Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
School of Public Affairs and Administration
360 Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard
Hill Hall, 7 th
Floor
Newark, New Jersey 07102
Certificate in Public Performance Measurement
Frequently Asked Questions: Blackboard
(Please note: Information on creating your NetID and password, both of which are necessary to login to Blackboard, are located at the end of this document.)
What is Blackboard?
Blackboard, a partnership between Newark Computing Services (NCS) and the Office of
Academic Technology (OAT), is a course management system used to extend the learning environment outside the classroom. Blackboard has many features that facilitate teaching, learning and interaction including incorporation of files, graphics, and audio/video clips into course materials for added clarity in the presentation of information, and facilitated communication through centrally located announcements for all students, ability to send emails, discussion boards, and virtual classrooms and chat, and other useful features such as a personal calendar, address book and directory of users.
How do I access Blackboard?
Log in to the Blackboard website using your NetID and password. The Blackboard page can be accessed by clicking on this link: http://blackboard.newark.rutgers.edu
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The login section of the Rutgers-Newark Blackboard page looks like this:
Please note that your NetID and password are case sensitive.
How do I access information for my courses in Blackboard?
After logging in, you will see a list of the courses in which you are currently enrolled on the right side of the window.
(Note: Your course list may vary. The list above is for illustration purposes only.)
Course-specific information can be accessed by clicking on the title of the course.
Alternatively, you can use the “tabs” at the top of the screen to navigate Blackboard. The tabs look like this:
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The first tab “Rutgers University – Newark” is the Blackboard page that you see immediately after logging in. This is the “home” page for Blackboard and provides access to all of the specialized functions of Blackboard. The second tab is the “Courses” tab, which lists all of the courses in which you’re enrolled. Please take some time to explore the other tabs, including the
“Libraries” tab which provides access to Rutgers library resources.
Once you have clicked on the link for the course in which you are interested, you will see a series of links of the left side of the page. These include:

Announcements (course information posted by the instructor, updated frequently)

Course Information (information on course objectives, expected outcomes, grading and expectations for students)

Instructor Information (contact and biographical information for the course instructor)

Weekly assignments (topics, readings, assignments, and discussion questions)

Communication (access to several methods of communicating with the instructor and other students)

Student Tools (access to the digital drop box, calendar, grades, and other tools)

Tech FAQ’s (frequently asked questions regarding use of
Blackboard)

Discussion Board (a link to the course discussion board)

Assignments (a link to course assignments)
How do I post messages on the discussion board?
The discussion board can be accessed by clicking on “Discussion Board.”
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The discussion board will look like this:
You can post to a specific topic by clicking the name of the topic and then clicking “Thread” at the top left corner of the discussion window.
To reply to a post by another student, click “Reply” located at the bottom of the window displaying the original message.
How do I submit assignments to the instructor?
Assignments can be submitted via the “Digital Drop Box” located in the “Student Tools” section of Blackboard.
To send a file, click on “Student Tools,” then “Digital Drop Box,” and then “Send File.”
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Enter your name, select the file using the “browse” function, and enter any comments (optional).
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Once you have added the file, click “Submit.”
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For information about the Drop Box Feature, you can review the Blackboard 6 document: http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~bbinfo/Bb6_Drop_Box.pdf
How do I send an email to the instructor or other students using Blackboard?
First, select “Send E-mail” from the box marked “Tools” on the left side of the Blackboard home page.
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Second, choose a course from the list of your current courses that corresponds to the project or assignment on which you’re working (example: PPM 100, PPM 200, etc.).
Next, choose the individual or individuals (example: “All Users” “All Students”) to whom you want to send an email.
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For example, the “All Users” email screen looks like this:
After entering a subject, message, and attaching a file (if desired), you must click on “Submit” to send the file to the uses.
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Alternatively, you can select only certain users to receive the email and attachments. The screen looks like this:
After entering a selecting users, subject, message, and attaching a file (if desired), you must click on “Submit” to send the file to the users.
Remember: Don’t forget to log out!
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TROUBLE SHOOTING
After logging in I can't see my courses. What do I do?
There are a number of reasons why your course(s) might not be listed on your Welcome page in
Blackboard when you log in:

You might not be on the course's official roster. Make sure that you are currently registered for the class and that there is no hold on your registration status.

Your instructor may need to make the course "Available." By default all classes are
"unavailable," which means the instructors can get into the course site, but students cannot.
INFORMATION ON CREATING or RETREIVING YOUR NETID AND PASSWORD and CHANGING YOUR PERSONAL INFORMAITON
How do I get my NetID and Password?
To create your NetID and password, follow the step-by-step instructions found here: http://oit.rutgers.edu/services/account/quick.html
This page provides helpful advice on choosing a NetID: http://help.newark.rutgers.edu/choosing_username.htm
This page provides helpful advice on choosing a password: http://help.newark.rutgers.edu/choosing_password.htm
How do I find my NetID if I can’t remember it?
Please visit this page and enter the requested information to retrieve your NetID (RUID and date of birth required). https://identityservices.rutgers.edu/netidquery/query.html
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How do I change my password in Blackboard?
RUCS Newark has several online Tools that can assist you with a number of tasks related to your
Account. One of them will help you change your password. See this page for assistance: http://help.newark.rutgers.edu/acctmgmt.htm
How do I change my personal information?
Please note that some of information cannot be changed in Blackboard. If for whatever reason you need to make a change to the email listed for you in Blackboard or to the spelling of your last name, for example, you will need to have that change made in the Rutgers Directory
Database. These changes will then be reflected in Blackboard (usually within one day). To make such a change, please refer to the following page if you are a student: https://www.acs.rutgers.edu/studentdir
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After logging in through the Rutgers central identification using your NetID and password, you will be able to select one of the following items:
Additional information can be found here:
You can access the Rutgers-Newark Help Desk by visiting the following webpage: http://help.newark.rutgers.edu/hd_home.php
You can also access a webpage with frequently asked questions regarding computing services at
Rutgers here: http://faq.newark.rutgers.edu/activekb/
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