Life goes on for the crimson email address after a student leaves The University of Alabama, but not for its myBama counterpart.
Since 2008, all UA applicants have been required to set up a myBama account upon entry to the University, but according to Brittney Pruitt, student consultant for the UA Office of Information Technology, students are not allowed to keep the profile forever. Students have the option to keep their university email indefinitely, but their myBama student account is terminated soon after they leave.
“It all just depends on when you graduate,” Pruitt said. “If you graduate in the fall then your myBama account is deactivated by the summer. Likewise, if you graduate after the spring semester your myBama account will be deactivated by the fall. You can always use your crimson email, though.”
Patricia Benton, operations manager for OIT, said each student is assigned a university-branded domain name through Google Apps for Education, and anyone who has been enrolled for even one course at the Capstone receives a crimson account and username.
“The crimson mail is hosted by Google, so it’s just like a gmail account and we can’t actually access what’s in the inbox, only the students can,” Benton said. “Of course faculty members don’t get a crimson email, just the students, and once they leave they can keep it, so I wouldn’t be able to say how many accounts are out there now.”
Christina Steward, who graduated in December 2012 with a public relations degree, said it has been convenient to use her crimson email address, but UA President Judy Bonner doesn’t seem to have been updated that she’s no longer enrolled.
“I’m still using [my crimson email address], and I still get the updates from President Bonner, the communication college and such,” Steward said. “I plan on getting a gmail account soon, but I use it for convenience. My friends and family know that email address, and it is the one on my résumé.”
Michael Lynn Santa Cruz left the Capstone a semester before graduating and said she only gives thought to her crimson email address when prompted to.
“I still use it when something asks me for an email address, but I never log in to check it,” Santa Cruz said. “I think it just looks a little more prestigious to have ‘@crimson.ua.edu’ after your name than ‘@yahoo.com.’”
Cassie Feres graduated in May 2012 and said she continues to use her crimson email address as a way of expressing pride in her school, except when applying for a job.
“I still use it ‘cause UA is awesome, that’s why,” Feres said. “If I’m sending a resume I use my other gmail account, though. It seems immature to still use a student address for résumés. I think if [employers] see student emails they’ll think that person doesn’t have the experience they want.”
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