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Connecting to Rutgers Email

Required for all faculty and staff.
Your Rutgers Connect account is the official channel for all University communication. Assignments, scheduling, auditions, payroll, contracts, and student matters all arrive there, and replies are expected from your Rutgers address. Personal accounts such as Gmail, Yahoo, iCloud, and Outlook.com cannot be used for Department business, and messages sent from non-Rutgers addresses may go unanswered. Please complete the setup on this page before your first working day of the term. It takes about 15 minutes, and the steps below walk you through it.

Why This Setup Is Different

Rutgers Connect is a Microsoft 365 service, and University policy requires that any mobile device accessing it be enrolled in Mobile Device Management (MDM) through the Microsoft Intune Company Portal app. Adding the account directly in your phone’s built-in mail settings without enrolling first will fail. This is the single most common cause of setup problems.

1. Before You Begin

Confirm all four items below. Skipping any one of them is the usual reason enrollment fails partway through and has to be restarted.

Your login address: Your Rutgers Connect sign-in is NetID@domain.rutgers.edu. For Mason Gross that is normally netid@mgsa.rutgers.edu. Do not sign in with a vanity or display address such as firstname.lastname@rutgers.edu. It will be rejected.
NetID and NetID+: Your NetID must be activated and two-step login (Duo) must be working on a device you have in hand. All access to Rutgers Connect from outside the Rutgers network requires NetID+. If you are setting up a replacement phone, enroll it in Duo first.
A passcode on the device: MDM policy requires a device password, PIN, or biometric lock. A device with no lock will not pass the compliance check. You may be prompted to strengthen an existing passcode.
An unmodified device: Jailbroken or rooted devices, meaning devices that have had basic operating system security stripped away, are blocked and cannot be enrolled.
Time required: approximately 15 minutes. Do not begin unless you can finish in one sitting. The enrollment profile expires quickly if you stop midway.

2. iPhone and iPad

Step A. Remove any old Exchange account first

This step is mandatory. A leftover account is the most common cause of a stalled setup.

  1. Open Settings and go to Mail > Accounts.
  2. Look for any existing Office 365 or Exchange account. Tap it and check the Server field.
  3. If the server reads outlook.office365.com, delete the account. Failure to delete it will cause the compliance check to fail or hang on the message Checking compliance.

Your mail settings will be rebuilt automatically at the end of this process. Nothing is lost by deleting the old account, because your mail lives on the Rutgers server and not on the phone.

Step B. Install and enroll

  1. Open the App Store, search for Intune Company Portal, and install it. An Apple ID is required for the download.
  2. Open the app and sign in with NetID@domain.rutgers.edu and your NetID password. Approve the Duo prompt.
  3. Follow the on-screen prompts: Begin, then Continue, then Continue, then Enroll.
  4. When prompted, open the Settings app. An Install Downloaded Profile prompt will appear with a red badge. You have 8 minutes to install it. After roughly 15 minutes the profile is removed from the device entirely and enrollment must be restarted from the beginning. The profile can also be found under General > Profiles, which on newer devices is labeled VPN & Device Management.
  5. Tap Install at the upper right of the Management Profile page and enter your device passcode if asked. You may be required to change your passcode at this point.
  6. Tap Install, then Install again, then Trust. When the confirmation appears, tap Done.
  7. Reopen the Intune Company Portal app and let it run the compliance check. Tap Continue, then Done.
  8. Your Rutgers Connect mail, calendar, and contacts are now configured automatically in the built-in iOS Mail app. No manual server settings are needed at any point.
If the compliance check hangs: If the compliance screen sits for more than five minutes, force-close the Company Portal app. Return to Step A and check again for any leftover Office 365 account, and remove it. Reopen Company Portal and continue the prompts. Inside Company Portal you can tap your device and choose Check Settings to force a recheck. If enrollment stops on a screen and does nothing, tap the refresh icon to resume.

3. Android

Android enrollment creates a separate Work profile on your device. University data stays inside that profile and is kept apart from your personal apps and files.

Before you start, a removable storage warning: If your device uses a removable media card, copy any files off the card to a computer now. Files stored on a removable media card may be lost once the device is enrolled and secured, and the card will no longer be accessible afterward.

Step A. Install and enroll

  1. Open the Play Store, search for Intune, and install the Intune Company Portal app.
  2. Open the app and tap Sign in. Enter netid@domain.rutgers.edu and your NetID password, then approve the Duo prompt.
  3. When the setup prompt appears, tap Continue.
  4. Review the Rutgers University privacy information, which states specifically what the University can and cannot see on your device, then tap Continue. Tap Next to allow work profile permissions and device encryption.
  5. At the work profile prompt, tap Accept and Continue and wait through the loading screens.
  6. When the screen confirms the work profile was created and asks you to activate it, tap Continue.
  7. On the final registration screen, tap Continue, then Done at the confirmation.

Step B. Use the Work profile, not the personal one

Your app drawer will now show two tabs, Personal and Work. Samsung devices place these in a Workspace folder instead. Work apps carry a small briefcase icon in the corner. This matters because you will now have two copies of Gmail, Contacts, and Calendar, and only the apps under the Work tab can reach Rutgers services. You can pin the work apps to your home screen.

  1. Open Gmail from the Work tab. You will be prompted to re-enter your NetID password. Enter it and tap Next.
  2. When asked to update security settings, tap Update Now, then Activate this device admin app. This applies only to work content on the device and not to your personal apps or information.
  3. Your Rutgers Connect mail, calendar, and contacts are now available through the Gmail, Calendar, and Contacts apps in the Work tab. For fuller features, install the Outlook app from the Play Store while in the Work tab.

Step C. If an existing account is misbehaving

  1. Go to Settings > Accounts.
  2. Find your Rutgers Connect account. It may display as your Rutgers address or as a string of characters ending in @android-for-work.gserviceaccount.com. Tap it.
  3. Tap Remove Account, then repeat Step A from the beginning.

4. Laptop, Desktop, and Web Access

Web browser (works immediately): Go to connect.rutgers.edu or outlook.office.com and sign in with NetID@domain.rutgers.edu and your NetID password. This requires no setup and no enrollment, and is the fastest way to confirm your account is working before you troubleshoot a phone.
Outlook on a computer: Rutgers Connect supports Exchange-based clients. Add the account in Outlook using your NetID@domain.rutgers.edu address and let autodiscover configure it. Current Rutgers faculty and staff have free access to Microsoft Office on up to five devices through the University Software Portal.
Apple Mail on a Mac: Supported through the Exchange connector. Choose Exchange as the account type, not IMAP, and sign in with your NetID address.

5. Prohibited and Non-Compliant Configurations

The following are not permitted. Each one either breaks the security controls the University is required to maintain or places Rutgers data outside University control.

Blocked mail applications

These applications bypass MDM restrictions and violate the Rutgers Connect MDM Standard. They cache your mail and credentials on third-party servers. Do not install them, and remove them if present:

CloudMagic BlueMail Newton Typeapp MyMail SparkMail EdisonMail

Other prohibited practices

  • Manual IMAP setup in place of MDM enrollment. Configuring your device with IMAP settings instead of enrolling in MDM puts you out of compliance with the University Acceptable Use Policy, even if mail appears to arrive.
  • Auto-forwarding Rutgers mail to a personal account. This moves University records, student information, and personnel data outside University systems and is not permitted.
  • Conducting Department business from a personal address. Correspondence about students, personnel, contracts, or payments sent from a personal account is a compliance violation regardless of the content.
  • Sharing your NetID credentials with anyone, including family, students, or a repair technician.
If you decline MDM enrollment: You may still reach your Rutgers Connect mail through your phone’s web browser at connect.rutgers.edu. That is the only compliant alternative. It is not a substitute for setup, it does not push notifications, and it does not relieve you of the obligation to read and respond to Department email in a timely manner.

6. What the University Can and Cannot Do to Your Device

During enrollment, the Intune Company Portal displays a long list of actions administrators are technically capable of performing. That list reflects the full capability of the software, not Rutgers practice. The policies actually in effect for faculty and staff are limited to the four below.

Device password required: A lock of some kind must be present on any device holding Rutgers data.
No jailbroken or rooted devices: Devices with operating system security removed will not connect.
Managed email profile: The mail profile is configured and maintained by the University.
Remote wipe if lost or stolen: This will not occur without the explicit consent of the device owner. It exists so that you can protect your own data if the device leaves your possession.

If you leave the University or no longer want the device connected, remove the Intune Company Portal app from the device.

7. Official Rutgers IT Resources and Policies

Rutgers Connect main page
Overview, announcements, and the full knowledgebase for the University email and calendar service.
it.rutgers.edu/rutgers-connect
Mobile Device Management policy
The MDM standard that applies to every device connected to Rutgers Connect.
it.rutgers.edu · MDM policy knowledgebase article
Enabling MDM on iOS devices
OIT’s official step-by-step iOS enrollment article.
it.rutgers.edu · iOS enrollment knowledgebase article
Enabling MDM on Android devices
OIT’s official step-by-step Android enrollment article.
oit.rutgers.edu · Android enrollment article
Webmail, no setup required
Sign in from any browser to read mail immediately.
connect.rutgers.edu
NetID management
Activate your NetID, reset your password, set up NetID+ (Duo), and manage vanity addresses.
netid.rutgers.edu
Acceptable Use Policy (70.1.1) and all IT policies
The University Acceptable Use Policy referenced throughout this page, plus information classification, email and calendar, and security policies, in the official University Policy Library.
it.rutgers.edu/policies · links to the University Policy Library
Microsoft Office for faculty and staff
Free Microsoft Office installation on up to five devices through your Rutgers Connect account.
it.rutgers.edu · Microsoft Office for faculty and staff
University Software Portal
Free and discounted software for faculty and staff, including Office, Adobe, and antivirus.
software.rutgers.edu
Departmental IT support lookup
Find the IT support unit responsible for your school or department.
it.rutgers.edu/departmental-support

8. If You Are Still Stuck

Work through this order. Do not skip to the last line.

  1. Confirm the account itself works. Sign in at connect.rutgers.edu from any browser. If that fails, the problem is your NetID or Duo, not your phone.
  2. Contact the OIT Help Desk. Email help@oit.rutgers.edu or call 848-445-HELP (4357). Toll free: 833-OIT-HELP (833-648-4357). Have your NetID and device model ready.
  3. Contact Mason Gross IT if the device is University owned, or if enrollment failed partway through. A partially enrolled device usually has to be cleared on the Intune side before a retry will succeed, and that cannot be done from the phone.
  4. Notify the Department. If setup cannot be completed the same day, inform the Department office in writing so that time-sensitive material can be routed by another means in the interim only. This is a temporary accommodation during an active support ticket. It is not an ongoing alternative.

Procedures on this page reflect Rutgers Office of Information Technology documentation current as of August 2026.