Many departments at Swarthmore have shared email accounts that can be accessed by more than one person.  Examples are email accounts like "admissions" or "registrar".   These accounts are configured as "delegated accounts" in Gmail and can be accessed directly from your Gmail account.  A delegated account is more secure because there isn't a single shared password among users.  Users can be added or removed from the account without worrying about changing or remembering a password. 

Limitations of Delegated Accounts

Delegated accounts don't have Google Drive, Calendar, Chat, or Labs functions.  It is possible to create a shared Google Drive space using Google Groups or AODocs.  

Accessing a Delegated Email Account

When you are granted access to a delegated email account, you can open it by clicking on your profile picture or email address in the upper-right corner of Gmail. Choose the shared email address from the lower half of this menu and the delegated account will open in a new tab within your web browser.

The delegated email account will allow you to send and receive mail sent to the shared address and label or filter messages as you would in your own mailbox.   Any mail organization that you perform (marking as read, replying, deleting) will be seen by all delegates.

Any messages you send from the delegated account will have your name listed in addition to the account's name, so the sender will appear as: Your Name (sent by Delegated Account).   Sent mail notices and direct replies to messages will go to the shared account.

As a delegate you can access the contacts of the shared account by clicking the Contacts link. Clicking the To, Cc, or Bcc links in the mail compose window will also bring up your contacts.