 16 characters long.

Credentials are sent to a student's personal email address shortly after they apply to the school. Faculty credentials are supplied as part of employee onboarding.

Generally speaking, the email username is either firstname.lastname@gcccd.edu or firstinitial.lastname@gcccd.edu (depending upon when you applied). Notable exceptions are listed in their own section, below.

Your primary account is used to access:

Note: Students, faculty, and staff must set up multi-factor authentication (MFA) to access Self-Service, Canvas, or their GCCCD Email.

When logging in to a campus PC, Self-Service, Canvas, or your @gcccd.edu email, you may receive a prompt to update your password. Do not ignore this prompt when you receive it. Otherwise, you may become locked out of your account.

Forgotten Passwords

Users with multi-factor authentication may reset their password at any time by using Microsoft's Password Reset tool.

Please note the following password requirements. New passwords:

  • must be at least 16 characters long
  • cannot be too similar to the past 10 passwords used
  • cannot contain your name or username

Note: Users without multi-factor authentication on their account are unable to reset their own passwords. Please contact your campus Help Desk for assistance.

Canvas

Access Canvas using the same @gcccd.edu SSO account/password as used for Self-Service. Please be advised, however, that Canvas login will not be accessible until 3-6 hours after registering for a course (waitlisted courses do not count).
 
For Canvas login issues, first verify you are using your @gcccd.edu SSO credentials. Second, verify you are registered for at least one course and have waited the proper amount of time as explained above.
 
Further Canvas support channels vary. If you need help with:

  • Logging in using your @gcccd.edu email and Self-Service password - contact your campus Help Desk.
  • 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.
  • How to navigate and use Canvas - see the Canvas Student Support page.
  • Technical issues like course materials, submissions, browser errors, or after-hours login support - you may contact the Canvas 24/7 Support Line at 1-844-600-4953. You may also Live Chat with a Support Agent.

Faculty in need of course support please see the Canvas Support for Faculty page.

Username Exceptions

Name Too Long or Name Collisions

There are a few notable exceptions to the username/@gcccd.edu email addresses referenced above. Alterations depend upon when you applied to become a student.

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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@gcccd.edu.

Returning 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@gcccd.edu.

If your first initial and last name combination is common (e.g., B Smith) it may create a duplicate in our system. In this case, you may have number(s) appended to the end of your username -- for example: b.smith1@gcccd.edu, b.smith2@gcccd.edu, b.smith3@gcccd.edu, etc.

Newer students with very long names or multiple last names may need to truncate, or cut, their username to 16 characters total (including the "."). alexander.alexingtonstien would cut their username to: a.alexingtonstie@gcccd.edu.

Note: If you are unable to discern your username, it can be looked up by any area that services students including Admissions and Records, Counseling, Financial Aid, EOPS, or any Help Desk.

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: Grossmont's Zoom instance is managed by our 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.

Updating vs. Resetting Passwords

No password is forever. Students and faculty must regularly update their passwords. You may receive a notice that your password is expiring when logging into Self-Service, Canvas, GCCCD Email, or a campus computer. Please update your password when prompted. Off-campus users may follow the directions in our Update Email Password guide.

Please note the following password requirements. New passwords:

  • must be at least 16 characters long
  • cannot be too similar to the past 10 passwords used
  • cannot contain your name or username

Note: You may change or update your @gcccd.edu SSO password (Self-Service, Canvas, GCCCD Email) at any time. Please be advised, however, you may not do so more than once every 24 hours.

If you have lost access and need to reset a password, please see the instructions in the Forgotten Passwords section at the top of this page.

Need further assistance?

If you have questions or need clarification about this guidance, please reach out to the Help Desk.