Incoming Students Starting On-Campus

Owned by Jessica Stockett
Last updated: Jul 27, 2022
2 min read

Please make sure you are familiar with the college’s current plans for the upcoming academic year. Please also check out Frequently Asked Questions for Students, Parents, and Families.

Swarthmore Account

All students registered for a Swarthmore class are assigned a student ID and username. Accounts are created automatically for new students in the fall and spring. You will be sent instructions for accessing your account upon initial enrollment.

If you do not have a username please contact the Registrar's office (registrar@swarthmore.edu). 

Bryn Mawr College, Haverford College, University of Pennsylvania, and Strath Haven High School students who need to log into Moodle

You must be registered for a Swarthmore course to log into Moodle, and you'll need to use a Swarthmore Account to do so.  After registering for a course, you will receive an email with your username and instructions for setting up your Swarthmore password. If you have not yet registered for a course, but need access to the content, ask your professor about guest access

Account Usage

Your username and password can be used to access most campus digital services, such as:

  • The campus network (Wi-Fi)

  • Google Workspace, including Gmail, Google Drive, Docs, and Sheets

  • mySwarthmore

  • Moodle, Swarthmore's learning management system

For guidelines on responsible conduct while using Swarthmore accounts and services, please review our Acceptable Use Policy for Swarthmore College computer systems and networks.

Setting Your First Password

  1. Visit password.swarthmore.edu.

  2. Enter your Swarthmore Username (example: jsmith1) and click submit.

  3. Choose to verify your account By providing answers to my secret questions.

  4. Enter your 9 digit student/employee ID Number.

  5. You will now be prompted to configure your personalized secret questions. Close the pop-up message and proceed to answer the default questions. It is best to keep your answers simple, so they are easier to remember. Then click the submit button.

  6. You will now be able to reset your password. Choose Reset my password to continue.

  7. Create a new password based on the rules provided in the right-hand column - you may have to scroll to the right to view. Click submit. View our page on tips for creating strong passwords.

    1. In the event that your password fails to verify, a red 'X' will appear next to the rule(s) that were not satisfied. Make the needed changes and click submit again.

    2. If your password is accepted, you will see a pop-up message confirming that you have successfully reset your password. Click exit to close the session.

  8. You may now close this browser window.

For instructions on how to reset your password in the future, please visit our Password Reset instructions page.

Duo Two-Factor Authentication

Swarthmore uses Duo two-factor authentication to help you keep your Swarthmore account secure. This kind of authentication requires something you know (like your account username and password) coupled with something you have (a device registered with the service such as your cell phone). Requiring interaction with a device you have with you ensures that only you are able to access your account, even if your password were to be compromised. For more information about Duo please visit our Getting Started with Duo page. The first time you log into your Swarthmore account you will be prompted to register a device for Duo. For step-by-step instructions on how the registration process works, plus helpful tips for different device types please visit our page on adding and managing devices in Duo.

It is highly recommended that you register more than one device with Duo to make sure you never have an issue logging into your account. 

Connecting to Campus Wi-Fi (eduroam)

Connecting to eduroam

  1. Connect to the eduroam Wi-Fi network

  2. For username, enter your full email address (e.g. jdoe1@yourinstitution.edu)

  3. Enter your home institution password

  4. For Android devices and Chromebooks: follow these configuration instructions

  5. Accept the security certificate if prompted, and follow any instructions to launch the registration webpage (see Register your Computer below)

    1. You can review the certificate and verify that it is the correct one by comparing with the following fingerprints, as of November 2023:

      1. SHA1 fingerprint:  AA:36:29:F1:B1:03:32:6C:00:8A:46:99:AA:62:E5:57:C2:CC:9E:AC or

      2. SHA256 fingerprint: B5:D4:45:E9:C1:08:F8:FB:DF:F7:D4:B9:C7:E2:AF:13:F0:40:6E:9F:9E:BD:A5:50:CE:25:C5:B3:37:EC:59:DB

After connecting to the eduroam wifi network for the first time on a computer, you will need to install the Swarthmore Policy Key. To do so, please follow the Register Your Computer directions below.

Register Your Computer

Computers running Windows and macOS operating systems will have to install software at this stage. The software is an agent from SafeConnect that runs in the background called Policy Key. (The Policy Key software is not required for Android, IOS, and Linux computers.) A few moments after you first connect to eduroam, a web page should open with the Swarthmore network registration process - if not, open up a web browser and go to any off-campus webpage (e.g. cnn.com), which will redirect you to the registration page. Enter your Swarthmore username (leave off @swarthmore.edu) and password, then download and install SafeConnect to install the Policy Key. If prompted, install anti-virus - an up-to-date and fully functional anti-virus is required to obtain access to the network.

After installing the required software, it may take up to three minutes for your network connection to reconfigure. When it does, you should be online! If it does not automatically redirect you to the Swarthmore home page, open up a new tab or window, and try to go to your off-campus webpage again (e.g. cnn.com or facebook.com, etc.).

Register Gaming or Other Devices

  1. Disable Private and Randomized Wi-Fi MAC Addresses, which interfere with the SwatDevice registration process. If the MAC address changes, the device is treated as a new device and will no longer be able to access the internet. 

  2. Find the device's MAC address

    • See the instructions for finding the MAC address of many common devices

    • If your device is not listed in the instructions, check your user manual or contact the device manufacturer for device-specific instructions

    • If your device has both wired and wireless connections, be sure to use the wireless MAC address

  3. Submit a Service Request with the following details (requires Swarthmore account login):

    • The device's MAC address

    • The type of device

    • MAC address of second device, if it needs to pair with another device to complete setup (like Google Home)

  4. Wait for email confirmation that your device has been registered – depending on how busy the Network Team is, this may take a few days.

For more information, tips on how to find your device’s MAC address, and examples of the kind of devices that require this type of registration, please visit our Gaming and Device Registration page.

Anti-Virus Protection

Make sure you are running up to date antivirus (AV) software whether on a PC or Mac (yes, definitely Macs too). Being up to date includes the AV software itself and the signatures. Also, be sure to schedule a periodic scan of your computer (scheduled to run at least once a week).

There are several companies that provide free antivirus software. These are just a few:

This information about antivirus updates applies primarily to personally-owned, non-ITS-managed computers.

Zoom

Zoom video conferencing with a pro license is available for all Swarthmore students. You can use this service to attend remote classes, meet with study groups, or virtually attend various campus events. You can access Zoom via the web at swarthmore.zoom.us or download the desktop or mobile applications. For more information on Zoom please visit our Zoom Video Conferencing page.

Software

Swarthmore provides software for download to assist our students in their learning. You can browse and install available software from our Software Installation page.

Please note that not all software listed on our installation page is available for students to download. Check the Access column - if it lists Students or Everyone it is available for student download. Make sure to also check the Platform column to ensure the software is compatible with your computer's operating system. All of our software is available for use in our public computing spaces on campus.

Printing

Students have printers available to them in each dorm, as well as in areas such as the libraries and some public computing spaces. For more information on printer locations and how to print on-campus please visit our student printing page.

Contact the Help Desk

Below is a list of all of the ways you can contact ITS or find information:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ways you can contact ITS or find information:

ITS Support Portal: https://support.swarthmore.edu
Email: support@swarthmore.edu
Phone: x4357 (HELP) or 610-328-8513
Check out our remote resources at https://swatkb.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/remote/overview
Check our homepage at https://swarthmore.edu/its