Virtual Events at Mason

  • Scheduling actions for university-sponsored virtual events are suggested using these instructions.
  • For the hosts and co-hosts (and presenters), be sure to practice, preferably using the same link you will use on the day of the event. Practice in advance with your presenters. Inquire with the online meeting platform vendor if they have a self-guided test that attendees may use on their own schedule (for example, attendees can use a practice/test Zoom meeting available to the public)
  • Consider making the internet a little more accessible by utilizing Mason's Assistive Technologies Initiative (ATI) services. ATI intakes captioning and translation requests for the Mason community. Please visit the ATI website or email ati@gmu.edu. Automated transcription has recently been added to Zoom. To turn on transcription, log into your account at gmu.zoom.us and navigate to your settings. From there, select In Meeting (Advanced), then toggle on "Closed Captioning' and check the box for "Enable live transcription."
  • You may submit your contact information and the virtual event details to the ITS Support Center via this online form. This will provide the ITS Support Center with important event details should your attendees experience issues, such as joining the meeting or audio and video. It will also provide ITS with your contact information should they need to reach you to warn you of anything imperative your attendees have reported. After submitting this form, you may include the ITS Support Center contact information in your communication to your attendees. (Note: ITS Support Center staff WILL NOT assign someone to monitor your event. The ITS Support Center will answer calls, emails, etc., in the order received.)
  • ITS offers these supported conferencing solutions:
    • Zoom Meetings & Zoom Webinar: (up to 100-1,000 participants*)
      • Zoom Meetings: Students have a Basic account with a default 100-participant limit. Employees have a Pro account with a default 300-participant limit. Please inquire about increasing your personal participant capacity (or license type) to allow up to 300 or 500 participants, respectively.
      • *Zoom Webinar: Webinar currently has a capacity of 1,000 participants; however, beginning April 2, 2023, the capacity will decrease to 500 participants. More information about Zoom Webinar.
    • Microsoft Teams Meetings: (up to 300 participants)
    • Class Collaborate: (up to 500 participants)

Tips and Tricks

  • Framing of webcams is important. The lighting and angle of webcams make or break credibility. Work with your practicing presenters and hosts, so that (if enabled) video is optimally framed with minimal distractions. Determining framing and virtual backgrounds is key during practice sessions before the event.
    See: More information to make your presenters look professional
  • Use a "welcome slide" any way you would like. For example, one person shares them before the presenter starts their slide deck, or you can ask to include this as the first slide of the presenter's deck. These are editable templates for a Meeting-Style Welcome Slide and a Webinar-Style Welcome Slide you can edit, make changes, translate to another language, etc.
  • Familiarize yourself with in-meeting techniques to mute, expel, lock meetings, enable waiting rooms, disable sharing, etc. Conference "bombers" have been known to spread chaos through their microphones, webcams, screen sharing, file sharing, and chat.
    See: How do I secure my online meeting? as a starting place to protect your event

Zoom Specific Details

Last modified: April 4, 2024