Testing Fresh Guides for Accessibility
Whether you organized the event or you're a participant, everyone must join a MS Teams meeting to virtually connect with one another. This guide explains three aspects related to joining a meeting:
- Find a join meeting link.
- Choose Teams desktop vs your web browser.
- Use your UIW account.
Find a Join Meeting Link
There are multiple ways to join MS Teams meetings and where you find a MS Teams join meeting link depends on how the organizer created the meeting. The most common link options used at UIW include:
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Calendar Invitation: Either access your Outlook Calendar or Teams Calendar if the organizer invited you to a meeting. These calendars are synced by Microsoft to show your scheduled meetings and include the join link.
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Canvas Invitation: If an instructor uses the Microsoft Teams Meetings app on their Canvas course navigation and invites students to scheduled meetings, everyone in the course accesses the join meeting options in the course or through their Outlook and Teams calendars. However, only those invited will see the scheduled events and be able to join.
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Meeting Link: Meeting links can be copied and sent in chats, emails, or placed in Canvas courses separate from a scheduled event, which means you won't see these on a calendar. Since there's no calendar item in Outlook, Teams, or Canvas, participants must click the link where it was shared with them.
When you click a link to join, you may be prompted to make a choice between Continue with this browser or Join on the Teams app. We recommend selecting the second option to Join on the Teams app, which opens the desktop version rather than the web app.
Choose Teams Desktop vs Web Browser
You can join an MS Teams meeting with either the desktop version installed on your computer or the web app from Cardinal Apps. However, MS Teams desktop version offers more features than the web app and you want to consider that when deciding how you join. The desktop app is recommended for all faculty, employees, and students, but is most critical for meeting organizers and presenters who want to use breakout rooms. Contact the UIW Help Desk for assistance installing and updating Teams on your computer or mobile phone.
Use Your UIW Account
For the best experience meeting on MS Teams, sign in with your UIW account to ensure you're recognized as part of the university. Employees and students who have personal Microsoft accounts or Microsoft business accounts with other institutions are encouraged to add other Microsoft accounts so you can switch accounts in Microsoft Teams. Know that MS Teams retains any account you used the last time you signed in, so switching back to your UIW account is often necessary, even if you access a Teams meeting directly through a Canvas course. After you add additional accounts, switching options are found by clicking your user profile.
