About Records Management
Archives & Special Collections (A&SC) is home of the University Records Management Program. Records management is defined as the "systematic and administrative control of records throughout their lifecycle to ensure efficiency and economy in their creation, use, handling, control, maintenance, and disposition." Our University Records Management program helps offices and departments meet the administrative, financial, legal, and historical needs of the University of Pittsburgh by:
- Developing and training staff on policies and procedures to comply with University practices and federal/state laws
- Establishing records schedules with University departments
- Sustaining and monitoring the University’s relationship with our off-site storage repository, Access.
- Pursuing collaborative initiatives such as research data management and investigating electronic records guidance
Access
Access provides departmental accounts with records management solutions, including:
- Secure off-site storage for your records
- Delivery of stored records to your office
- Certified secure records destruction
- Locked records destruction containers
Our services do not extend to University of Pittsburgh regional campuses, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) or University of Pittsburgh Physicians (UPP).
Contact the University Records Manager to learn more about creating an account for your office. See our FAQ for more details.
Access Service Forms
Service forms should be submitted to pittsburgh@accesscorp.com.
Use one of the following forms to service your Access account:
For a thorough description of University Records Management policies and Access procedures please review the University of Pittsburgh User Guide.
University of Pittsburgh Access account users now have the option to use FileBRIDGE, Access’s online account management platform, to generate an inventory, request boxes from storage, submit new boxes to storage, and order supplies. FileBRIDGE cannot be used for destruction requests. FileBRIDGE is not replacing the service forms above, it is simply a second method through which to service your account.
Please see these University of Pittsburgh FileBRIDGE instructions for a comprehensive overview of using FileBRIDGE. Please contact the university records manager for questions concerning your account, or to create an account.
Regulations and Retention Schedules
The University of Pittsburgh utilizes two records retention schedules which recommend how long records should be maintained by departments. University guidelines on research data management provide management and retention requirements for research data created by University of Pittsburgh researchers. Finally, all data drives, tapes, or discs containing protected health information that are transferred to Access for storage must be encrypted per University policy.
Records management, retention and disposition is guided by federal, state and University regulations. Please see our guide on applicable records management regulations for details.
Transfer Records to University Archives
All records of a permanent or historical nature, including all University records pre-dating 1970, should be reviewed by the University Archivist.
If you believe your office has such material please follow our University Archives transfer procedures.
University Recycling Services
Access destruction services are intended to be used solely for the destruction of University records containing sensitive or personally identifiable information requiring secure and confidential shredding.
For paper documents and materials not requiring secure destruction, the University of Pittsburgh Facilities Management Department administers recycling services in most academic and athletic affiliated facilities on or near the Oakland campus. Visit recycling at the University of Pittsburgh for a list of applicable facilities and program details. Pitt departments can use this service to request recycling bins for their locations, or pickups of large quantities of paper material to be recycled, and are encourage to contact the Recycling Program at recycle@fm.pitt.edu or 412-624-9521.
