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Change in UT’s Email Forwarding Policy

What is changing?

Starting on December 15, 2021, all UT faculty, staff, and departmental accounts will no longer be able to automatically forward university email to a non-UT personal email address. 

Visit the OIT Email Forwarding page to learn who is affected, why we are making this change, and what your options are.

What are my next steps?

Begin Using Your University-Provided Email

If you are automatically forwarding your email to a non-UT email address, OIT recommends that you begin using your university-provided email account as soon as possible to prevent an interruption in services. You can learn about your UT email account online. If you do not have a UT email account, follow the instructions online at the bottom of the page to create an account.

  • UT Knoxville faculty, staff, and retirees: Choose between Microsoft 365 Outlook and UT Gmail. 
  • Departmental email addresses: Use Microsoft 365 Outlook.
  • Knoxville-area administrative units, including UT System Administration and Institute for Public Service: Use Microsoft 365 Outlook.
  • UT Knoxville students and alumni: Choose between Microsoft 365 Outlook and UT Gmail. UTK students and alumni can continue to forward their email from their UT Gmail account. 

Microsoft 365 Outlook

To begin using UT Microsoft 365 Outlook, follow the instructions to turn off email forwarding in the OIT Knowledge Base. If you do not have a UT Outlook email account, please sign up for one online.

Gmail (UT Knoxville Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni only)

Faculty and Staff: To begin using your UT Gmail, select Gmail as your UT email provider through the Volmail: Switch page. If you do not have a UT email account, please sign up for a UT Outlook email account online and then follow the instructions to select Gmail as your UT email provider. UTK Retirees and Emeritus Faculty should contact the OIT HelpDesk to get started.

Students and alumni: UTK students and alumni can continue to forward their email from their UT Gmail account.  Any student who is currently forwarding email from their Microsoft 365 account should switch to Gmail to prevent an interruption in service.  Once your account is updated, you can set up mail forwarding with Gmail.   

Request a business-related exemption

We continue to evaluate the use of auto-forwarding for work-related exceptions. Forwarding to a non-UT personal email address is not eligible; however, faculty and staff may request an exemption for qualifying email domains for work-related purposes. Visit the OIT Email Forwarding page for information about the process.

Why is the University making this change?

Forwarding your email to an external email address presents an unnecessary risk to the university. It does not relieve the university or employee from the Tennessee Public Records Act, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), or other types of discovery. Therefore, the restrictions on email forwarding are made as part of a continuous effort to protect the university’s information. 

If you have any questions, please contact the OIT HelpDesk.

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