Technology Services

Technology Help for New Students

Welcome to USCA! To get started with campus technology, be sure to set up your accounts. You may also view topics of interest to new students, such as recommended computer specifications (under What to Bring to Campus) and troubleshooting information.

More information for students (such as how to register for classes and reset your passwords) can be found on the Current Students page.

DON'T FORGET TO SET UP YOUR PACER ACCOUNT!

Your PACER ACCOUNT is separate from the other accounts you may have already set up. You should do this immediately.

Without a Pacer Account you may miss important information from the campus and will delay everything you're doing during Orientation. Your Pacer Account It is needed to access your @usca.edu email account, campus computers, campus wifi, and other USCA resources.

Jump to setup instructions for your PACER ACCOUNT!

Setup Accounts and Passwords
First Time Account Setup

USC Aiken students, faculty, staff and affiliates have two groups of accounts: USC University Services Accounts and USC Aiken Campus Accounts. Between the two groups you'll have five accounts.  Five accounts may sound like a lot, but you'll only use one or two on a typical day.

Setup is fairly simple.

Assuming you have all required information available when setting up accounts, setup of all five accounts takes less than 10-minutes.

We're here to help with any problems.

If you run into any problems setting your accounts up, contact the USC Aiken Help Desk and we'll walk you through the rest of the process step-by-step.  Not on campus? Give us a call phone (803-641-3391) or send an email (help@usca.edu). On campus?  Stop by the Help Desk for a walk-in appointment anytime.  We're open Monday through Friday all year.

You need three pieces of information and access to phone/email.

Before starting account setup, make sure you know this information:

    Legal Last Name
    Birthdate
    VIP ID (students only) (this is included in your acceptance information)
    Last 4-digits of SSN or USC ID (faculty/staff/affiliates only)

You'll also need access to your personal email account and your mobile phone:

    Personal Email Account (used to receive and confirm account verification codes)
    Mobile Phone (used for multifactor authentication - don't have a phone? you'll have another option)

Avoid account problems your first day on campus.

Complete all steps below in the order presented.  Each account builds on the one set up before it.  If you try to set accounts up out of order or skip setting up an account, you'll run into problems.  
Part 1: USC University Services Accounts

Accounts used to access USC university services are assigned by USC Columbia University Technology Services (UTS) and include:

    VIP ID
    Network Username (sometimes referred to as Enterprise ID or Blackboard ID)
    Multifactor Authentication (MFA)

These accounts are used to access services like:

    Self-Service Carolina (SSC)
    Financial Aid
    Housing
    Class Registration
    Grades
    Blackboard
    Library Journals
    Emergency Notification Settings
    HR/Payroll (faculty/staff/student workers only)
    PeopleSoft (faculty/staff only) 
    Banner (faculty/staff only) 
    Data Warehouse (faculty/staff only) 
    Millennium (faculty/staff only) 
    Other administrative sites and those containing PII or FERPA data (faculty/staff only) 

Account Management Menu provides a single interface of options needed to setup and manage these accounts. The menu offers these options:

    Account Claiming
    Update Account Settings
    Forgot Password
    Forgot ID's
    Need Further Assistance/Reclaim Account

USC Aiken students, faculty, staff or affiliates, should keep the following in mind:

    Choose a "Preferred Email Address" ending in @usca.edu if prompted
    Choose "Aiken" or "USC Aiken" for any settings or links which offer multiple campuses as options  

*** Setup your USC University Services Accounts:

To setup or manage your USC Services Accounts, go here: https://myaccount.sc.edu and click Account Claiming.
Part 2: USC Aiken Campus Accounts

USC Aiken campus accounts are created by your USC Aiken Computer Services Division (CSD)/Help Desk team and include:

    Pacer Account
    @usca.edu Email Account

Campus accounts allow access to these systems and services:

    PACERNET and PacerStudent Wi-Fi
    Classroom and Lab Computers
    @usca.edu Email
    Office 365
    Impulse SafeConnect
    Pulse Secure VPN
    Shared Drives (J/K/Art)
    PacerPrint Printing
    Other usca.edu Websites

Setting up USC Aiken campus accounts is a simple two-step process:

    Set a new password for your Pacer Account
    Sign into Office 365

Those two steps are detailed below.
*** STEP 1: Set a new password for your Pacer Account

All USC Aiken students, faculty, staff and affiliates are assigned a Pacer Account.

To set a new password for your account, use the appropriate information listed below and go to: http://reset.usca.edu 

All Student accounts and Faculty/Staff/Affiliate accounts created after March 31st 2019:

    Username: Your Pacer Account username matches your Enterprise ID. (To find your Enterprise ID, go to: https://myaccount.sc.edu and click "Forgot ID's")
    Password: Your initial password is the last 5-digits of your VIP ID number followed by the characters USCA#  (Example: If the last 5-digits of your VIP ID number are 12345, your initial password is 12345USCA#)

Faculty, Staff and Affiliate accounts created before April 1st, 2019:

    Username: Nothing has changed. (You will continue using the username you've always used.)
    Password: Nothing has changed. (Your password has not changed and is whatever you last set it to.)

*** Step 2: Sign into Office 365

Office 365 includes web access to your @usca.edu email.  This is where you'll also find Office web apps, Office 2016 Pro downloads, 1TB OneDrive for Business storage, and more.

To sign into Office 365, use your email address and password as explained below, and go to: https://office.com

    Email: Your email address is your Pacer Account followed by @usca.edu (Example: If your Pacer Account is: somebodyj99 your email address is: somebodyj99@usca.edu. You also selected this as your Preferred Email when setting up your USC Services Accounts.)
    Password: Your email uses your Pacer Account password. (Wait at least 5-minutes after reset before signing into Office 365.)

IMPORTANT: Before setting up your @usca.edu email account on a mobile device, or in any other email client, first complete setup by signing into Office 365 and clicking the Outlook icon.

For more information on your @usca.edu email account and your Office 365 benefits, please visit the Office 354 page.
How do I set up Multifactor Authentication (MFA) for my USC Services Accounts?
Most systems managed by the USC-Columbia campus are protected by Multifactor Authentication (MFA) using the DUO Security system.  The primary…
What accounts will I create, and what are they used to access?
USC University Services Accounts Accounts used to access USC university services are assigned by USC Columbia University Technology Services (UTS)…
How do I set a new password for my Pacer Account?
Setting up USC Aiken campus accounts is a simple two-step process: Set a new password for your Pacer Account Sign…
How do I setup or manage my USC Services Accounts?
To setup or manage your USC Services Accounts, go here: https://myaccount.sc.edu and click Account Claiming. USC Aiken students, faculty, staff or affiliates, should…
What information do I need to have in order to set up my accounts?
You need three pieces of information and access to phone/email. Before starting account setup, make sure you know this information:…
How long does it take to set up my accounts?
Assuming you have all required information available when setting up accounts, setup of all five accounts takes less than 10-minutes.
I don't know my VIP ID
Your VIP ID is included in your acceptance letter.

Welcome to the Technology Services Help Desk, your one-stop destination for technical support!

Our dedicated team is committed to providing unparalleled assistance to students, faculty, and staff, ensuring a seamless and enriching experience with our digital resources. Whether you’re encountering a software snag, needing hardware guidance, or seeking general IT advice, we’re here to lend a helping hand. Appointments are available all year, including throughout the summer! Instead of waiting until classes start, stop by any time for assistance! To ensure someone will be here to help you quickly, be sure to call or email for an appointment.

At the Help Desk, our mission is simple: to empower our university community by delivering reliable, efficient, and personalized support. Let us be your trusted partners on your technological journey because excellence begins with assistance at USCA.