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Link Shortening & Subdomains

Link Shortening

The go.nd.edu link shortener is a tool to create and track Notre Dame–branded short URLs. URLs are in the format of “go.nd.edu/random-text” or “go.nd.edu/custom-text.”

This service is available for a fee as it requires outside support. The cost per team is $400/year. If you would like more information, please contact us.

Subdomains

University subdomains (vanity URLs) are URLs in the format “example.nd.edu.” They are offered to the campus community free of charge. They are to be used only for official University sites in conjunction with the expectations, guidelines, and conventions below.

Subdomains are intended as the primary address for permanent websites. The go.nd.edu link shortener should be used for instances of temporary or shortened links. Approvals typically take 3-5 days, so please plan ahead.

Please Note

NEVER advertise a subdomain in any form until it has been officially approved through this process. Do not assume a subdomain is available or will be approved because it is not currently assigned to an active website. OPAC will assign new subdomains based on the principles outlined below.

Quality Expectations

Websites with University-approved subdomains are considered official University communications, and consistent excellence is important to our brand. With that in mind, only websites that meet the following criteria will be approved for a University subdomain:

  • Branded
  • Secure
  • Fast
  • Easy to use
  • Mobile friendly

Advice: It’s recommended that campus units work with a professional web agency (the ND Web Team or an external agency) to develop new websites. Quality standards are enforced, and personal projects, faculty/student projects, and freelance projects often fail to reflect the professionalism necessary for approval. In addition, do-it-yourself website solutions such as Google Sites, Wix, Weebly, or Squarespace are difficult to adjust to Notre Dame’s web brand standards and are not eligible for approval. Communicators should review web brand standards prior to committing to a vendor or platform.

Naming Principles

Subdomains are carefully assigned based on clear communications, search engine optimization, and the website’s place within the University. Here are broad principles that impact each selection.

  1. The subdomain should reflect the title of the website as much as possible.
  2. The subdomain should use descriptive words that communicate purpose and business priorities.
  3. The subdomain is selected with consideration of similarly-titled websites already part of the Notre Dame network.
  4. Acronyms are rarely identified or understood by our audiences. They are avoided in most instances.
  5. Brevity is fantastic, but helping users understand a website's purpose is more important. As a result, sometimes longer subdomains are recommended.
  6. Vague or broad terms often lack needed clarity, and additional context is helpful.

There are 1) exceptions to these principles and 2) campus websites with legacy subdomains that predate these standards. That being said, all new subdomains are selected and assigned with these principles in mind.

Additional Naming Guidelines

  1. Must be at least two characters.
  2. Must consist of only lowercase letters, numbers, and the hyphen (-) character.
  3. Must begin and end with a letter or number.
  4. Should not begin or end with “nd,” except in cases where it’s vital to branding.
  5. Should not be a generic term or word.

Specific Instances

  1. Surnames: Subdomains consisting of only a surname are not allowed.
  2. Students are not eligible for personal subdomains. If you are a student and need a subdomain for a project or initiative, you will need a faculty or staff sponsor to submit on your behalf.
  3. Personal/faculty domains must follow one of the below formats:
    1. First initial + surname: jsmith.nd.edu
    2. First name + surname: johnsmith.nd.edu
    3. Middle initials are allowed when necessary: jwsmith.nd.edu or johnwsmith.nd.edu
  4. Labs must contain the word “lab” in the URL. Example: memorylab.nd.edu
  5. Student clubs must contain the word “club” or “student” in the URL. Examples: wallstreetclub.nd.edu and mathclub.nd.edu
  6. Residence halls must contain the word “hall” in the URL. Examples: pangbornhall.nd.edu and flahertyhall.nd.edu
  7. Conferences must contain the word “conference” in the URL. Examples: quranconference.nd.edu and accstudentleadershipconference.nd.edu
  8. Courses must contain the word “course” in the URL. Examples: computerhackerscourse.nd.edu

Technical Rules

  1. Limit to one level—e.g.: “opac.nd.edu” is acceptable, “web.opac.nd.edu” is not.
  2. Limit one subdomain per business unit/organization/site/individual.
  3. Web property must be in compliance with University brand standards for web.
  4. May NOT be used to redirect to subpages within other sites. Instead, please consider using a sub-page redirect. E.g.: mysite.nd.edu/thing/ redirects to mysite.nd.edu/several/pages/down/thing/.
  5. Subdomains are not approved for “test”, “staging”, or “development” servers.
  6. Subdomains are not approved as redirects to external services. If you need a short nd.edu URL to serve as a redirect, consult with your web communicator or contact us regarding “go.nd.edu” custom URLs.
  7. If the subdomain is related to Mendoza or business, extra approval is required. See below for more information.

Hosting

Subdomains will only be granted for sites/applications that are hosted on University-approved vendors and meet University brand standards. We recommend you contact the ND Web team to discuss requirements prior to starting an externally hosted project.

Recommended vendors:

Other approved vendors:

For more information on approved hosting vendors, see the Knowledge Base article.

Requesting a subdomain

To request a subdomain, please use the form below. You will need to provide the proposed title and a brief description and purpose of your website and the related subdomain. OPAC staff will review your submission considering the naming principles outlined above. Within five business days, they will respond with one or more suggested subdomain options tailored to your site's purpose for you to choose from. Remember, the request must be submitted by Notre Dame faculty or staff; students require a faculty or staff sponsor to submit on their behalf.

Retiring a subdomain

If you are the owner of a subdomain and no longer need it, please contact webgroup@nd.edu.

In the event that a website a subdomain belongs to is retired or changed, the domain may remain in place for up to one year to allow for links and printed material to be updated. After one year, the domain will be removed.

Mendoza policy regarding the creation of Mendoza/business websites

Any party requesting a new URL on behalf of Mendoza will need to follow these guidelines:

  1. Requester must draft a detailed proposal that lists the proposed name of the site and explains the purpose of the site, the intended audience, sample content, and who will be developing the site and making updates.
  2. Contact Joel Wolfgang, who will also be given admin rights to all new sites, regarding your proposal.
  3. Based on the proposal, Mendoza MarComm may accept the request, reject the request, or propose an alternative solution.
  4. Mendoza MarComm retains the right to take the site down if the content is not maintained properly, if any offensive or inappropriate content is posted, or for any reason that Mendoza MarComm believes warrants it.
  5. Send your questions to Joel Wolfgang.