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Office of the Registrar
Teachers College, Columbia University

Office of the Registrar

Resources > Banner

Banner

About Banner

Banner is an administrative software application developed specifically for higher education institutions by Sungard Higher Education (SCT). Banner maintains student, alumni, financial aid, and human resources data. It consists of six integrated systems:

  • Finance (Accounts Receivable)
  • Alumni/Development
  • Student
  • Financial Aid
  • Human Resources
  • General
Because they share a common database, called Oracle, the modules are highly integrated.  The Banner software is an interface to the database that provides secure processing of information for students, alumni, personnel, and financial aid.  

 
System Access

The first thing you should do to get started using Banner is to sign up for access--you should have received a form from Human Resources during your new employee orientation. However, if you did not fill out the form, you can download the form by clicking here.

Next, a member of the Banner Security staff will email you when your access is ready.

Finally, download the Banner 7 Navigation Fundamentals Powerpoint.  It will help you learn the basics of Banner navigation, as well as important information about the software structure, security, and query techniques.
 
Software

Banner 7 is accessed via your web browser. Internet Explorer or Firefox should be used for Windows operating systems.

To access Banner, open your web browser and go to the following web site: https://castor.tc.columbia.edu/forms90/f90servlet?config=prodinb

The first time you access Banner, you will need to download a small piece of software called JInitiator.  It is best to install the software using Internet Explorer, but once you install it, you can use any web browser.
 
Password Information

 

In accordance with the College's Computing and Information Systems Department Security policies, the following password-related changes are now in effect for Banner.

  • Passwords will expire after 120 days, forcing you to choose a new password.
  • You cannot recycle or re-use passwords within 240 days.
  • All passwords must contain at least eight (8) characters. Of these eight characters, one must be a number, one must be a letter, and at least one must be one of the following "special characters":
    % ! * + - : ? _
  • Passwords cannot contain spaces.
  • The following special characters are not available for use: @ $ & " ( ) / , < > ` ; #