Students and staff at the College will begin using a new online system called MyCharleston in the coming weeks. MyCharleston will replace CougarTrail due to an effort to simplify student resources.
MyCharleston is designed to combine everything a C of C student or staff member needs on a single page. It will take over CougarTrail’s role of displaying tuition bills, grades and course offerings. Campus news alerts are displayed onscreen, as well as a calendar of events. Students and staff can also find campus maps and local weather on the site.
“MyCharleston puts everything in a centralized place,” said Director of Web Strategies Andrew Bergstrom. “Whereas people used to have to go onto the College’s Web page to get to what they needed, now people will start at MyCharleston.”
MyCharleston will be used to register for fall classes, and eventually all CougarTrail services will be moved to the new system.
One aspect of the site that is different from CougarTrail is the ability to customize page content, said Bergstrom. By clicking an “X” in the corner of the various information boxes, certain links can be removed from a student’s layout.
“This new portal offers more flexibility. You can rearrange content, or add content that isn’t there by default,” Bergstrom said.
These customization features make it possible to personalize a page, rather than a universal layout for each person as with CougarTrail.
“I haven’t used the site much, but from what I have seen MyCharleston is a lot easier to look at than CougarTrail,” said sophomore Kurt Sundberg.
The switch from one program to another is the result of the Battery Project. CougarTrail is part of a computer system previously used by the College, but the new system allowed for an upgrade.
Students can access their accounts by first logging into CougarTrail as they normally would. Then, follow the MyCharleston link at the top of the page. This link leads students to the MyCharleston log-in page where the Cougars name and password, the same combination used to log onto the library computers, will allow access to the site.
Some of the problems with CougarTrail, such as inability to access the site on certain Web browsers or during certain times, will not be an issue with MyCharleston. Another issue some students have noticed with CougarTrail was the inability to navigate backward on the site; if you tried you would be logged out of the system.
“Sometimes I had to sign in multiple times while I was trying to find what I was looking for,” Sundberg said. “It was really annoying and got to the point where I had to ask my advisor to do things for me.”
Despite improvements with the new portal, MyCharleston is not flawless.
“One problem people may have with MyCharleston is setting a password. You will be prompted at setup to make two security questions and create a new ‘strong’ password,” Bergstrom said.
Although people may not like the strong password requirement, it does allow for increased security.
The site offers tutorials on the front page, as well as a help tab, to assist students and staff in learning how the system works. Bergstrom also suggests exploring the site as a way to learn its features.
Over the next several months, students and staff can expect to see MyCharleston’s content expand. A new e-mail system is also something to look out for, although there is no concrete timeline in place for that yet.
The College has been using CougarTrail since the early 1990s. It will be kept around for historical information purposes, but eventually the program will be phased out entirely, said Bergstrom.
Any feedback on MyCharleston, including recommendations for improvement, is welcomed by Bergstrom and the web strategies department.
For more information about MyCharleston, visit the Information Technology page at it.cofc.edu.