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What If I’m Having Trouble Signing in with My Penn State Account?

Step 1

DETERMINE WHETHER IT’S AN ISSUE WITH YOUR ACCOUNT:

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  1. Go to accounts.psu.edu and click LOGIN.

Image of Welcome to Account Management (accounts.psu.edu) (1A)

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  1. On the Penn State sign-in screen, enter your Penn State user ID + “@psu.edu”
  2. Example:  abc123@psu.edu.
  3. For additional help, click one of the links below:

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Forgot your user ID?

  • Don’t click the “Can’t Access your account?” link on your screen.
  • Instead, return to the accounts.psu.edu home page and click RECOVER MY ACCOUNT.

 

Error before you even get the sign-in screen?

 

Error: Sorry, but we're having trouble signing you in.

Sign In

Sorry, but we’re having trouble signing you in.

AADSTS50020: User account ‘yourID@psu.edu’ from identity provider ‘[xyz]‘ does not exist in tenant ‘The Pennsylvania State University’ and cannot access the application ‘https://[website]‘ in that tenant. The account needs to be added as an external user in the tenant first. Sign out and sign in again with a different Azure Active Directory user account.

 

Error: ''The phone number you entered isn't valid''?

  • Be sure you added “@psu.edu” to the end of your Penn State user ID.

Image of Penn State user ID sign-in screen (1B)

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  1. Click Next
  2. For additional help, click the link below:

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Error: ''This username may be incorrect''?

  • Don’t click the “contact your admin” link on your screen.
  • Be sure you included “@psu.edu” after your user ID (even if you don’t have PSU email).
  • Contact the IT Service Desk for additional help.

 

Image of Penn State user ID sign-in screen indicating clicking the next option (1C)

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  1. Enter your Penn State Password and click Sign In.
  2. For additional help, click one of the links below:

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Error: ''Your account or password is incorrect''?

  • Check out the possibilities below.

 

Forgot your password?

 

Sure you have the right password?

  • Check the following:   • Is your CAPS LOCK on?   • Is your password manager replacing the password you enter?   • Is autocorrect changing the password you enter?
  • If none of the above apply, try resetting your password at accounts.psu.edu/password/forgot.
  • If you’re still having trouble, contact the IT Service Desk for additional help.

Error: ''Stale Request''?

Image of Penn State password sign-in screen (1D)

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  1. If you see…
  • Either of these Microsoft Multifactor Authentication screens or if you are still using DUO Two-Factor Authentication, authenticate your account. 
    For additional help, click the link below:

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Trouble Logging in with Microsoft Multifactor Authentication (MFA)?

 

Trouble Logging in with DUO Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)?

 

Image of MFA authentication screen

  • The Account Management Home Page, you have successfully logged in to your Penn State account.
    If you still have difficulty logging into another platform with your Penn State account go to Section 2.

Image of Account Management after logging in to accounts.psu.edu

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Once you have authenticated and you see the Account Management Home Page, you have successfully logged in to your Penn State account.

If you still have difficulty logging into another service with your Penn State account go to Section 2.

 

Image of Account Management after logging in to accounts.psu.edu

Step 2

 

CHECK FOR SERVICE OUTAGES:

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  1. Visit Penn State’s Service Status webpage to confirm that it’s not an issue with the service you’re trying to log in to.
  2. If the website or service you’re trying to log into is having difficulty, it will be listed on the left side of the page, under CURRENT SERVICE STATUS.

Screenshot of Penn State's Service Status webpage (2A)

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  1. If you encountered an issue between 5 am and 7 am Eastern time, the service may have been undergoing routine maintenance.
  2. Try again after 7 am.

Step 3

 

GET ADDITIONAL HELP:

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  1. Search the Penn State Knowledge Base for articles about login issues with the service or website you’re trying to sign in to.

Image of Penn State's Knowledge Base Portal (3A)

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  1. Contact the IT Service Desk via online chat, phone, email, or service request form.

Image of IT Service Desk Help Portal (3B)

See Also

I'm New to
Penn State University

Manage My Penn State Account

I'm Leaving or Have Left Penn State

Special Types of Penn State
Accounts

Protect My Account and Data

Additional
Resources