Features
Employees who retire from CU Boulder are currently entitled to the following IT services:
- IdentiKey
- CU Boulder email (50GB)
- Employee portal (MyCUInfo/CU Resources)*
OIT also provides IT support for retirees to ensure they can continue to access these services.
*Retirees who select their annual benefits through CU's open enrollment process will retain access to the employee portal as long as their IdentiKey credentials remain active.
Who can get it
Upon retirement from CU Boulder, employees with the following job classifications are eligible for these services:
- Faculty
- University staff
- Classified staff
Retirees who are awarded emeritus status or become a working retiree are entitled to employee-level services; see Accounts & Eligibility - Employees for details.
When & how your access will change after retirement
Based on your official retirement date, OIT will automatically adjust your IT services according to the timeline below. Expand each section to learn which services are active during that period. For an overview of the differences between each service tier, see the Accounts & Eligibility page.
During this 90-day process, if you regain a role (e.g., emeritus, working retiree) that entitles you to a higher level of IT services, the process will stop and you'll be automatically provisioned with the appropriate IT services for your new role. See the "If you regain eligibility" section for details.
Days 1–30: No service changes; finish pre-retirement tasks
Shortly after your retirement date, you'll receive an email from OIT telling you that your Microsoft license will be downgraded from an employee license to a limited employee license in 30 days. For service change details, see the next expandable section.
Use this time to finish up any remaining What to do before you retire tasks, especially those that require Microsoft 365 desktop apps. Limited employee services do not include desktop apps.
Days 31–90: Limited employee-level services
Thirty days after your retirement date, OIT will downgrade your Microsoft license to a limited employee license. When that happens, your access to IT services will change as follows:
| Original License | Temporary License | Services Retained | Services Adjusted | Services Discontinued |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employee | Limited employee | IdentiKey, Microsoft 365 Online, Google Workspace, Google Drive, VPN service | CU Boulder email storage reduced to 50GB, Microsoft OneDrive storage reduced to 100GB | Microsoft 365 desktop apps, Microsoft Teams Calls, phone extension |
In summary:
- You will lose access to Microsoft 365 desktop apps and Teams Calls. Going forward, you'll access Microsoft 365 apps through your browser rather than using desktop or mobile apps.
- The storage quota for your email and Microsoft OneDrive accounts will decrease. If your email storage is over 50GB and/or your Microsoft OneDrive storage is over 100GB, those services will be read-only until you get under the quota. To check your current usage, see:
- Outlook on the Web - Check Mailbox Usage and Quota (OIT tutorial)
- Manage your OneDrive for work or school storage (Microsoft tutorial)
Approximately 60 days after your retirement date, you'll receive an email from OIT telling you that your Microsoft license will be adjusted from a limited employee license to a retiree license in 30 days.
Day 91 onward: Retiree-level services
Ninety days after your retirement date, you'll be adjusted from a limited employee license to a retiree license. Unless your eligibility changes, this will be the final adjustment to your IT services.
When that happens, your access to IT services will change as follows:
| Temporary License | Final License | Services Retained | Services Discontinued |
|---|---|---|---|
| Limited employee | Retiree | IdentiKey, CU Boulder email (50GB), employee portal* | Microsoft 365 Online, Microsoft OneDrive, Google Workspace, Google Drive, VPN service |
*Retirees who select their annual benefits through CU's open enrollment process will retain access to the employee portal as long as their IdentiKey credentials remain active.
What to do before you retire
You'll typically lose access to departmental IT services (e.g., UCB Files, SharePoint and Teams sites) shortly after you retire, so we recommend completing the following actions during your final months of employment.
Move work files to a department-owned location
Identify any files saved in your personal Microsoft OneDrive or Google Drive that your colleagues may need to access, then move them to the most appropriate department-owned location (e.g., Microsoft Team or SharePoint site, Google Shared Drive, UCB Files folder).
Note: Some files and email stored in your Google Drive, OneDrive and email account may need to be retained pursuant to the Retention of University Records Administrative Policy Statement. If you have questions about whether a particular file or email should be retained, please consult with your supervisor.
Move non-work files to a personally owned location
Transfer any non-work files you want to keep to a non-CU Boulder location, like a personal hard drive or personal cloud storage.
- Microsoft OneDrive - Download Files to Your Computer (OIT tutorial)
- Google Drive - Copy Content from Your School Account to Another Account (Google tutorial)
If you need help transferring your files, OIT's Buff Techs can provide in-person and remote assistance as needed.
Transfer ownership of shared files
To prevent your colleagues from losing access to important files that you've shared from a personal account, follow the instructions below to transfer ownership to them.
- Microsoft OneDrive - Transfer Ownership of Shared Files (OIT tutorial)
- Google Drive - Make Someone Else the Owner of Your File (Google tutorial)
Transfer ownership of secondary accounts
Secondary accounts are assigned to one primary owner who must be a faculty or staff member. Please work with your supervisor to identify a new primary owner, then contact oithelp@colorado.edu to request an ownership change.
If you regain eligibility
It's not uncommon for retirees to re-engage with the university after taking some time away. For example:
- A faculty, staff or research faculty member may return as a working retiree.
- A faculty or research faculty member may be awarded emeritus status.
If the retiree gains an HR affiliation that entitles them to expanded IT services, OIT will automatically provision them accordingly. The retiree may or may not be able to access their pre-retirement Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive files depends on how much time has passed since their retirement date.
Within 90 days of retirement: Data is available; most services are active
If you regain eligibility before the date specified in your latest OIT email about changes to your Microsoft services, you will not receive additional communications about your IT services.
If your new role is different than your old one, you'll need to compare the lists of eligible services to determine which, if any, will be lost:
Any IT services you're entitled to in your new role will remain active. If your email or cloud storage capacity is lower than before, any services that exceed the new storage quota will be read-only.
More than 90 days after retirement: Data was deleted; most services are disabled
If you regain eligibility after the date specified in OIT's email about changing to a retiree Microsoft license, you should expect your previous IT services to have been deactivated and your non-email accounts deleted.
When you're onboarded into your new role, OIT will reactivate services and provision new accounts as needed.
For additional information, refer to the webpage for your new role:
Need Assistance?
If you have questions about your eligibility or can't access an eligible service, please contact the IT Service Center at oithelp@colorado.edu or 303-735-4357. If you need technical support, schedule a Buff Techs appointment.