How to Use the Site

My Profile > Profile

1. Click on My Profile > Profile in the main navigation.
2. Upload a picture. Click on the purple "Actions" button just below the photo area and select "Change Picture". Choose a photo to represent yourself—preferably your friendly face!
3. Add some information about yourself: a short bio, professional interests, etc. It's optional, but it makes the community a more interesting and welcoming place. You can choose who sees this information in your privacy settings—see the next step. 
   
   LinkedIn users can import data to populate their profile quickly and easily.

My Profile > Community Notifications

1. Configure notifications. The Community Notifications page allows you to define how you’d like to be notified of community activity. Daily Digest works well for most communities, including the Open Forum. If you are a committee member or are using the Roommates & Rides forum, consider Real Time, which notifies you about each new post. Select No Emails to remain a community member but receive no notifications. Add an override email address to receive notifications at a different email.
2. Adjust privacy settings. Navigate to My Profile > Privacy Settings. From here, control the information others see on your profile. The default settings share only a limited amount of information, similar to what you might see on a conference badge in person. 
   
   Unchecking "I would like to be included in the member directory and community rosters" will render your profile effectively invisible to your fellow community members and limit your participation.
3. Update email preferences. From My Profile, find My Account > Email Preferences in the on-page navigation. Configure what additional community notifications you receive by email, including contact requests, mentions, and more. Consider using the default settings in order to get the most out of the Member Community.

Communities > My Communities

GSA has thousands of members comprising many communities, and there are several view options to help you navigate.

1. When you click on Communities > My Communities in the main navigation, you will see a list of Communities that you are already part of, including your Section affiliation, your Divisions, committees on which you serve, and the Open Forum. Communities > All Communities will show everything, and whether or not you can join. Many committees, for example, are private.
2. The Open Forum is where all GSA members can actively participate in discussions and share files.
3. Student members have access to the Student Forum.
4. Community Participation is the heart of the site. Each community landing page shows recent activity and announcements, and all communities have a member directory, discussion group, and library.
   1. See a directory of community members by clicking on the Members tab.
   2. To start or join a thread, go to the Discussions tab.
   3. To use the document library, click on the Library tab. You can also attach a file to a discussion post to add it to the library.
   Division communities redirect to separate "microsites." While still part of the online member community (with discussions, libraries, etc.), these sites allow Divisions to more easily maintain their own resources.