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Full Starfish Reference Guide for Students
Last Updated: May 1, 2017
© 2017 by the NMU Board of Trustees. NMU is an equal opportunity institution.
Table of Contents
Log in, Profile, and Navigation
How is Starfish different from MyNMU and Educat?
How do I log in to Starfish?
How do I set up my profile?
How do I configure Starfish to send emails with my Gmail account?
Home Page Tabs
Services Tab
Raising Your Hand & Kudos
What does it mean to “Raise My Hand?”
How do I Raise My Hand?
Can someone raise a flag on me?
The General Concern Flag
What is a Kudo?
What is a Referral?
What is a To-Do?
Scheduling Appointments
How do I find available appointment times?
How do I schedule an appointment?
How do I cancel an appointment?
How do I know if I’ve successfully scheduled or canceled an appointment?
What if my instructor/adviser doesn’t have any office hours listed?
How do I schedule appointments with student service providers on campus?
Log in, Profile, and Navigation
How is Starfish different from MyNMU and Educat?
- MyNMU is for "official" business such as paying your ebill, registering for courses, and receiving final grades.
- Educatisa platform for instructors to share class assignments and grades.
- Starfish allows you to easily schedule appointments with instructors and your adviser, as well asindicate you need assistance withany aspect of college success.
How do I log in to Starfish?
Log in by clicking on the Starfish icon in the Home tab of MyNMU. Refer to the Starfish website for a direct link.
How do I set up my profile?
Access your profile information and intake form by clicking on your name in the upper right corner of Starfish.
- Profile Tab:Update your email, phone number, and email preferences. Click “submit” to save your changes.
- Intake Tab:This tab contains required profile questions that instructors, advisers, and NMU service departments will use to better assist you when you need help. If any of this information changes throughout the semester, be sure to update your answers.
To receivetext messages alertsin addition to emails, add your phone numberand the respective @ for your service provider (found by clicking on the phone icon on the right) under "Alternate Email" on your profile page.
How do I configure Starfish to send emails with my Gmail account?
Please visit to view instructions for syncing Starfish through Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Internet Explorer.
Home Page Tabs
- Dashboard:View appointment reminders, flags that need to be resolved, and kudos you have earned (please note that your dashboard will appear empty until items are added by your adviser or instructor)
- Messages:Messages about your appointments, flags, and kudos
- My Success Network:Contact information for ACAC, the Student Service Center, your adviser, and your instructors
- Raise Your Hand:Ask for help with a course, finances, or anything else. This creates aflagin Starfish that will notify the people on campus who can assist you
- Courses:View what courses you’re currently enrolled in, as well as past semesters you’ve attended Northern
- History:View all Starfish activity related to you
Services Tab
View Contact information for all student service departments on campus.
Raising Your Hand & Kudos
What does it mean to “Raise My Hand?”
“Raising your hand” means a “flag” has been raised for your profile in Starfish. A flag alerts a department or instructor and lets them know you have a question or need help.
How do I Raise My Hand?
Select “Raise Your Hand” on the left side navigation to request help. Choose the type of help you are looking for, select a course if it is relevant to your needs, and be sure to add detailed comments about your request so the NMU faculty and staff have the information they need to best assist you.
What kind of help can I request and what happens after I do?
- I Need Help(use this option when the other options are not applicable to your question)
- Your Primary Adviser will be notified and answer your question or direct you to the appropriate office.
- I Need Help in a Course
- The instructor teaching the course you have requested help in will reach out to you.
- Questions about Finances, Paying Bills, Etc.
- The Student Service Center will address your concern. Adding detailed comments will help the SSC better assist you.
- Questions about Financial Aid
- The Financial Aid office will address your concern. Adding detailed comments will help the FOA better assist you.
Can someone raise a flag on me?
Just like students can raise their hands to ask for help, instructors and other staff members can raise flags for concerns about students. Four flags in Starfish are YOUR responsibility to respond to:
- Attendance Concern
- Low Course Grade
- In Danger of Failing
- Missing/Late Assignments
You will be notified via email if one of these flags is raised on you. Respond to the flag raiser (this will usually be your instructor) by clicking “reply” in the email message and ask what steps you should take to solve the problem. You will also be able to view your flags and kudoson the right hand side of your Dashboard tab in Starfish.
Registration holds (also treated like flags) are visible in Starfish as well as MyNMU. After meeting with your adviser to discuss your hold, it will take FOUR HOURS for the flag to clear. Do not wait until the day you need to register to meet with your adviser.
The General Concern Flag
As a student, you do not have the ability to raise a “General Concern” flag. If you have a general question, please use the “I need help” flag in the “Raise Your Hand” tab of Starfish.
An instructor, your primary adviser, an ACAC adviser, a staff member, or your employer can raise a General Concern flag. You will receive a notification that this flag has been raised on you, and an ACAC adviser will reach out to you to address the problem.
What is a Kudo?
A kudo isa way for an instructor to say “good job” ina class. Your six most recent Kudos will appear in the upper right corner of your Starfish Dashboard screen and will remain active until the end of the semester they are given. You do not need to take any action after receiving a kudo.
What is a Referral?
An instructor or adviser has referred you to a student services department on campus to receive help.
What is a To-Do?
One of your connections has assigned you a task you need to complete, such as meeting with youradviser to discuss signing up for classes.
Scheduling Appointments
How do I find available appointment times?
Go to the“My Success Network”in the Home tab. If you are unable to view your entire success network, zoom out by pressing "Ctrl -"
If the person you are trying to schedule an appointment with has set up their office hours in Starfish, “Schedule Appointment” will be available as a clickable link underneath their email address.
How do I schedule an appointment?
After clicking on “Schedule Appointment,” you can view your instructor or adviser’s available hours. If there are open hours on a particular day, the date on the left side calendar will be bold. Scroll using the arrows in the upper right corner of the hourly calendar to view additional days or weeks.
When the instructor or adviser has open hours, the available slot will have the words “Sign Up” next to a green and white plus sign symbol. Click on an open time, and answer the required questions, such as the reason for appointment and the requested duration.
Click “submit” after filling out the appointment information, and wait for a confirmation email.
How do I cancel an appointment?
To cancel an appointment, find the appointment on your Starfish Dashboard and click the "x" in the upper right corner, enter a reason for the cancelation, and click submit.
You CANNOT cancel an appointment from your Google Calendar.
How do I know if I’ve successfully scheduled or canceled an appointment?
You will receive a confirmation or cancelation email and the appointment willbe viewable on your Dashboard and History tabsin Starfish.
What if my instructor/adviser doesn’t have any office hours listed?
Your instructor/adviser has chosen not to use the calendar feature of Starfish soyou will need to call or email themto set up an appointment.
How do I schedule appointments with student service providers on campus?
You cannot schedule appointments through Starfish with specific departments; you caneither "Raise Your Hand" or directly call the office.