Wireless
Wellesley College provides wireless access in all buildings throughout campus.
- Wireless Policies and Frequently Asked Questions
- Connect with Windows
- Connect with Mac
- Connect with Other Devices (tablets, phones, game consoles, etc.)
- Visitors
Wireless Policies & FAQs
Use of the wireless network should be in conformance with the College’s policies on the Responsible Use of Information Technology Resources and copyright , including file sharing .
Wireless networking presents a variety of additional issues and security risks that are not present with a wired connection. Wireless networking also shares the same frequencies (2.4GHz and 5GHz) used by a variety of other technologies, including cordless phones, wireless keyboards and mice, microwave ovens, and BlueTooth devices, which presents reliability and performance issues.
For questions or assistance, please call the Help Desk at 781.283.7777 during business hours, Monday to Friday 8:30-4:30pm. You may also post questions in the FirstClass conference Computing Questions & IS Alerts. If you are a new student, you may post in the Discussions forums in MyWellesley.
Does my residence hall have wireless? Do public buildings have wireless?
The official Wellesley College wireless network is called either Wellesley or nostrings , depending on your location.
The Wellesley network/SSID
Major public buildings (Science Center, Founders, Green Hall, Pendleton, Jewett, Sports Center) and the large Residence Hall complexes (Tower Court, the Quint, Stone-Davis, and the East Side), have access points named Wellesley that support both 802.11n and 802.11g speeds. These Wellesley locations are configured to provide complete coverage of each building, though the signal strength may vary.The nostrings network/SSID
Smaller buildings on campus, such as the Continuing Education Office, Slater International, and Harambee House have access points named nostrings that support 802.11g speeds. The signal strength of these access points only allows connections within 100 feet, so these buildings may not have complete wireless coverage.
Where can I find instructions to connect to the wireless network?
You can follow the links to instructions for: Apple Mac or Windows PC.
Can I still use the wired ethernet jack or landline phone in my room?
After June 2011, ethernet and landline phone drops in the Res Halls are no longer active. Wireless is the only way to connect to the network in Res Halls.
Why are personal wireless access points and routers not allowed on campus?
Faculty, staff, and students are not allowed to set up personal wireless access points or routers (including Time Capsule and other backup systems that use WiFi) because they may interfere with the Wellesley and nostrings access points. An IS staff member may disable the wired network drop that an unauthorized wireless access point is plugged into at any time.
How fast is the new wireless coverage?
The new official wireless access points (SSID Wellesley) use 802.11n (300 Mbit/s) and also backwards-compatible to 802.11g (54 Mbit/s) technology; but speed still depends on your wireless card and local conditions, number of users connected, what you're downloading, and the time of day. Wellesley SSID locations are configured to provide 100% coverage, but may not be 100% signal strength in 100% of areas.
How do I connect my iPhone or other devices to the Wellesley College network?
If you are a visitor to campus, please see the Visitor information page .
Faculty, staff or students: if you have a device other than a computer that you would like to connect to the network, you may need to configure and register it with the help of an LTS staff member at the Computing Help Desk. Please come to the Computing Help Desk (business hours: 8:30am-4:30pm, Monday to Friday) located near the main entrance of Clapp Library. A staff member will help you configure the device and set it up to work on the campus network with Cisco NAC.
The list below are some of the typical devices we exempt and know to function properly on our network. We have not been able to get Nintendo Wii's, Nintendo DS's, and Roku's to connect to our network, so we recommend you not bring those items to campus. Students, please keep in mind that the dorms only have wireless internet access, as the ethernet drops in your rooms are not functional. If you have questions, please call the Computing Help Desk at 781.283.7777 (students) or 781.283.3333 (faculty-staff).
- Apple iPhones, iPads, iPods, and Apple TVs
- Google Android phones and tablets
- Windows Mobile & Surface phones and tablets
- Microsoft XBox 360
- Sony Playstation 3
Why does the wireless network say it's not encrypted?
Wellesley does not currently require wireless communications to be encrypted. Thus sensitive information sent over a wireless connection (such as passwords) could conceivably be stolen by someone monitoring the wireless network. Please exercise caution when entering information on nonsecure websites. The college is currently investigating the viability and support implications of adding encryption to our wireless network for the future.
Can I configure my computer itself to act as a wireless access point?
NO. Students, staff, and faculty are not allowed to configure desktop or laptop computers to act as wireless access points or routers, sometimes referred to as software base station or connection sharing. Doing so will interfere with the college's wireless network, and will cause problems for nearby users. These will likely be identified remotely by a member of IS staff, and your ethernet port will be disabled until the problem is resolved.
