Password Policy & Complexity Requirements

Shippensburg University requires all users to have a complex password and requires that users change their password at least once every 180 days. This is to ensure account security for all employees and students.

Password minimum requirements:

• At least twelve (12) characters in length
• May not contain significant portions of your username, first name or last name
• Must be changed at least once every 180 days
• Contain characters from at least three of the following four categories:
  • English uppercase characters (A through Z)
  • English lowercase characters (a through z)
  • Numeric characters (0 through 9)
  • Special/non-alphabetic, non-numeric characters (!, #, %, space character, etc.)
• Must not be the same as any previously used passwords

A suggestion for easily creating a strong password is to think in terms of a passphrase or short sentence using punctuation.
 

** NOTE:  In certain instances, setting a password that meets all of the above criteria could still result in a failed password change/reset. When you change/reset your password, the new password that you choose is automatically analyzed by Microsoft Entra to look for terms that are often used as the basis for weak passwords. When weak terms are found, the password will be rejected, and you'll be asked to create a different one.
 

Managing your password

You can change or reset your password by visiting https://password.ship.edu.