PRESENTED BY
Brightspace Help Team
E-Mail: brightspacehelp@emcc.edu
BRIGHTSPACE FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. Where can I find my Brightspace courses?
You can access Brightspace from the EMCC website (top menu) or in MyEMCC (left hand menu). You can
also access Brightspace directly here: mccs.brightspace.com.
2. What is the best browser for Brightspace?
Firefox or Chrome are the best browsers to use with Brightspace. DO NOT use Internet Explorer, Edge or
Safari. If you use these browsers you will encounter issues while taking a test. You can download Firefox
or Chrome to your computer using these links.
3. Where do I find the Brightspace Online Orientation?
All students are enrolled in the Brightspace Online Orientations. You will find the orientation in
Brightspace under the My Courses Widget or by clicking on the Course Selector waffle.
4. Do I need to take the Online Student Brightspace Orientation each semester?
No! You only need to take the Online Brightspace Orientation once a school year. After you take the
orientation, you will be presented with a certificate of completion. It will remain available to you as a
resource.
5. Why can't I see my online course?
Some of your online credit courses will not be available until the first day of the term. Once the first day
of the term starts @ 12:01 am, you should see all of your courses in Brightspace. If you lose access to an
online course, you may have been dropped for non-attendance. If you do not see your courses in
Brightspace, email Brightspacehelp@emcc.edu.
6. What is MyLabs and/or Mindtap?
Pearson MyLabs is an online learning system that is used by our Math courses. Cengage Mindtap is an
online learning system that is used by some of our other programs. MyLabs and Mindtap require an access
code that you can purchase from the EMCC bookstore. Both MyLabs and Mindtap can be accessed from
Brightspace.
7. How do I request help with online learning?
If you need academic help with your online course, the first person to contact is your instructor. If you
need technical Brightspace assistance, you can request live chat support help here.
8. How long should I have to wait until my instructor replies to my email?
Instructors will have 24-48 hours to reply to student emails from the time of receipt. Students should not
go more than 48 hours without hearing a response from their instructor during the normal work week. If
you email a faculty member on Friday @ 5pm, you may not receive a response until late Monday or early
Tuesday. Do not procrastinate! Review your course work on Monday and email all questions to your
instructor prior to Friday.
9. Is there an online EMCC bookstore?
Yes, you can purchase textbooks from the EMCC bookstore online. Click here to access the online EMCC
bookstore.
10. Can I use a Chromebook with Brightspace?
It is recommended that students NOT use Chromebooks with online learning. In many cases,
Chromebooks will work fine. However, Chromebooks are not a full operating system and in some cases
are not fully supported. Students should use either a Mac or Windows computer.
11. Where can I download Word, Powerpoint or Excel for home use?
Students can download and install Word, Powerpoint or Excel for FREE. Click here to access MS Office.
Use your school email and password when prompted.
12. Is there online tutoring @ EMCC?
Yes! Access tutoring by emailing tutoring@emcc.edu.
13. I was dropped from my online course! What happened?
The primary reason for being dropped from a course is due to lack of attendance and participation.
Attendance in an online course is defined by completing weekly work or a specific assignment that your
instructor has posted. Logging in does not qualify as attendance. You must complete work to earn
attendance credit. If you go more than two weeks without completing work in your course, then you may
be dropped for non-attendance. Contact your instructor for more information.
14. Brightspace is doing weird things! What do I do?
Most issues with Brightspace are due to using an unsupported web browser. The best web browser to use
with Brightspace is Firefox. If something does not work in Brightspace, try the following prior to contacting
support. (1) Use Firefox. (2) Make sure Firefox is up to date. (3) Clear your history/cache, (4) Logout and
close Firefox (5) Reopen Firefox and try Brightspace again.
15. Is Brightspace down?
Brightspace has a 99% up time. It is rarely down. In some cases your home internet connection or your
computer is the reason you may not be able to access Brightspace.
16. Where can I find my grades in my online course?
All online courses should have a Grade section in Brightspace. Look “Grades” on the blue navigation bar.
17. Do I need to use my EMCC email account?
Yes! You need to use your EMCC school email while you take courses @ EMCC. Faculty may not respond
to you if you are using a private email address. The main reason we require students to use the EMCC
email system is that we can verify your identify via school email.
18. Can I use a mobile device with online learning (iPhone, Tablet, etc)
Yes and No! Online learning provides basic support for mobile devices to access content, but not all
features or content areas are accessible with mobile devices. Students taking online courses @ EMCC
should use a computer of laptop with Firefox to access their courses.
19. Should I save my work offline?
Yes! Save offline copies of ALL of your work when possible. This provides you with a backup copy in case
there are technical problems. Save all written work (discussions, assignments, etc.) as a Word document
for offline storage.
20. Help I lost my discussion board post! What do I do?
Students are advised to type up long discussion board posts offline in Word. Then copy and paste this
word document into the discussion board. DO NOT attach the word document. Just copy and paste the
text into the discussion board post. Do NOT attach a Word document to a discussion post unless instructed
to do so.
