Administrative Experience

Taking care of business online.

Your campus experience will include some time spent taking care of practical matters, such as registering for classes, requesting transcripts and paying tuition. Find out which transactions and the services that support them can be handled online.

Managing your personal information

Q. What personal information can you view online - your contact information, grades, degree progress, financial status, or other information?

A. The following personal information can be viewed online via a secure site:

• name
• address
• telephone numbers
• e-mail address
• class schedule for any term
• registration status
• academic holds
• academic progress status
• grades
• transcript
• status of official transcript requests
• degree audit
• degree audit implications of a change of major
• financial account summary in total or by term
• tax form 1098T and supporting account information
• financial aid requirements status
• financial aid history
• financial aid award payment schedule
• HofstraCard financial information

Q. Can you update any of this information online yourself?

A. Yes, the following information can be updated online via a secure site:

• address and telephone numbers
• electronic payments (credit card or e-checks)
• acceptance of financial aid awards
• registration for classes, add and drop classes
• request an official transcript
• add credit to your HofstraCard

Conducting business

Q. Which of the following are you able to do online?

A. All of the following can be conducted online:

• check admissions status
• pay bills
• apply for and view financial aid awards
• register for, add, and drop courses
• view course grades (online or by phone)
• view and print unofficial transcripts
• check progress toward completion of degree requirements
• make campus bookstore purchases
• accept financial aid awards
• request official transcripts
• change address (Not available for International Addresses)
• change telephone numbers

Q. What campus and community services are covered by debit-card, smart-card, or one-card systems?

A. The following services are covered by the Hofstra One-Card (HofCard) system:

• ID Cards
• building/room/campus  access for classrooms, computer labs, residence halls, buses, athletic facilities, Campus security booths
• laundry machines
• vending machines
• video games
• equipment rental for the Language Lab and School of Communication
• copy machines
• dining services cash register
• student meal plan contracts/assignments/changes
• on-campus purchases in the bookstore, movie theater, Hillel, Health Center, concerts
• conference cards for access and meal plans
• security computers at residential hall booths
• student payments credit card/cash/check

Q. Are the school catalogs, including course descriptions, degree requirements, and academic policies, and the semester/term schedule of classes available on the Web?

A. Yes, the catalog (Bulletin) and class schedules are available online, and course descriptions are also linked to courses in the registration system and in Blackboard. These can be accessed at http://bulletin.hofstra.edu .

Privacy, security, and usage rules

Q. What security and privacy policies are in place to protect student information?

A. Access to campus information systems is tightly managed through the implementation of policies on the network and hosts supporting these systems.  In addition, staff who are responsible for working with student information are required to comply with federal FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) privacy regulations and only have access on a need-to-know basis.  IT security's best practices are implemented at all layers of the computing environment, including the network, operating system, database, Web and application layers.  Firewall and intrusion protection devices are utilized to ensure that student information is not compromised.  Social security numbers are not used for student identification. Instead, random numbers are assigned to each student for identification purposes.  Access to systems that contain student information require individual accounts and passwords.  Users first must log on to the campus network.  Each individual system then requires an additional user-based authentication. These procedures are audited by external auditors on a periodic basis.

Q. How does the campus protect students from identity theft?

A. Hofstra University uses a generated ID instead of social security numbers.  Access to student social security numbers is restricted to administrators that need to know the information. Student information is restricted to only those who need access to it and data is encrypted on systems where possible. Online transactions all use SSL encryption.  Additionally, Hofstra does not provide a public directory of student information, and student phone numbers are not provided by Hofstra telephone operators.

Q. How does the campus notify students of their rights under the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)?

A. FERPA information is included in the Graduate and Undergraduate Bulletins (both print and online versions).  The information is also in the student handbook, Guide to Pride, (both print and online) which is distributed to students annually.  There is also a FERPA information guide for employees in the Legal Policies section of the Hofstra University Web site.

Q. Is network bandwidth limited for peer-to-peer software, gaming, Web cams, or other programs requiring high levels of network resources? Are Web pages filtered?

A. Yes, a network packet shaping device is used to control the bandwidth that is allocated to certain high bandwidth applications. Hofstra University currently only limits outgoing traffic from peer-to-peer servers that are providing content to computers off-campus. Hofstra believes in the open exchange of information and therefore does not filter content. E-mail that is clearly identified as spam is prevented from our mail servers for security reasons.

Q. Does the campus have policies addressing peer-to-peer file sharing, virus software, and copyright?

A. The Hofstra University policy for peer-to-peer file sharing, virus software and copyright guidelines are addressed in the Network Acceptable Use Policy for Students. Hofstra annually updates the Acceptable Use Guidelines (AUG) and publishes this information on the Web and in the student handbook, Guide to Pride.

Q. How does the campus manage e-mail spam?

A. Spam has become a monumental problem throughout the world and provides a constant threat to our e-mail systems. Therefore, Hofstra University utilizes spam filtering technologies and blocking lists on our e-mail gateways to block spam that is targeted at the campus e-mail systems. These technologies were chosen to minimize the incidence of false positive e-mail blockage. Any spam e-mail can be released by the owner of the account unless the e-mail contains a virus.