Zoom Setup for Virtual Appointments

Owned by Spartan Connect, created
Last updated: Oct 14, 2022
5 min read

Overview

This guide has been created to provide instructions on configuring Zoom for virtual appointment sessions. You will be instructed to adjust settings in your Zoom account that will affect the way certain features of Zoom work and behave. After making the proposed changes, test your Zoom account with to ensure that it is working as expected. This is not intended to be a perfect or permanent solution for online appointments, but it will bridge the gap until Spartan Connect supports Zoom appointments natively. If you have questions or concerns, reach out to SpartanConnect@SJSU.edu.

This guide expects that you are familiar with Zoom and already have it installed. If you are unfamiliar with Zoom, refer to the SJSU IT Zoom webpage.

Zoom Account Settings

Advisors should set up their Zoom Personal Meeting Room and adjust settings:

Sign in to your Zoom account and follow the Single Sign-on prompts as needed.

On your profile page, find your Personal Meeting ID and Personal Link. This is your Zoom Room.

If you’d like, you can personalize the Personal Link to make it friendlier to students (See Customizing your Zoom Personal Meeting Room URL).

You can use this same link for all your appointments, without needing to create a new one for each.

In the left sidebar, go to the Meetings section, and then your Personal Meeting Room tab.

In order to make the changes needed, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on "Edit this Meeting."

Enable the "Waiting room" for attendees.

Enabling the waiting room for all participants allows the host to selectively admit attendees. Think of this setting like a traditional waiting room, where students wait outside your office.

You can also disable the setting "Enable join before host" which prevents a participant from joining before you as the host have started the meeting.

Scroll up and check the "Meeting Password" setting and consider disabling it. For simplicity, and because you’ve enabled the waiting room, a password may not be necessary. If you do have the meeting password enabled, ensure that it is included in the full Zoom link that is shared with students.

Using a Personal Meeting Room

Once your Personal Meeting Room is setup, you can start a Zoom session in your Room at any time.

In most cases, the best way to start is by navigating in a browser to your own Personal Meeting Link (which you may have personalized).

Alternatively, you can click on the "Start Meeting" button on your Personal Meeting Room tab.

Managing the Waiting Room

At the bottom of the Zoom window, there is a black bar with icons in it. One says "Manage Participants." Click on that and the Participants window pops out on the right.

This is where you can admit those waiting in the Waiting Room. Next to each participant is a link to "Admit" or "Remove" them.

Once admitted, you can perform additional actions on participants, like removing them from the meeting when their appointment is over.

Setting up Spartan Connect

Adding Special Instructions

To facilitate the sharing of the Zoom meeting information, Spartan Connect has fields for a URL and Special Instructions to show to student when making an appointment.

From your Staff Home, click the tab for "My Availability."

Edit any existing availability (or create new ones from the "Actions" menu) that will be offered via Zoom.

For reach availability row, click on the edit link on the right end of the table.

Scroll down to the URL/Phone Number field and Special Instructions for Student textbox and enter in your dedicated Zoom link and instructions for the student using the example:

Special Instructions Sample

Feel free to copy and paste the following text, replacing your Meeting Link and ID:

This appointment will not be in-person!

We will use Zoom for this virtual advising appointment. You can join my Personal Meeting Room at: https://sjsu.zoom.us/my/SammySpartan or with the Meeting ID of 123 456 7890.

Please join a few minutes before your appointment start time and wait for me to let you in.

Where do Students See the Special Instructions?

Students can see the contents of the Special Instructions in a few places:

Appointment Confirmation

Appointment Confirmation and Reminder Emails

Customizing your Zoom Personal Meeting Room URL

If you’d like to have a custom Zoom URL for your meeting room, instead of the default which is the 10-14 digit room number, you can do so from your Zoom Account Profile.

Sign in to your Zoom account and follow the Single Sign-on prompts as needed.

Find your Personal Meeting Room setup on your profile page and click the Customize link.

In the Personal Link section there is now a field you can fill out with the text of your choice. Zoom will check what you enter to make sure it’s not already in use. Click on Save Changes.

If everything worked, your new Personal Link will be updated (and hidden). You can click on the Show link next to the hidden URL to view the change.

Help With These Steps

Please reach out to the Spartan Connect support team at spartanconnect@sjsu.edu and we will do what we can to support you.