Microsoft Teams: Online Collaboration Space
Microsoft Teams is a virtual collaboration space that allows you to create/join your own groups (Teams), post messages, chat, meet, share files, and more. Teams also integrates with other services (e.g. Box, Zoom, YouTube, etc.) to make collaborating even more convenient.
Ways to Access Microsoft Teams
You can access your Teams content in a variety of ways and on different devices.
- Open an internet browser (e.g. Chrome or Firefox) and go to teams.microsoft.com.
- A Microsoft login page will appear. Enter your Tufts email address (e.g. John.Jumbo@tufts.edu) and click Next.
- In the Tufts login screen that appears, enter your Tufts username (e.g. jjumbo01) and password, then click Sign in. You may also be asked to complete DUO two-factor authentication.
- Microsoft Teams will load in your browser.
- Visit the Microsoft Teams download page.
- Select Download for desktop.
- Download the installation file. When the download is complete, open the file and follow the prompts to install the Microsoft Teams desktop application. If you are on a Tufts-owned computer and you do not have administrative rights to install applications, contact the TTS Service Desk for assistance (call 617-627-376 or email it@tufts.edu).
- Open the Teams desktop application. If you are prompted to sign in, enter your Tufts email address (e.g. John.Jumbo@tufts.edu) and click Sign in.
- A Tufts login window will appear. Enter your Tufts username (e.g. jjumbo01) and password, then click Sign in. You may also be asked to complete DUO two-factor authentication.
- The Microsoft Teams desktop application will load.
The Microsoft Teams mobile application is available for both Apple (iOS/iPadOS) and Android devices. Search for Microsoft Teams in your device's app store. For more information, see our page on the Teams mobile app.
Microsoft is rolling out a new Teams experience that is faster and easier to use while being less demanding on system resources – meaning, your computer! The new Teams experience will be rolled out to the Tufts community on January 17th, 2024. Learn more about the new Microsoft Teams here.
Switching to the New Teams Client
When the new Teams client is available to you, you will see a “Try the new Teams” toggle switch toward the top left corner of your classic Teams desktop client. (If you see the toggle but it is grayed out and not functional, try clearing the Classic Teams cache on your device.)
To switch, flip the toggle to the ON position. If you don’t have it already, the new Teams desktop client will begin downloading automatically. Follow the steps in the installer. The new Teams client will open once installation is complete.
You’ll know you’re using the new Teams desktop client when you see the New Teams logo in the top left corner.
Switching Back to Teams Classic
If you want to switch back to the classic Teams experience, clicking on the options button ( 
) in the top right corner of the new Teams client and turn the New Teams toggle switch OFF.
