University Systems help centre

Affiliate identity overview

UVic currently allows persons from outside the university community to access UVic electronic resources. These affiliates work with UVic staff and faculty and perform duties that require them to access the same systems as other members of the community.

Examples of affiliates include:

• Guest researchers
• Visiting lecturers
• Staff paid on contract basis. This process is not to be used to sponsor a future Faculty/Staff member, appointments are processed directly through Payroll.

*Sponsoring a group? See below for more information. 

These affiliates work with UVic staff and faculty and perform duties that require them to access the same resources as other members of the community.

• Affiliate sponsorship process
• NetLink ID eligibility
• Access to resources
• Supplementary roles
• Access removal
• Sponsor responsibilities
• Affiliate responsibilities
• Renewing an affiliate's term
• UVic ONECard and Library privileges
• Privacy statement
• Sponsoring a Group?

Affiliate sponsorship process

UVic has developed a sponsorship process to provide access to UVic resources for UVic affiliates, that:

• Standardizes the way affiliates are identified within UVic system
• Creates a common avenue for processing affiliates, given the variety of reasons affiliates have relationships with UVic
• Reduces service-delivery turn-around time for affiliates and their sponsors
• Observes the privacy needs of affiliates

The affiliate sponsorship process, managed by the Computer Help Desk, involves these steps:

1. The affiliate submits a request through the Affiliate Identity Management Systems (AIMS), identifying their UVic faculty/staff sponsor
2. AIMS invites the UVic Faculty/Staff sponsor to approve (or deny) the request
3. In Banner, a record is created for the affiliate
4. Once this is completed the UVic sponsor will be notified. *Please note the process may take up to four business days to grant affiliate status

After the AIMS request is completed, the sponsor should notify the affiliate of their V-number, they may now:

• Obtain an "affiliate" UVic ONECard
• Borrow resources from the UVic libraries
• Apply for a primary NetLink ID (and use a standard set of UVic electronic resources)

NetLink ID eligibility

Once the AIMS request has been completed, the affiliate will be able to sign up for a primary NetLink ID of their choosing. This NetLink ID will belong to the affiliate for life. Learn more about NetLink IDs.

Access to resources

The affiliate will automatically have access to these resources:

• UVic’s wireless network
• a UVic ONECard, which will have access to use the UVic library database
• UVic’s Student Computing Facilities
• Access to the UVic VPN service
• Access to online teaching and learning platforms including Brightspace, Zoom, Crowdmark, and Echo360
• Limited access to Microsoft 365 including Teams, OneDrive, and the online versions of the Office applications (A1 license)

Accounts on other systems such as: FAST, FAMIS, CourseSpaces, Banner, Online tools, SharePoint, Network File Storage, Exchange Email & FAST will be provided on an as-needed basis, and will require appropriate authorization. Sponsors should contact the Computer Help Desk to request access to these systems on behalf of the affiliate.

Supplementary roles

When approving a request, sponsors are encouraged to indicate if their affiliates are:

• Paid on a contract-basis from UVic Accounts Payable, by selecting the ‘contractor’ role in AIMS
• Performing any online research, by selecting the ‘researcher’ role in AIMS. This will allow access to licensed library resources online

To avoid duplicate records, please do not sponsor a new paid Faculty/Staff.

Access removal

When the affiliate's term expires without renewal (see below), they will lose their "affiliate" role. If no other role is in place on their identity profile (i.e. student, employee), then access from systems will be removed automatically.

Sponsor responsibilities

The sponsor is responsible for:

• vouching for the affiliate's relationship with UVic
• setting the start and end dates of the affiliate's relationship with UVic
• requesting and authorizing the affiliate's access to other systems as needed for the affiliate's duties
• renewing their affiliate's sponsorship at the end of the sponsorship term if necessary

Affiliate responsibilities

The affiliate is responsible for:

• submitting the request into AIMS
• setting up a primary NetLink ID and password. This requires acceptance of Policy IM7200-6030 (Responsible Use of Information Technology Services)

To preserve privacy & to ensure accurate data, the affiliate should submit their own personal details into AIMS, where the data will be securely transmitted with the request.

Renewing an affiliate's term

To support UVic's audit-compliance objectives concerning systems access management, sponsorships of unlimited length are currently not supported. The maximum length of a sponsorship term is one year. In advance of the end of the sponsorhip, AIMS will notify the sponsor to renew their affiliate. If a sponsor fails to renew the affiliate, access to services will be removed.

If the sponsor should happen to leave UVic, then affiliates will be matched with a new sponsor or expired at the end of their term.

UVic ONECard and Library privileges

Affiliates are eligible to obtain a UVic ONECard from the ONECard Office in person. An "affiliate" ONECard allows the user to borrow materials from the UVic Library.

By presenting an "affiliate" ONECard at the UVic libraries, affiliates are eligible for all borrowing privileges commonly afforded to UVic staff:

• borrowing privileges
• access to InterLibrary Loan

By default, UVic affiliates are not eligible for access to the online-licensed resources. To obtain access to these, sponsors are strongly encouraged to apply for a "supplementary role" through AIMS, as noted above.

Privacy statement

Personal information is collected on the Sponsorship Request Form in AIMS. The information collected includes the affiliate's name, mailing address, email address, and date of birth. This information is required to:

• create or match an identity record in UVic's central identity database
• prevent the creation of duplicate identity records
• authenticate the affiliate when he/she applies for a personal NetLink ID and password

The information submitted is managed according to the British Columbia Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPPA). Read more about UVic's privacy policy.