Your CSU Email Account

Why do I have multiple email addresses?

There are several email addresses you'll use at your time with the university. Here's a breakdown of a few common addresses you might see.

Microsoft Emails (@colostate.edu or @mail.colostate.edu) - You can use this email to access Microsoft products like Outlook, Word, Excel, etc. You might see this in a few different forms: 

1. Your Firstname.Lastname + @colostate.edu (Ex: John.Smith@colostate.edu)
   An alias so people don't have to know your NetID to contact you. This is also the address that is displayed when you send/receive emails.

2. Your NetID + @colostate.edu (Ex: camtheram@colostate.edu or C800000000@colostate.edu)
   This is your login.

3. Your NetID + @mail.colostate.edu (Ex: camtheram@mail.colostate.edu or  C800000000@mail.colostate.edu)
   This is how your email displays in several databases across campus.

Emails can be sent to any of the three addresses and they will end up in the same inbox, but you can only sign in using #2. 

Google Emails (@rams.colostate.edu) - Before the university switched over to Microsoft as their primary email provider, the university used Google. As a result, many students and faculty who were around prior to the switch still have @rams.colostate.edu accounts. You can still create Google emails, but this is a manual process.

You may have a Firstname.Lastname + @rams.colostate.edu and a NetID + @rams.colostate.edu account. Log in with the NetID address.

As of October 5th, 2023, @rams accounts are required to have their own passwords. You can set/reset this password through https://ramspassword.colostate.edu/.

Pueblo Emails (@csupueblo.edu, @pack.csupueblo.edu) - These emails are managed by CSU Pueblo. Please contact Pueblo's IT for assistance.

Department Emails (@fm.colostate.edu, @cs.colostate.edu, @engr.colostate.edu, etc.) - Some departments and groups on campus have their own emails. If you have an email that doesn't match the ones listed here, it probably falls under this category. Help with these emails should be directed towards your department's IT.

Why does it say I can't reset my own password?

The password for your CSU email is synchronized with your passwords for Canvas, Ramweb, the NetID website, GlobalProtect, and many other CSU services. In order to keep these passwords from being out-of-sync, the university does not allow you to reset your password through the Microsoft login page.

In order to reset your password, follow the instructions on our Password FAQ page.