 Outlook

Explains how to send an encrypted email message by adding [encrypt] to the subject line, how a recipient opens and reads an encrypted message, and how to resolve the error caused by an outdated Outlook encryption add-in. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff and to outside recipients of encrypted Bowdoin email.

Explains how to add a delegate to a mailbox and assign permission levels in Outlook on the web so another person can manage email, calendar, or tasks on the owner's behalf. Includes a reference guide to each available permission level. Applies to Bowdoin faculty and staff.

Explains how to add an interactive poll to an Outlook email so recipients can vote directly from their inbox. Covers composing a new message, inserting and configuring the poll, and sending it. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff using the Outlook desktop app on Windows or macOS.

Explains how to use the Mail Merge feature in Microsoft Word on macOS to send personalized email messages through Outlook. Covers preparing a local data source, starting the merge, inserting merge fields, previewing results, and merging to email. Applies to Bowdoin faculty and staff using Word and Outlook on macOS.

Explains how to create an inbox rule in Outlook on the web to automatically filter incoming messages, for example by moving messages with a specific subject word to a folder. Covers opening rule settings, naming the rule, choosing conditions and actions, and saving. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff.

Instructions for creating and formatting a personal email signature in Outlook on the web. Covers opening the signature settings, entering and styling the signature, and choosing whether it is added automatically to new messages and replies. Applies to all Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff.

Explains how to export email and contacts to a file from Outlook for Mac so the information can be imported into another version of Outlook or another email program, or kept as an archive. Covers reverting to Legacy Outlook, exporting, and optionally converting the file for Apple Mail. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff who are leaving Bowdoin.

You can export your contacts from Outlook on the web and then import them into other email apps such as Gmail or other versions of Outlook.

Instructions for exporting email and contacts from Outlook for Windows to a PST file. The exported file can be imported into another copy of Outlook or kept as an archive, which is useful before a Bowdoin email account is closed. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff using the Outlook desktop app on Windows.

Explains the two most common ways to sign in to Microsoft 365 at Bowdoin — through the Bowdoin login portal and directly at the Microsoft 365 portal — and why desktop and mobile Microsoft apps redirect to a Microsoft page and then back to Bowdoin's sign-in page.

Explains how to open a mailbox that has been shared with you in Outlook for macOS, Classic Outlook for Windows, New Outlook for Windows, and Outlook on the web. Also covers how to make a shared mailbox appear under your own inbox in Outlook on the web. Applies to Bowdoin faculty, staff, and students.

Instructions for recovering deleted email, calendar events, contacts, and tasks in Outlook on the web within 30 days of deletion. Covers opening the Deleted Items folder, finding recoverable items, and restoring them. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff.

Instructions for turning automatic replies (out of office messages) on and off in Outlook on the web. Covers setting a time period, composing the message, sending separate replies to senders outside Bowdoin, and turning the replies off. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff.

Instructions for adding a Bowdoin email account to Apple Mail on a Mac using an Exchange account, which also enables Contacts, Calendar, Reminders, and Notes. Covers opening Internet Accounts, signing in with Bowdoin credentials and two-factor authentication, and choosing which apps to sync. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff using macOS.

Instructions for configuring the Microsoft Outlook desktop app on macOS with a Bowdoin email account. Covers getting started, signing in with a Bowdoin email address, authenticating at the Okta login, and adding the account. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff using a Mac.

Instructions for adding a Bowdoin email account to the Microsoft Outlook desktop app on Windows. Covers adding the account, authenticating at the Okta login, completing the setup prompts, and activating Office with a Bowdoin account. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff using a Windows computer.

Instructions for sharing an Outlook mail folder, sub-calendar, or contacts folder with another person, and for opening a folder someone has shared. Sharing requires granting permission in two places: the mailbox and the individual folder. Covers Outlook for Windows, Outlook for macOS, and Outlook on the web. Applies to Bowdoin faculty, staff, and students.

Explains how to keep messages out of the Other tab in Outlook, either by turning off Focused Inbox entirely or by training Focused Inbox to always route certain messages to Focused. Also covers checking the Junk Email folder and reviewing rules that may move messages. Covers Outlook for Windows (classic and new), macOS, Outlook on the web, and Outlook for iOS and Android. Applies to anyone using a Microsoft 365 mailbox.

Explains how to switch between Classic (Legacy) Outlook and New Outlook on Windows 11 and macOS, where to find the toggle on each platform, and how to decide which version to use. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff using the Microsoft Outlook desktop app.

Steps to troubleshoot the Outlook mobile app when it crashes, shows a white screen, or has trouble sending or receiving email on iOS or Android. Covers checking the network connection, restarting and updating the app, freeing storage, reinstalling, and resetting the account. Applies to anyone using the Outlook app on a phone or tablet.

Instructions for turning off (or back on) the sounds that Outlook plays for email and other notifications on a Mac, using the Notifications and Sounds settings. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff using the Outlook desktop app on macOS.

Explains how to turn the Focused Inbox feature off or on in Outlook on macOS, Windows, the web, and iOS/iPadOS. The Focused Inbox splits the inbox into Focused and Other tabs, and users can change this setting themselves. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff.

Explains how to turn on and use the Undo Send feature in Outlook on the web, New Outlook for Windows, and Outlook for Mac, and how to set up a delayed-send rule in Classic Outlook for Windows. Undo Send gives a short grace period to cancel a message after clicking Send. Applies to Bowdoin students, faculty, and staff.

Explains what Focused Inbox is, how it sorts mail into Focused and Other, and how to reclassify messages between the two tabs. Focused Inbox learns from how a person interacts with mail and improves over time. Available in Outlook for macOS, Windows, and Outlook on the web.

Instructions for installing the Outlook app on a phone or tablet and configuring it with a Bowdoin account. Covers removing an existing account before adding it again and completing setup through the Bowdoin sign-in page. Applies to anyone using the Outlook app on a mobile device.

Explains why the "Something Went Wrong. We could not find a mailbox for this user" error appears when signing in to the old webmail address, and how to reach email at the correct Microsoft 365 addresses. Applies to Bowdoin account holders whose mailbox is in Microsoft 365.