NetID - Changing Your NetID

This document explains the policy for having a NetID changed.

Important: A NetID change can cause temporary loss of access to some campus services, or potentially, data loss. As we become aware of services that are negatively impacted by NetID changes we will document them at the bottom of this page. Scroll down for more information.

Criteria

NetIDs may be changed in a variety of circumstances. You may request a NetID change if you meet any of the criteria below.

  • Your legal name has changed. To have your legal name changed, follow the instructions below. Note: A legal name change is not required to change your NetID.

    Students: Complete the steps in the Student Center using these instructions.

    Faculty and staff: Contact your department's HR or payroll staff.

    Emeritus, retirees, and other NetID holders: Contact the human resources office of your sponsoring department or the Office of Human Resources at (608) 265-2257.

    Your NetID may only be changed after your name change is completed. You can confirm your name has been changed in the UW Directory.

    Note: If you are looking to change your Office 365 email address to reflect a legal name change, this can be done regardless of whether or not you change your NetID. For more information, see Office 365 - Activate or change your firstname.lastname@wisc.edu address.

  • Your NetID is considered commonly offensive.

To request a NetID change, you must call the DoIT Help Desk.

Your New NetID

  • Your new NetID will be computer-generated based on official University records. We cannot accommodate requests.
  • NetID changes take approximately 2-3 business days.
  • You will be called after the NetID change has been completed.
  • If there are any issues preventing your NetID change, you will be contacted.
  • If your email address changes, your old email address will permanently forward to your new address.
  • If you use Campus Active Directory for login, you may need to work with your local IT team to resolve issues.

Systems impacted by NetID Changes

If you use any of the following systems, you may need to contact the support team after your NetID changes in order to regain access. Test your access to the system after the NetID change, and if you can no longer get in, email them providing your old and new NetID.