document iconmyCSUSM
cougar courses logoCOUGAR COURSES
email iconEMAIL
email iconMS OFFICE APPS
password iconPASSWORD
MANAGEMENT
Your  Account:
document iconmyCSUSM
cougar courses logoCOUGAR COURSES
email iconEMAIL
office iconMS OFFICE APPS
password iconPASSWORD
MANAGEMENT
Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS)

Request Non-CSUSM Domain Name

Purpose of the Procedure

This statement describes the California State University San Marcos procedure for the creation, management, and appropriate use of non-CSUSM.edu Internet domain names. It establishes a framework for identifying and satisfying legitimate requests of this nature within the context of the educational and research missions of the University including websites for student instruction.

CSUSM prohibits people not associated with or authorized on behalf of CSUSM from registering domain names that implies a representation of or relationship with CSUSM.

Statement of Procedure

Except as otherwise set forth in this procedure, all Internet domain names used in connection with CSUSM’s educational, research, and related activities should be registered by CSUSM. In addition, except as set forth in this procedure, individuals may not register domain names that include trademarks owned by CSUSM.

Domain names outside the csusm.edu domain may be obtained under specific and limited circumstances. Requests may be granted for CSUSM-affiliated activities that have purposes that are consistent with the educational, research, and operational mission of the University.

Procedure

Submission and Approval of Request

Responsibility for approving requests is vested in the Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS) Chief Information Office (CIO) or designee. Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS) is the University's official entity for coordinating Internet-based information services, Internet naming and numbering of all computers, and other network-attached devices located within University facilities.

Anyone who wants to purchase a non-csusm.edu domain should submit the Domain Name Request form. Requesters will  include information about their department within the University as well as a full description of the purpose for a non-csusm.edu domain name and justification for why they cannot use a subdomain on the csusm.edu site. Only faculty and staff of the University with the approval of their department, college, and/or division may apply for a non-csusm.edu domain name. Students of the University are not eligible for this service.

Exceptions to Registration by CSUSM

Only under limited circumstances may individuals or groups directly arrange, or have a third-party vendor arrange, non-csusm.edu names.

  1. Student government
  2. Student media
  3. Student clubs
  4. University initiatives or research centers that are cooperative ventures with other universities or organizations where (regardless of who owns the domain) it is presented to the public as an equal partnership.

CSUSM individuals or groups in the above list should take care to ensure that the content, presentation, and branding of any such website makes it clear that it is not an official CSUSM offering, but – rather – an independent gathering of CSUSM community members. CSUSM logos and trademarks cannot be used on such sites. Questions can be directed to https://www.csusm.edu/communications/index.html.

Guidelines for Use and Registration of Domains

CSUSM Identity should be applied in accordance with published guidelines as part of the external domains. The site, application, and any other elements of the web property should conform to CSUSM standards as published in the CSUSM Brand Style Guide.

All CSUSM websites (regardless of their domain name) must comply with all applicable laws and regulations and CSU and CSUSM policies, including without limitation the Web Accessibility Policy and the Website Accessibility Requirements.

The requesting party will be held liable for any misuse within the requested domain and for any violation of University acceptable-use policies, government regulations, or laws; such violations may be cause for discontinuation of support for the domain.

Alternatives

A non-csusm.edu domain name may not be the only acceptable way to obtain a desirable, distinguishing Internet address. The Web and Digital Content Strategies team can discuss various alternatives within the csusm.edu name space.

Domain Maintenance and Expiration

It should be noted that Internet domain name registration carries with it an annual cost to the department, college, and/or division. It will be necessary to confirm, on an annual basis, that each newly-created domain name is still desired and is in use. An annual Information Technology Request should be submitted no less than 6 weeks before the domain expires for an accessibility and information security review of the domain. It is important for the domain requestor to keep track of the domain expirations and prevent expiration from occurring where a third party could obtain the domain.

Accessibility

It is the policy of California State University San Marcos to make its programs, services, and activities accessible to individuals with disabilities including students, faculty, staff, and the general public who use the campus services, in accordance with applicable state and federal laws. This includes everything on the csusm.edu and non-csusm.edu websites. All website content creators are responsible for making sure the website section they maintain is accessible. Training and resources guides on how to make content accessible is available. All online digital content is accessible in accordance to 508 guidelines before the documents are published to the web.