OU and OU Health Campus account access expires at different times depending on your role (student, employee, emeritus, guest), access to sensitive data, and campus location, in accordance with OU’s account expiration policy. Once expired, the account and all associated files and mailbox contents will no longer be accessible.
Please refer to the Quick Links to assist in navigation based on role and campus.
Student Accounts - OU
Accounts belonging to students who have completed courses, including graduates of the university, expire after three inactive enrollment periods (including summer). Accounts belonging to individuals who are admitted to the university but do not enroll in the semester for which they are admitted, expire during the semester for which they were admitted unless otherwise arranged directly with Admissions.
All expiring accounts are scheduled for deletion 30 days in advance, and receive email notifications about the pending deletion 30, 15, 5, and 1 day in advance. If you believe that an account has been scheduled for deletion in error, please visit the IT Support page or call 405-325-HELP.
For more information about student account expiration and how to access services that may be helpful to former students, please visit the Services for Former Account Holders article.
Accounts belonging to students who have completed courses, including graduates of the university, expire after three inactive enrollment periods (including summer). Accounts belonging to individuals who are admitted to the university but do not enroll in the semester for which they are admitted, expire during the semester for which they were admitted unless otherwise arranged directly with Admissions.
OU graduates are encouraged to visit the Email Services section to learn more about available post-graduation email services.
Student Accounts - OU Health Campus
Due to the sensitive data presumed to be in a Health Campus account (e.g. PHI), students who have completed their course work (e.g. graduate) will lose access 30 days post-graduation. Accounts belonging to individuals who are admitted to the university but do not enroll in the semester, expire during the semester for which they were admitted unless otherwise arranged directly with Recruitment and Admissions. Individuals who withdraw from all coursework, do not attend enrolled courses, or are dismissed from their program will lose access to their accounts immediately.
Health Campus graduates receive a 30-day notice of account expiration. If you believe that an account has been scheduled to expire in error, please visit the IT Support or call 405-325-HELP. Valid reasons for a continued need to access a Health Campus student account include, but are not limited to, current enrollment in a OU Health Campus course or active OU Health Campus employment.
OU Health Campus graduates are encouraged to visit the Email Services section to learn more about available post-graduation email services.
Terminated Employee Accounts - OU
Upon the conclusion of employment with OU, employee accounts are typically scheduled for expiration approximately 30 days after the last day of employment.
If a former employee needs to continued access to OU services due to a current affiliation with a college/department, that department should initiate the process to request an Exception/Guest account (via IT) or academic affiliate account (via HR) several days before the expiration date to avoid possible service interruption or loss of data. All requests for Exception/Guest accounts or academic affiliate accounts are subject to several approvals by various departments.
Departments who need assistance with actions pertaining to accounts of former employees (forwards, access, out of office messages, etc.) should review the Non-Standard Account Action Requests knowledge base article.
Terminated Employee Accounts - OU Health Campus
Due to the sensitive data presumed to be in a Health Campus account (e.g. PHI) employee access is removed immediately as part of the employment termination process.
If a former employee needs to continued access to OU services due to a current affiliation with a college/department, that department should initiate the process to request an Exception/Guest account (via IT) or academic affiliate account (via HR).
Note: Individuals which have access to sensitive data (e.g. PHI), were previously required to complete HIPAA training, or engage with students should work through their department to be hired into the appropriate academic affiliation, via HR.
Departments who need assistance with actions pertaining to accounts of former employees (forwards, access, out of office messages, etc.) should review the Non-Standard Account Action Requests knowledge base article.
Exception/Guest Accounts
Exception/Guest accounts expire at the time dictated on the request, which in most cases, is not allowed to exceed one year. Renewal requests must be submitted in order to extend the lifespan of the account. Exception accounts require annual approval, sponsorship of a full-time OU employee, and must be approved by the dean/director/chair of the affiliated department or college.
To request a new exception account or to renew an account, please complete an Exception/Guest service request. Please note that requests may take 5-7 days to process after receiving the approval of the department dean/director/chair. For account renewal requests, it is recommended that the request be submitted at least seven days in advance in order to decrease the chances of any service interruption or loss of data.
Retiree Accounts
Accounts for most retirees expire on similar timeline as terminated employees – see the Emeritus Account section for an exception to this timeline.
If a former employee needs to continued access to OU services due to a current affiliation with a college/department, that department should initiate the process to request an Exception/Guest account (via IT) or academic affiliate account (via HR).
Note: Individuals which have access to sensitive data (e.g. PHI), were previously required to complete HIPAA training, or engage with students should work through their department to be hired into the appropriate academic affiliation, via HR.
OU Retirees are encouraged to visit the Email Services section below to learn more about availability as part of their retirement.
Alumni/Retiree Email Services
OU IT is pleased to offer University of Oklahoma Alumni and Retirees continued email access using the @alumni.ou.edu domain. The OU Alumni account is not associated with @ou.edu or @ouhsc.edu email addresses, and OU IT is unable to facilitate data transfer (including a current account) into the alumni account.
Visit our Alumni Email FAQ knowledge base article to learn more about the service or our Alumni/Retiree Email Address knowledge base article to learn more about requesting an account.
Emeritus Accounts
OU IT recognizes the prestige and honor granted to Professor Emeritus and works with the Emeritus, department, and Provost Office to ensure seamless and appropriate access to the university account for the holder. Please visit our Emeritus Account Access knowledge base article to learn more.
Shared/Organization Accounts
Currently, Shared/Organization accounts do not expire. Shared/Organization accounts must be sponsored by a current full-time faculty/staff member, who may also act as the the point-of-contact (POC) for the account. The POC is expected to be kept up to date as needed. For example, if the POC leaves the university or is no longer associated with that organization/department, a new POC should be selected. If the account is found to be without a current POC, the dean/director of the department most closely associated with that organizational account will need to approve all changes to the account until a new POC is named. You can read more about these accounts in our Shared Accounts article.