Duke Alumni NetID Deactivation and Email

NetIDs are deactivated one year post-graduation unless you are continuing at Duke as an employee, a student in another program, or sponsored with a guest account.

(See document located at https://oit.duke.edu/help/articles/kb0023279 for additional account restrictions.)

There is a 30-day period once your NetID has become inactive in which you still have some options.

Please see below:


 

Email Information

Your @duke.edu email requires an active NetID to access. Once the NetID becomes inactive, it can not be accessed.

Email Address Forwarding cannot be set up on an inactive account.

Once your NetID is inactive, to temporarily extend your NetID access to enable a new email forwarding address, please locate a Duke full-time employee (faculty/staff) to Sponsor your NetID account within 30 days of your NetID becoming inactive. The sponsor can visit https://oit.duke.edu/what-we-do/applications/sponsored-accounts for more information regarding this. 

 

Student Email Vs. AlumniEmail

The student email you had previously ending in @duke.edu is a different account than the @alumni.duke.edu account. Emails from your @duke.edu account do not get transferred or forwarded and are not linked in any way. To temporarily extend your NetID access to obtain your @duke.edu emails, please locate a Duke full-time employee (faculty/staff) to Sponsor your NetID account within 30 days of your NetID becoming inactive. The sponsor can visit https://oit.duke.edu/what-we-do/applications/sponsored-accounts for more information regarding this. 

 

Sponsored Guest Account Process

If within 30 days of your NetID becoming inactive, your sponsor can create a guest account request on https://accounts.oit.duke.edu/sponsor/

Your sponsor will need to click on “Request a new guest account for a non-Duke user”, select the “Alumni” role, the Duke NetID checkbox, and enter your NON-DUKE, PERSONAL email address to submit.

You will then receive an email at the personal email address you provided the sponsor, requesting you to click a link to finish the setup.

This process will link your Guest Account access to your previous @duke.edu email account for a period of One Year (unless otherwise specified by the sponsor).

 

Exporting Email While Having a Sponsored Guest Account

If you receive sponsorship and need to export your email, below is a link to some instructions that may be able to assist.
(Please note, you must have an active copy of Microsoft Outlook to follow these instructions) 

(DUHS students should contact the DHTS ITSO regarding permission for backing up emails. Contact the DHTS Service Desk at 919-684-2243 for more information.)

 

Alumni Email

Alumni email, email with the address ending in @alumni.duke.edu, can be setup any time after graduation, but a OneLink account is required (see below).

See https://alumni.duke.edu/benefits/alumni-email for more information. 

 

OneLink Accounts

OneLink is not the same as a NetID.

A OneLink account is required to access your alumni benefits (including email) from the https://alumni.duke.edu/ website.

If you did not set your Preferred email address to something other than a Duke email address when you graduated, the system will need to be updated with your new, personal email address before being able to set up a OneLink account.

In order to update the email address on file, please contact the OIT Service Desk at 919-684-2200 so your identity can be verified (for your safety.) Alternatively, you may fill out the form located at  http://duke.is/GXzvgy with the appropriate photos, but instead of typing in a NetID, please type your Duke Unique ID, and ensure you are using the email address you would like to be on file.

Signing up for Duke OneLink will allow you to:

  • Log into the new Duke Alumni directory, https://alumni.duke.edu/
  • Request transcripts and student records
  • Access Duke Libraries resources
  • Set up a lifetime email address ((Log in > Profile (click on name top right of Alumni site) >Contact Information > Email Addresses > Add new lifetime email address)

Please Note: A OneLink account will not allow you to log in to your previous Duke email.

 

If you have questions, please contact the OIT Service Desk at 919-684-2200, email help@duke.edu, or visit the OIT Help Page for other options.

 

Article number: KB0034356

Valid to: June 7, 2025