Student Help Desk, Media Center and Makerspace serves students on campus in the Phyllis & Charles Self Learning Commons!

In-Person Services

• No appointments or reservations required
• Students can access technology, computers and printers
• Quiet, independent student study spaces are available on the second and third floor
• Students are able to access campus WiFi, student network account and email, Canvas, and other online resources

Online Support

Students can email studenthelpdesk@whatcom.edu or call 360.383.3410 for technology assistance.

The Student Help Desk staff is available to provide technical assistance with:

• Canvas
• Student network accounts
• CTCLink activation, password reset, and access
• Use of online resources
• Student email
• Common software used by students

The Student Helpdesk staff is also available for group workshops or individual assistance with Word, Excel, PowerPoint and can help answer printing, scanning or other computer questions.

Laptop Checkout 

The college is offering laptop checkouts to students as they are available. The equipment is first come, first serve. Laptops must be returned at the end of the quarter or a $1,500 hold will be placed on your account.  

Each quarter students are required to:

1. Log into the MyWCC
2. Click on the My Account tab
3. Click on the “Sign Equipment Checkout Agreement” link at the bottom of the page.

Checkout for Summer quarter starts Monday, June 24th at 8am.

All student checkout equipment from Summer quarter is due back by or before 5pm on August 22th, 2024.

For College employees, please contact the Help Desk at 360.383.3420 or email helpdesk@whatcom.edu if you have any questions or need clarification.

Guides

Printing

Every registered student is given a credit of $15.00 at the beginning of the quarter. This will allow you to print or copy 150 black & white pages for free each quarter at the student copiers in the Learning Commons or print from any student printer on campus. If you need to print or copy more than 150 B&W pages, you will have to load money onto your Orca card online or at one of the POD (Point of Deposit) stations on campus (Syre or Heiner).  

When a print job is sent, a second window appears that specifies the cost of the print. You must click "Yes" within 30 seconds, or the print job is cancelled. If you do not agree with the cost, click "No."

Costs:

• B&W copies or printouts single sided cost $0.10 each
• B&W copies or printouts double sided cost $0.20 each
• Color copies or printouts single sided cost $0.25 each
• Color copies or printouts double sided cost $0.50 each

Wireless

Access to the WCC wireless network is included with your personal network username and password. If you are currently enrolled in at least a one-credit course, you will have access to Wi-Fi.

The WCC Wi-Fi is a secured network requiring a security password in addition to your personal network user name and password. The Wi-Fi security password can be found under My Account once you login to MyWCC.

Although WCC provides wireless access for our College community there is no formal support for personal electronic devices.

Student computer use rules

Whatcom Community College has a managed technology environment. Computers are intended to support educational goals and may not be used for personal gain or illegal activities.

• Only students currently enrolled in credit courses may use these computers.
• Students may not use staff computers.
• Do not mistreat or damage the computer equipment.
• Hardware or software configurations may not be altered. Many people share these computer resources and a consistent environment is essential. This includes, but is not limited to:
  • Do not download or install any software, "plug-ins," shareware, freeware. This includes games, e-mail software, and unauthorized tutorial CDs that may be included with your textbooks.
  • Do not install any peripheral devices including, but not limited to zip drives, floppy drives, CD ROMs, modems, network cards, mice, scanners, etc.
  • No computers or other devices may be connected to the College network or telephone system.
  • The only resources available to students from off-campus will be provided through WCC web pages.
• Attempts to remotely access, hack, bypass, alter, or circumvent any network or computer security on any system is illegal.
• Individuals must not interfere with the personal rights of others or the educational process of the College as defined by the WCC Student Rights & Responsibilities outlined in the WCC catalog.
• If you are not sure about what you're doing or do not understand these rules - PLEASE ASK! Unauthorized use of WCC's technology resources is a serious offense and may result in disciplinary or legal action that could include expulsion from school, civil prosecution by the college or criminal prosecution.

Individual labs and departments may have procedures or guidelines. These procedures and guidelines are IN ADDITION to the rules listed here. 

Useful tips

• Always have your Orca student ID card with you
• Use a flash drive as a temporary, portable backup for your files
• Eject your flash drive properly by using the eject feature in the system tray
• Name new files immediately to start the save process and protect your work
• Never save documents to the desktop
• WCC does not support the use of the Canvas App; use at your own risk.